Kats rally for 69-60 win over McNeese
For the second consecutive game senior guard Jabari Peters shouldered the scoring load for the Sam Houston State men's basketball team, leading them to a 69-60 win over McNeese State at Johnson Coliseum Saturday. Peters tied his season-high point total, from one game ago, of 21 points.
The Bearkats, who had to rally from a halftime deficit, have now won eight straight games and improve to 5-0 in Southland play.
“That was a tough win and a hard-fought game by both teams,” Bearkat head coach Jason Hooten said. “We knew that they would come in here and play well. I thought at times we weren't as sharp as we've been but you've got to give them credit. They were hard to guard and they spread the floor and go one-on-one and that's always tough to matchup.”
Peters had a great start to the game, hitting 5-of-7 shots and leading all scorers with 14 points at halftime. He hit a pair of three-pointers and completed a four-point play that helped the Kats jump out to an early 9-3 lead.
McNeese rallied furiously though, erasing an eight-point SHSU lead and grabbing a 30-29 lead at halftime. Kevin Hardy gave the Cowboys their first lead of the game with a three-pointer with 5:30 left in the first half.
Hardy finished with a team-high 18 points and nine rebounds. Desharick Guidry added 16 points and nine rebounds before fouling out of the game. Jamaya Burr also scored 10 points for the Cowboys.
With the Cowboys leading 29-26 and the clock winding down, Dakarai Henderson nailed a three-pointer to tie the game 29-29. Henderson had missed his first four shots of the game before hitting the clutch trey. He finished with five points and three rebounds.
McNeese would make one free throw just before half to take the advantage into the locker room. The lead changed hands a total of five times in the first half.
Paul Baxter opened the second half with a three-pointer to restore Sam Houston's lead but it would be a tight game until very late. Baxter scored 14 points for the Kats.
The two teams exchanged baskets before a DeMarcus Gatlin layup gave SHSU a 40-38 lead. Gatlin finished with 12 points in the game and made 6-of-8 from the charity stripe.
After Gatlin's layup both teams went cold. It was nearly four minutes before Peters made a layup for the Kats on an inbound play.
The game remained close but the Bearkats never trailed the rest of the way. Sam Houston had as much as a 12 point lead in the final minutes. The Kats made 9-of-10 free throws to close out the game.
Michael Holyfield scored 11 points and pulled down 11 rebounds for his third double-double of the season.
Next up for the Kats is a matchup at Nicholls State Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. Sam Houston will then be back at Johnson Coliseum Saturday to host league-favorites Stephen F. Austin.
