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DENTON — Atin Wright made a game-winning three-pointer to conclude an 18-point recovery as the UNT men’s basketball squad commenced American competition with a 78-75 triumph over the defending league tournament champion UAB at the Super Pit on Tuesday.

North Texas (10-3, 1-0) was behind by 18 in the closing moments of the first half and returned from intermission down 17. Early in the second half, the Mean Green focused intensively on defense and embarked on an 11-0 run to narrow the gap. Senior Latrell Jossell sank one three-pointer after another, totaling a single game season-high of six and concluding the match with 20 points, marking his 10th career 20-point game.

With 3:57 remaining in the match, UNT seized its first advantage since the beginning of the first half when senior Johnathan Massie completed a layup to give North Texas a 71-69 lead.

From that moment, the game fluctuated continuously, but the final attempt was made by Wright who successfully made his contested three-pointer as time expired. Wright ended the game with a top score of 22 points and was perfect with 11-11 from the free throw line.

“It truly was a story of two halves,” head coach Ross Hodge remarked. “We’ve gone head-to-head with these guys numerous times over the years, and it’s challenging to articulate just how physical they are when driving the basketball and their level of aggressiveness. We honed in defensively and began to secure rebounds and make stops.”

Next for UNT will be a visit to No. 21 Memphis on January 5. The Mean Green is striving for their first road victory against a top 25 team since 1971.