By Gene Schallenberg - The Huntsville Item
It may not have been the prettiest game, but in the end, the Bearkat women did enough in the final minutes to come away with another victory.
In a game in which both teams had a series of runs throughout, it was Sam Houston State that got key baskets and defensive stops to prevail with a 67-55 victory over Grambling State on Monday night, maintaining its perfect record at home this season.
"At the beginning of the game, we were shooting our shots and they weren't falling," said Bearkats sophomore post Sequeena Thomas, who led all scorers with 22 points and collected a game-high 15 rebounds. "Coach (Brenda Nichols) just told us to take it to the hole. That's how we got our lead and kept it."
Bearkats sophomore guard Chanice Smith and sophomore forward Britni Martin also finished in double figures, scoring 13 and 12 points, respectively.
In the early going, Sam Houston, which improved to 6-3 on the season, had a dogfight on its hands, particularly because the Kats were not shooting well. Through the first eight minutes, SHSU made just five of its first 13 shots and trailed Grambling 18-14.
"We just had to pick our intensity up because they were outhustling us and outplaying us," Thomas said. "We had to grab boards. We made that adjustment and went from there."
That's when the defense took over, holding the Tigers (3-5) from making a field goal through the final 12 minutes of the first half.
While the Bearkats went into the break with the lead, a 10-point cushion was hardly comfortable.
In the beginning of the second period, the Tigers kept getting rebounds and second-chance opportunities. Within the first six minutes, Grambling had erased the Kats' double-digit deficit and had taken a 38-37 lead with a little more than 14 minutes to play.
With Grambling suddenly ahead, the Bearkats caught fire and started making mid- to long-range shots.
On the next few possessions, Martin, a 35 percent shooter from 3-point range who missed all five shots from beyond the arc in the first half, swished three 3s to give the Kats a 46-44 lead with a little more than 10 minutes to play.
Once again, the defense stepped up, holding Grambling to three field goals in the final 10 minutes.
The Bearkats were also able to keep getting the ball inside and capitalize, either making shots in the post or converting free throws.
"We just got back to boxing out, grabbing boards and taking it to the hole so that when they foul us, we would go to the line for free throws," Thomas added.
Sam Houston's success at the free-throw line in the final few minutes proved to be enough to keep the Tigers from inching closer. The Bearkats sunk 8 of 12 from the charity stripe to keep some distance between them and Grambling and held on for the win.
The Kats head to Denton for a game against North Texas on Wednesday. Sam Houston returns home on Saturday when they host Houston Baptist at 1 p.m., which will be the first of an afternoon doubleheader at Johnson Coliseum.
Following the Bearkat women's game against HBU, the SHSU men will take the court against Cleveland State at 3:30 p.m.
