Stephen F. Austin Wears Down Sam Houston State in 68-46 Win
By Brandon C. Williams
Southland.org
KATY, Texas
-- In typical Stephen F. Austin fashion, Wednesday's 68-46 victory over Sam
Houston State was a display of coach Danny Kaspar's team methodically wearing
down an opponent, with defense serving as the foundation of the Lumberjacks'
success.
SFA (20-11)
played up to its role as the second-seed, forcing 16 turnovers that resulted in
29 points for the Lumberjacks, who shot 59 percent from the field in the second
half to break open a 29-22 halftime margin. With the victory, SFA earned a trip
to Thursday's semifinal, where they will play either Lamar or Northwestern
Louisiana.
"We got
behind because they are so methodical offensively," said Sam Houston State
coach Jason Hooten, whose squad finishes the season with a 13-19 record.
Hooten said
he opened the Bearkats with a 2-3 zone in an effort to give the Lumberjacks a
different look than they had seen in two previous wins over Sam Houston State
in the regular season. Despite playing with just eight scholarship players, the
curveball kept SFA off-balance throughout much of the first half as the
Bearkats held a 20-19 lead before Hal Bateman's basket at the 3:33 mark gave
SFA the lead for good.
"I thought
they took it to us a little bit harder than we did to them," said Kaspar of Sam
Houston's effort in the first half. "They played for a knockout blow, but we
regained our composure."
The
Lumberjacks led by 11 early in the second half before the Bearkats amassed a
run that closed them to within 38-34 on a Marcus James basket with 14:31
remaining. It would be as close as Sam Houston State would come, as SFA marched
on a 13-1 run that was capped by a pair of free throws from Darius Gardner, one
of three Lumberjacks players with 13 points.
"At that
point, we had gotten to where we had given it a lot," Hooten said.
Sam Houston
State, which had struggled with scoring throughout much of the season, was not
able to find the mark with much success in the second half, shooting just 40
percent from the field. SFA also succeeded in keeping the Bearkats from hitting
the glass, limiting them to just 22 total rebounds on the afternoon.
The
Lumberjacks shot 56 percent in the second half, riding the hot hand of Gardner
who hit all three of his 3-point attempts. SFA also got 13 points each from
Jonathan King and Antonio Bostic to go along with nine points and seven
rebounds from Taylor Smith off the bench.
Smith filled
in admirably for Jereal Scott, who was sidelined briefly in the first half with
a leg injury, but came back to add nine points and three boards.
"There's not
a lot of negatives to talk about when you win by 22," said Kaspar.
Postgame
Quotes
Stephen
F. Austin head coach Danny Kaspar
Opening
statement...
"I thought we played very well in the second half. We did an okay
job in the first half. I thought [Sam Houston State] took it to us a little bit
harder in the first half. They tried to give us what I call a 'knockout blow,'
but we gained out composure and got that lead going in the second half. There's
not a lot of negative things to talk about when you win a game by 22, but I was
a little concerned about the number of turnovers we had, especially late in the
game. But a win is a win, and we are going to take it and go with."
On
what he told the players at halftime...
"I told them that they started to play better the last 10 minutes
of the first half than the first 10 minutes. We felt like we needed to get a
jump on them to start the next half. How you end a first half and start the
second half is very important. We just wanted to keep playing defense the way
we were."
On
beating Sam Houston State three times this season...
"[Sam Houston State] came out real aggressive. It was a very
physical game and my team had all the motivation because beating a very good
team three times is very difficult. We were motivated because this was our 20th
win of the year."
Stephen
F. Austin junior forward Jonathan King
On
the first half play versus the second half play of SFA...
"In the first half, we didn't come in with the energy that we
needed to come in with and they dominated us. In the second half, we just came
with the energy and came to play in order to get it done."
Stephen
F. Austin sophomore guard Darius Gardner
On
his play...
It's about coming into the game with confidence. Coach just tells
us to spot up, and I worked on my jumper all during the off-season. So when I
feel like I need to step through, I just let it go."
Sam
Houston State head coach Jason Hooten
Opening
statement...
"First of all, I want to congratulate Stephen F. Austin. It wasn't
a lack of our effort, today, those guys were just better than we were. It is
hard in sports to admit when someone outplays you, but they outplayed us and
they beat us three times in one season, which you have to give SFA credit for
that. But our kids fought, and they have fought all year long."
Sam
Houston State junior guard Konner Tucker
On
Stephen F. Austin's defense...
"They are a good defensive team, and we knew that going into the
game. We just have to give them credit for the way they played us. I had a
couple of open shots but I just couldn't knock them down, but that is just how
it goes sometimes."