Texas A&M-Corpus Christi defeated the University of New Orleans Privateers 74-61 in the Southland Conference quarterfinals on March 9. The Islanders, seeded fourth, held off a second-half comeback by the fifth-seeded Privateers to advance in the tournament.
The game was marked by a strong first half from Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, who led by as many as 16 points late in the opening period. However, New Orleans narrowed the gap after a flagrant foul on Daniel Michelini-Jackson led to a five-point swing, bringing the halftime score to 37-30 in favor of the Islanders.
In the second half, New Orleans briefly took the lead following a dunk by TJ Cope and a three-pointer from Coleton Benson. Despite this momentum shift, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi responded with an eight-point run and maintained control for the remainder of the game. Michelini-Jackson led all scorers with a career-high 28 points and eight rebounds for the Islanders.
For New Orleans, MJ Thomas recorded his seventh double-double of the season with 17 points and 14 rebounds. Benson also scored 17 points and set a new school record for three-pointers made in a single season with 86. Jakevion Buckley broke another school record by finishing with 179 assists for the year.
Rebounding proved decisive as Texas A&M-Corpus Christi outrebounded New Orleans 41-29 and outscored them on second-chance points by a margin of 24-11. The Privateers concluded their season with an improvement of eleven wins over last year—the second-best turnaround in program history.
