Before the game each of the five seniors were recognized for their time at UW and were presented a framed jersey. Each one walked out to center court with their families and each were given a round of applause.
The Wyoming men’s basketball team was able to send their seniors off right, with a 76-53 win over the Utah State Aggies. All five of the seniors on the team started the game for the Cowboys and each of them played 20 or more minutes in the game.
“This team worked hard and focused for this game and played their tails off. I am very happy for the whole team especially happy for the seniors and even happier because the people they love the most were able to be here on this special night for them,” head coach Larry Shyatt said.
The Cowboys got their 17th win at the Dome of Doom, which is now a new single-season record. Coach Shyatt got his 100th win as the Cowboys head coach. He was mobbed by each of his players as they presented a special game ball.
The Cowboys began the game shooting the ball 83.3 percent from the field in the first 10 minutes of the game. Wyoming did cool off a bit and shot 50 percent from the field in the first. Wyoming had 13 assists on 14 buckets in the half. The Cowboys forced eight Aggies turnovers and turned those into 11 points. Junior guard Josh Adams had 14 points and senior forward Larry Nance, Jr. had 13 points at half time. The Pokes led 40-30.
This was another game where the second half was very similar to the first. Every senior except for one scored in the second half, but the one was not forgotten. The entire student section was chanting senior guard Jack Bentz’s name, hoping he would get a bucket. He got six assists in the game. Senior forward Derek Cooke Jr. shot and made his first career three ball, with fellow senior Charles Hankerson Jr. almost getting a technical foul on the sideline because he was so excited for his teammate. The Pokes won the game 76-53.
“I love the fan support, I love everybody in the crowd, all the guys on my team. You could just feel the energy in the arena. It just goes to show that we created a culture here. We made a legacy here,” Cooke, Jr. said.
All five seniors got to be in the press conference and could not be happier for each other. Each one joking with one another, while Hankerson was taking video for his Snapchat. They could not stop interrupting each other to say something good about their teammates.
“I am just privileged to play basketball, to have a senior night and to play with these fellas for four years, some of them three,” senior guard Riley Grabau said.
The Cowboys will play their final regular season game of the season on Saturday. The Cowboys will head down south to The Pit where they will face off against New Mexico at 6 p.m. MT in Albuquerque.
