Lumberjacks visit Johnson Coliseum Wednesday
1/25/2011 8:27:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Sam Houston vs. Stephen F. Austin - Wednesday, Jan. 26, 2011
Bernard G. Johnson Coliseum - Huntsville, Texas - 7 p.m.
Radio: KSAM 101.7 FM; Streaming Video: www.gobearkats.com
SAM HOUSTON STATE BEARKATS
Overall Record: Won 9, Lost 9 Southland Record: Won 2, Lost 3
Head Coach: Jason Hooten (Tarleton State, 1993)
Top Scorers: Gilberto Clavell, 6-7 Sr., 19.9 points
Josten Crow, 6-4 Sr., 13.1 points
Marcus Williams, 5-10 Jr., 8.8 points
STEPHEN F. AUSTIN LUMBERJACKS
Overall Record: Won 11, Lost 5, Southland Record: Won 2, Lost 2
Head Coach: Danny Kaspar (North Texas, 1978)
Top Scorers: Jordan Glynn, 6-7 senior, 12.1 points
Jereal Scott, 6-7 junior, 11.5 points
REMATCH OF LAST YEAR'S SOUTHLAND CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
Sam Houston and Stephen F. Austin last met in the finals of the 2010 Southland Conference post-season tournament in Katy with the Bearkats rolling over the Jacks 64-48 to earn an NCAA berth vs. Baylor in New Orleans. The Kats need a home victory to jump back into the race for first place in the Southland Conference West Division. At 2-3 in league action, Sam Houston is just one game out of first.
VILLAS ON SYCAMORE $10,000 SHOT
The Kat-Jack "Piney Woods" matchup January 26 is The Villas On Sycamore "Spirit Night" with great prizes up for grabs by students who compete in a contest to show their Bearkat spirit. Prizes include a Sony Bloggie video recorder, a Coolpix S4000 touch screen digital camera and an iPad. The first place contestant will take a half court shot for $10,000 during a timeout in the second half. Click for more information on the Villas on Sycamore "Spirit Night" contest.
SERIES RECORD WITH LUMBERJACKS
Sam Houston holds a narrow 92-91 edge in the all-time men's basketball series with the Lumberjacks. The Bearkats defeated SFA 66-57 in Huntsville in the Southland opener for both teams in 2010 then won again 64-48 in the finals of the Southland tournament in Katy. Stephen F. Austin's last victory over Sam Houston was a 75-73 nail-biter in Nacogdoches in 2009.
GILBERTO CLAVELL LIGHTING IT UP
Senior 6-7 forward Gilberto Clavell is the Southland's second-leading scorer (19.9 points) and stands fifth in the league in rebounding (7.5). He has scored in double figures in 17 of the Kats' 18 contests this year.
With 921 career points in 50 games since transferring to Sam Houston from Collin Country Community College, Clavell is 79 points away from becoming the first junior college transfer to score 1,000 career points for the Bearkats in two years of action at the NCAA Division I level.
Clavell is averaging 17.8 points per game as a starter for the Kats, totaling double figures in 43 of his 51 appearances. He has earned Southland "Player of the Week" honors twice this year and five times as a Bearkat.
Donald Cole, the Southland "Player of the Year" in 2003, totaled 984 points in his two years as a Bearkat. Corey Allmond, the three-point shooting wonder from last year's championship team, totaled 979 career points.
BEARKAT SENIOR LEADERS
Clavell and fellow seniors Josten Crow and Lance Pevehouse are the co-captains and leaders of the 2011 Sam Houston squad. Crow is the only four-year player on the team. The 6-4 forward has scored 639 points in 102 career games. Pevehouse is in his third season at SHSU with 592 career points in 80 appearances.
Both Crow and Pevehouse have earned the bachelor's degrees and are now doing post-graduate work.
Clavell was Southland Conference "Newcomer of the Year" and an All-Southland Tournament performer. Crow ranked No. 1 in the Southland and No. 2 nationally in assist/turnover ratio. Pevehouse has provided a consistent perimeter scoring threat for the past three years.
CLOSE GAMES
While Sam Houston stands 9-9, the Bearkats have been in almost every contest they've lost. The Kats held leads in eight of their nine contests. The margins in SHSU's three Southland losses have been seven points, four points and two points.
