Kats ready to host Piney Woods rival
1/31/2017 12:00:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Game 23
Thursday, Feb. 2 • Huntsville, Texas • 8:00 p.m. CT • Bernard G. Johnson Coliseum (6,100)
Sam Houston State (16-6, 7-2 Southland) vs Stephen F. Austin (11-10, 6-3 Southland)
Live Stats • @BearkatsMBB on Twitter • Listen on KSAM • American Sports Network
HUNTSVILLE – The Battle of the Piney Woods comes to the hardwood in Huntsville on Thursday when the league-leading Sam Houston State Bearkats take on rival Stephen F. Austin at Bernard G. Johnson Coliseum.
Thursday's game can be seen on the American Sports Network and online on Southland.org and on the Southland Conference app with David Saltzman and Jim Haller on the call. Fans with Direct TV can view the game on channel 681 while those with Dish Network can view on channel 413. Those in the Houston area can view locally on KEHO. A full list of channels can be viewed HERE.
The Kats pulled even with New Orleans for the top spot in the Southland Conference with its 71-69 win over Southeastern Louisiana, but thanks in part to the Lumberjacks doing their part by taking down the Privateers by 10 that same night in Nacogdoches.
The win was the seventh in a row for the Kats, their longest of the season, while SFA's win over UNO pulled them within a game of Sam Houston and New Orleans for the league lead.
PROMOTIONS
Thursday will mark the first Grow the Growl game of the spring semester and students can receive a free t-shirt courtesy of Rec Sports, Student Money Management Center and Bearkat OneCard. Make sure you attend all four Grow the Growl games this semester to be eligible for the grand prize of a PlayStation 4 and 49" flat screen TV from SHSU Online. Students are encouraged not to miss the halftime action as one lucky student will walk away with half a year's free rent to The Grove apartments during the Great Bearkat Shootout.
SERIES vs STEPHEN F. AUSTIN
The Kats trail the series 105-94 and will be looking to snap a 13-game skid against the Lumberjacks on Thursday, not having picked up a win vs SFA since taking two of three games in the 2010-11 season. Sam Houston has not beaten the 'Jacks in Huntsville since 2010, dropping 6 in a row at Bernard G. Johnson Coliseum.
BEARKAT BYTES
- The 16 total wins by Sam Houston are 4 more than any other team in the Southland Conference.
- Sam's win over Southeastern Louisiana gave the Kats a perfect 7-0 mark in January. It is the first time since Sam Houston joined the Division I ranks that it has put together a perfect month of January.
- John Dewey III was only 5-for-28 from long distance entering last week's game against Lamar, but went 6-for-9 in the Kats' last 2 games, putting up his two highest-scoring outputs of Southland Conference play.
- With a win over Southeastern Louisiana, Sam Houston would finish with a 7-0 record in the month of January. It would be the first undefeated January for the Kats since joining the Division I ranks.
- The Kats went just 11-for-66 (16.6%) from 3-point range in their first 3 league games, but have since found their stroke. In its last 3 games, Sam Houston is 25-for-46 (46.2%), including hitting a season-high 11 triples in its win at Northwestern State.
- In 9 conference games, the Bearkats have had five different players lead them in scoring.
- With 4 more wins this season the Kats would reach the 20-win mark for the 17th time in school history and the third time under Jason Hooten, including 3 of the last 4 years.
