Game Recap By Mason Nesbitt, TMU Sports Information Director

On some level, Kelvin Starr always worries about the condition in which his teams will return from a long layoff. Will they remain sharp? Will they sustain their fitness? Will they lose their edge?

Fresh off a 10-day break for Christmas, the Mustangs mitigated any rust with inspired play on defense, beating the University of Antelope Valley, 82-73, on Friday at TMU.

The No. 2-ranked Mustangs limited the Pioneers to 27 percent shooting in the first half and led by as many as 20 before a late Pioneer rally.

Darryl McDowell-White‘s dagger three-pointer pushed TMU’s lead back to 10 with 1 minute, 36 seconds remaining, and Brock Gardner‘s emphatic block at the other end kept it that way.

Hansel Atencia scored 19 points and McDowell-White added 18 for the Mustangs, who improved to 10-2. They will conclude the two-day Jersey Mike’s Holiday Classic on Saturday at 3 p.m. against the University of Saskatchewan (Canada).

This one was decided with a strong defensive performance in the game’s opening minutes.

“I thought defensively we were great,” said Starr. “If we do that all year, we’re going to win a lot of games.”

Said McDowell-White, “That’s what we do. We do it every day in practice. It was firing on all cylinders tonight.”

The Mustangs returned to campus on Dec. 26 for two days of practice. Starr said he was pleased with the intensity and fitness TMU showed in the gym, and it translated to Friday’s first half.

The Mustangs used their length and energy to force the Pioneers into difficult shots. UAV hit just 1-of-10 three-point tries over the first 20 minutes, and center Tim Soares‘ physical defense on Christian Drayton limited the talented big man’s output.

Drayton, who entered the day averaging a team-high 17.3 points a game, finished with six points on six shots.

The Mustangs shot just 41 percent themselves in the opening period, but the span wasn’t without its highlights.

With 11:11 on the clock, Jordan Starr lofted a wish toward the rim and Michael Taylor rose to finish the alley-oop pass with a dunk.

Ten minutes later, Starr snagged a rebound and tossed it to a streaking McDowell-White, who whipped the ball ahead to Atencia. Atencia flipped it behind his back to a waiting Delewis Johnson, and Johnson buried a three to give the Mustangs a 36-19 lead.

Johnson scored 11 of his 13 points before halftime. Jordan Starr finished with 12 points on 4-of-6 shooting from beyond the arc. Gardner added nine points, while Soares contributed seven points, seven rebounds and two blocks.

“We have so many options,” McDowell-White said.

Still, the Pioneers (2-10) managed to cut the deficit to single digits seven times in the final seven minutes by spreading TMU out defensively and attacking with dribble penetration.

“We were one step slow,” McDowell-White said.

Kane Keil’s 3-pointer capped an 8-0 Pioneer run that cut the Mustangs’ lead to nine with 6:47 to play. But moments later, Jordan Starr answered with a three-pointer from the top of the key.

And so it went. Chris Johnson nailed a 3-pointer to get Antelope Valley within seven with 2:10 to play. But McDowell-White connected from the corner to seal a victory on a night that was eerily familiar.

This meeting of schools located 45 miles apart was reminiscent of the first time they met this season. Namely, it was relatively low scoring and physical.

On Nov. 20 in Lancaster, the Mustangs pulled out a 74-66 victory. It was arguably TMU’s most cohesive defensive performance to that point — the Mustangs communicating and rotating at a high level.

This effort rivaled it.

“We came out tough and ready to go,” Starr said.