Bearkat men play host to Nicholls Monday night
1/17/2016 8:24:00 PM | Men's Basketball
SOUTHLAND CONFERENCE MEN'S BASKETBALL
Sam Houston (9-9, Southland 4-1) vs. Nicholls (5-13, SLC 1-3)
Bernard G. Johnson Coliseum - 6:30 p.m.
Radio: KSAM 101.7 FM
Live Statistics: OnLine Link
Tickets: On sale online at www.gobearkats.com
BEARKATS VERSUS COLONELS ALL-TIME SERIES
Sam Houston and Nicholls meet for the 51st time Monday. The Bearkats lead the all-time series 28-22. Sam Houston has won six of the last eight meetings including a 62-39 victory in Thibodaux last year.
NICHOLLS SCOUTING REPORT
The Colonels are closing out a three-game Texas road swing Monday. Nicholls lost to Houston Baptist last Wednesday 78-69 and at A&M-Corpus Christi 76-71 Saturday. Ja'Dante' Frye, who averages 16.6 points per game, is the squad's leading scorer and top rebounder (5.4). Guard T. J. Carpenter also scores in double figures with a 12.1 mean.
COWBOYS END KAT WINNING STREAK
McNeese State handed the Bearkats their first Southland loss of the season Saturday in Lake Charles, winning 72-68. The Cowboys jumped out to a 17-point lead in the first half. Sam Houston battled back to take a 52-49 leads with 12 minutes remaining but could not hold off a red-hot McNeese squad. Aurimas Majauskas posted a season high 24 points to led the Kats in scoring.
SOUTHLAND LEADERS
Aurimas Majauskas and Dakarai Henderson rank 11th and 15th in scoring in the Southland with respective averages of 14.7 and 13.4 points. Torry Butler is the league's seventh-leading rebounder with 6.6 boards per contest. Jamal Williams stands seventh in the league in assists with 4.6 per game this season.
SAM HOUSTON AT JOHNSON COLISEUM
The Bearkats own a 5-2 record at Johnson Coliseum this season and stand 2-0 on their home court in Southland Conference play. Sam Houston has won four home games in a row, defeating Sul Ross 109-61 and LeTourneau 96-54 in non-league action and Southland foes New Orleans 73-70 and Southeastern Louisiana 70-63.
THREE 2015 RESERVES NOW IN STARTING ROLES
Aurimas Majauskas, a 6-8 junior post player who was the back-up to Southland “Defensive Player of the Year” Michael Holyfield last season; Dakarai Henderson, a 6-2 junior guard who was the first player off the bench in 2015 and Jamal Williams, a 6-4 sophomore guard who also was a key reserve, all have stepped into starting roles this season. Majauskas and Williams has started every game and Henderson has started all but one contest. The trio has accounted for 37.2 of Sam Houston's 75.4 points per game this season. Majauskas leads the team with a 14.7 average and Henderson adds 13.4 per game. Majauskas has scored in double figures 12 times and Henderson 11. Williams has taken over as the Kats' point guard. He leads the team with 4.6 assists per contest.
NEWCOMERS MAKING THEIR MARK
Transfers Jovante' Spivey, Jalin Barnes and Torry Butler are combining for 19.9 points and 11.7 rebounds per contest. Butler is the team's rebound leader with 6.6 boards per game.
RED-SHIRT FRESHMEN MAKING BIG CONTRIBUTIONS
Two red-shirt freshman are making important contributions coming off the bench. Forward Albert Almanza is averaging 6.1 points and 3.6 points per game. Guard Josh Delaney adds 6.2 points and is 25-of-59 from three-point range this year.
CHALLENGING NON-CONFERENCE SCHEDULE
Road games at SMU, California, Texas Tech, UTEP and North Texas and a tournament match-up with UC-Irvine made up the Bearkats' challenging non-conference schedule. Sam Houston completed pre-Southland play with a 5-8 record. Sam Houston defeated Bethune-Cookman 71-46 in Las Vegas, picked up a road victory at LIU-Brooklyn 75-69 and took Southern Illinois to overtime at home in other action against NCAA Division I opponents.
COACH JASON HOOTEN SAYS
“Hopefully our players learned Saturday at McNeese that you have to come out ready to get after it defensively every time out in the Southland Conference. We're a team and we have to have everyone playing hard to succeed. The maturity level of this group has grown a lot during the last couple of months. We have to bounce back and continue to play with intensity to succeed.”
