Men tangle with HBU on TV Saturday at 4:35
1/30/2015 2:39:00 PM | Men's Basketball
For the fourth time this season, the Sam Houston State men's basketball team will play before live television cameras Saturday when the Bearkats play host to Houston Baptist.
The contest at SHSU's Bernard G. Johnson Coliseum which tips off at 4:35 p.m. will be telecast throughout the nation on ESPN3.
The 2015 Bearkats are off to Sam Houston's best men's basketball start since the 2010 Southland Conference championship team opened 19-5 for the year and 11-1 in league action.
Sam Houston comes into Saturday's game with a 15-5 overall record and are 9-1 in Southland play. Keys to the team's success are a balanced offensive attack and outstanding defense.
Seven players average more than seven points a game. DeMarcus Gatlin (12.4 ppg), Jabari Peters (11.5 ppg) and Paul Baxter (10.8 ppg) average in double figures in Southland play. Kaheem Ransom (9.5 ppg), Dakarai Henderson (8.6 ppg), Michael Holyfield (9.0 ppg), Paul Baxter (8.6) and Aurimas Majauskas (7.4) also add to the Bearkats offense.
Eleven Kat players have scored in double figures in games this season. Five players totaled double figures in Sam Houston's 80-63 victory at Abilene Christian Monday night. The SHSU men have had five other Southland games in which three or more players have totaled double figures.
Sam Houston leads the Southland Conference in scoring defense (61.0 ppg), scoring margin (+14.7) and field goal percentage defense (.386) this season. The Bearkats also top the league in rebounding (42.2) and rebounding margin (+8.9). Holyfield, Sam Houston's 6-11 senior center, stands third in the Southland in rebounding (8.0) and leads the conference in blocked shots (50).
Houston Baptist comes to Johnson Coliseum on a three-game winning streak after home wins over New Orleans, Central Arkansas and Lamar. The team stands 9-8 for the year and 4-3 in Southland action.
Anthony Odunsi, a 6-4 guard, leads HBU in scoring with a 12.0 average. He has scored in double figures in each of the Huskies' last seven games.
Sophomore forward Colter Lasher averages 11.6 points and 4.2 rebounds per game. Freshman center Josh Ibarra is ranked among the NCAA's top 10 freshmen in both block shots (2.44 per game) and rebounds (7.0 per game).
Sam Houston leads the all-time series with HBU 12 victories to seven. Last year the Bearkats defeated the Huskies 81-63 in Houston.
