Bearkats gear up for SFA in the finals
3/12/2010 5:42:00 PM | Men's Basketball
KATY - It is always a heated game when these two rivals hit the floor. On Saturday, however, there will a lot more on the line than just bragging rights.
Sam Houston State will face Stephen F. Austin in the championship of the Southland Conference Tournament with trip to the NCAA Tournament at stake.
"It should be a great basketball game," SHSU head coach Bob Marlin said. "They have a nice team. They won their division and it is kind of ironic we are ending our season playing three games against the East."
This will be just the second matchup of the season between the two rivals. The only other meeting of the year was on January 9, when the Kats pulled out a 66-57 victory, the first of 11 straight to start Southland play.
In that game Gilberto Clavell led the Kats with 21 points and 12 rebounds and Josten Crow had 14 points and 14 rebounds. But Marlin noted in the press conference that it has been more than two months since the two teams faced each other.
"It has been quite a while," Marlin said. "We were not real excited about the way we played in that opener and we are looking forward to Saturday."
This will be the fourth time SHSU and SFA have meet in the Southland Conference Tournament. They last met in 2006 where the Bearkats were 78-72 winners over the Lumberjacks. SFA knocked the Kats out of the postseason in 2004 with an 85-53 win.
This will be the first time they have faced each other on a neutral floor.
"This is the way it is supposed to be with the two winningest coaches going against each other," SHSU senior Corey Allmond said.
The only other time they met in the finals was in front of a capacity crowd in Huntsville in 2003. Donald Cole was the hero for the Kats that afternoon, hitting a 3-pointer with 18 seconds remaining in overtime that proved to be the game-winner.
This will be the Bearkat third trip to the championship game, losing to Northwestern State in the 2006 final. The Bearkats own a 10-11 record in the Southland Conference Tournament.
SOUTHLAND TOURNAMENT TICKET INFORMATION
Tickets for Saturday's Sam Houston vs. SFA finals matchup in the State Farm Southland Conference Post-Season Classic tournament are now on sale.
The winner of the Southland tournament earns the league's automatic berth in the 2010 NCAA Big Dance.
The contest tips at 3 p.m. Saturday at the Merrell Center in Katy, Texas.
A limited amount of tickets for Saturday's game remain in the Sam Houston section.
These tickets are on sale now online at www.gobearkats.com on a first-come, first-served basis. Go to Southland Tournament Central for more information.
Seats in all other sections at the Merrell Center are on sale online now at www.southland.org or will be on sale at the gate at the Merrell Center in Katy.
Sam Houston State students will be admitted FREE on presentation of their BearkatOne Card ID.
Championship day tickets are $15.