LAST GAME
Despite a season high 30-point performance from 6-7 senior forward Gilberto Clavell, the Sam Houston men's basketball team fell 70-68 to Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Saturday Jan. 22.
The Islanders were led by Garland Judkins with 17 points. The game was close from wire to wire and was tied 31-31 at intermission. Sam Houston's biggest lead was six points as Nafis Richardson scored on a jumper to put the Kats up 47-41 with 12:31 to play in the game.
A free throw by Clavell gave Sam Houston its final leader as the Kats went up 65-63 with 3:22 remaining. Hollis Hill hit jump shots with 2:09 and 1:28 to play to put the Islanders ahead to stay 69-65. Marcus Williams was the only other Bearkat in double figures, scoring 13 points. Lance Pevehouse added eight points.
SAM HOUSTON POSTED 7-6 NON-CONFERENCE MARK
Sam Houston completed the non-conference portion of its 2010-11 schedule with a 7-6 record. The Bearkats posted NCAA Division I victories over Florida International, Colorado State and North Texas. The men lost two close games with defending Conference USA tournament champion University of Houston, falling 75-71 in overtime in Huntsville and 75-73 at Houston. The Kats also held leads in losses to Cleveland State in Huntsville and Air Force and UTEP in El Paso.
JASON HOOTEN TAKES OVER BEARKAT PROGRAM
Jason Hooten, assistant coach for Sam Houston State the past six years, is the Bearkats' new head men's basketball coach. Hooten succeeds Bob Marlin who coached the Kats to a 225-131 record the past 12 seasons. Marlin now is head coach at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette.
In his six seasons with the Bearkats, Hooten has played a major role in directing the program to a 127-59 record, four 20-plus victory seasons, Southland Conference regular season and tournament championships and an NCAA tournament appearance in 2010. The 25-8 record for Sam Houston in 2009-10 marks the highest victory total for a Bearkat squad in SHSU's 23 seasons at the NCAA Division I level. SHSU stands as one of only 52 programs out of the 340 teams in Division I basketball that have posted 20 or more wins four of the last five years.
OTHER RETURNING BEARKATS PLAY IMPORTANT ROLES
Three other players who played a major role in the championship season as reserves also return.
Drae Murray, a 5-10 junior guard, ranked No. 3 in the Southland in assists (4.0) last year as the backup to All-Southland point guard Ashton Mitchell. Murray is averaging 5.1 points and ranks No. 5 this season in the Southland in assists (4.1).
Antuan Bootle , 6-7 junior center, led the Bearkats in rebounding (6.3) during Southland action last year. This season Bootle is averaging 4.9 points and 5.2 rebounds.
Aaron Thompson, a 6-9 sophomore center who is a skilled shooter, adds 2.8 points and 2.2 rebounds this season.
BEARKAT NEWCOMERS
To fill the gap left by the graduation of All-Southland Conference guards Corey Allmond (15.8 points) and Ashton Mitchell (12.4) points and senior forward Preston Brown (9.1 points), Hooten added three junior college transfers.
Marcus Williams, a 5-10 guard from Cochise College in Douglas, Ariz. , is Sam Houston's third-leading scorer this year with 8.7 points per game. He averages 4.0 assists.
Nafis Richardson, a 6-2 guard from McLennan Community College, is averaging 6.2 points per game this season.
Marcus James, a 6-7 forward Marcus James from Seward County in Kansas owns 4.5 scoring and 5.1 rebounding means.
Last season Williams averaged 20.3 points, Richardson 14.4, and James 12.3 in junior college action.
PRESEASON SOUTHLAND CONFERENCE POLL
Stephen F. Austin and Nicholls are the favorites to win the West and East Divisions, respectively, according to the annual preseason poll of the Southland's head coaches.
Defending regular season and tournament champion Sam Houston was predicted to finish as the West Division runner-up, followed in order by Texas State, A&M-Corpus Christi, UTSA and UT-Arlington.
TICKET INFORMATION
Tickets for all Sam Houston State home athletic events are on sale now online at www.gobearkats.com/tickets or at the SHSU Athletic Ticket Office located in the Ron Mafrige Field House at Bowers Stadium. Ticket office hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. The ticket office telephone is (936) 294-1764.
