Men take on North Texas Tuesday in Denton
12/28/2015 5:44:00 PM | Men's Basketball
When Sam Houston takes on North Texas in Denton Tuesday night at 7 p.m., the Bearkat men's basketball team will lower the curtain on one part of the 2015-16 and look forward to the start of a second part.
The Eagles are the final opponent on the Sam men's non-conference schedule. Saturday, the Kats open their Southland Conference schedule at Incarnate Word.
“Whatever our non-conference record is after Tuesday, next Saturday when we go to San Antonio, we're going to be 0-0,” Sam Houston head coach Jason Hooten said. “You wipe the slate clean when conference play begins. Non-conference and conference definitely are two different seasons.”
Sam Houston stands 5-7 heading into the tilt with the Mean Green. The Bearkats fell twice at the Sun Bowl Classic in El Paso, falling to UC-Irvine and UTEP after three consecutive victories.
“In our last game against UTEP, we weren't getting back on defense in transition,” Hooten said. “That's something we can fix. Our goal during non-conference play has been to get better every game.”
Aurimas Majauskas, Dakarai Henderson and Jamal Williams, Sam Houston's three returning veterans from last year's 26-9 team, are leading this year's squad. Majauskas averages 14.3 points and 5.7 rebounds and Henderson added 13.5 points a game.
Last year's Kats finished as the Southland's runner-up in regular season action and reached the Southland tournament finals. Four starters (who all earned All-Southland honors) were seniors in 2015. The fifth starter, Paul Baxter, and junior college transfer Ameer Jackson both have been lost for the 2016 season due to injuries.
Williams has taken over as the Bearkats point guard. The 6-4 sophomore is averaging 8.8 points and 4.7 rebounds and has assisted on 42 baskets while making only 17 turnovers.
“Jamal continues to improve at point guard for us,” Hooten said. “As he gets better our team is going to get better. It's what we have to do. He's been making good decisions. His assist to turnover ratio is good.”
Hooten, whose squad has faced a challenging non-conference slate that has pitted the Kats against nationally-ranked SMU and California along with other top programs, knows his team faces another tough challenge Tuesday.
“North Texas is a very good team,” Hooten said. “They're as talented as anyone we've faced this year. This is another opportunity to get better.”
The Eagles defeated the only other Southland Conference team they have played this year, knocking off Nicholls 78-60. Ja'Michal Reese, a 6-1 freshman, leads North Texas with 14.4 points per game. Other top scorers include 6-7 sophomore Jeremy Combs (13.3 points, 8.9 rebounds) and 6-4 guard Deckie Johnson (13.2 points per game).
North Texas and Sam Houston are playing for the 139th time in a series which the Eagles lead 78 victories to 60. The pair last played in a home-and-home series with Sam Houston wining 94-74 in Huntsville in 2010-11 and the Eagles taking a 53-50 win in Denton in 2011-12.
“You always have to take each game one at a time,” Hooten said. “This is our final tune-up before conference. No matter what, this Saturday in San Antonio, we'll be 0-0.”
Following the trip to San Antonio and the Kats' second Southland contest against Northwestern State in Natchitoches, La., on Monday, Sam Houston will play host to New Orleans Saturday, Jan. 9, at 4:30 p.m. at Bernard G. Johnson Coliseum in the team's first home Southland encounter.
