Kats look to even score with ACU
2/24/2017 12:59:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Game 29
Saturday, Feb. 25 • Huntsville • 6:15 p.m. CT • Bernard G. Johnson Coliseum (6,100)
Sam Houston State (18-10, 9-6 Southland) vs Abilene Christian (12-14, 6-9 Southland)
Live Stats • @BearkatsMBB on Twitter • ESPN3 • Listen on KSAM • Root Sports
HUNTSVILLE – Revenge will be on the mind of the Sam Houston State Bearkats on Saturday when they host Abilene Christian at Bernard G. Johnson Coliseum.
The Wildcats snapped the Kats eight-game win streak on Feb. 4 in Abilene, a loss that started a skid of defeats in four of Sam Houston's last five games. Coach Jason Hooten's squad will be looking to rectify that on the Bearkats' home floor on Saturday where the Kats are 13-1 this season.
Saturday's game will be aired live on the ESPN3 online platform and can be viewed on the Watch ESPN app. Randy Mcilvoy will have the call with Adam Wexler providing analysis.
Fans can also listen live on KSAM 101.7 FM and get updates via Twitter by following @BearkatsMBB.
With just three games left in the regular season for the Bearkats, the picture for the Southland Conference Tournament is slowly coming into focus. With its win over Stephen F. Austin on Thursday, New Orleans now holds a 2-game lead over the Lumberjacks and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi for league title; however, the rest of the seeds are certainly up for grabs. If it started today, the Kats would go to Katy as the No. 5 seed due to Houston Baptist holding the tiebreaker.
ACU has split its four games since defeating the Bearkats three weeks ago, but is just 3-10 away from Abilene this season. The Wildcats did pick up their first road win in league play last week when they knocked off McNeese in Lake Charles, but are most recently coming off a 56-44 loss to Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Wednesday at home.
SERIES vs ABILENE CHRISTIAN
ACU had yet to defeat the Bearkats in five games since joining Division I, but picked up that first win on Feb. 4 in Abilene, snapping SHSU's 8-game win streak. Former Division II league foes, SHSU and ACU had not played since the Kats left for Division I in 1986 until ACU joined the Southland for the 2013-14 season. Sam Houston has not dropped a game to the Wildcats in Huntsville since the 1979-80 season.
BEARKAT BYTES
- Sam Houston has been stellar at Bernard G. Johnson Coliseum this season, posting a 13-1 mark on its home floor with its lone loss there coming in the SLC opener to Houston Baptist on December 29. The Kats are 52-10 (.838) at home since 2013-14 and with wins over ACU and McNeese in the home finale, they would finish 15-1 at home. The last 1-loss home season came in 2009-10 when the Kats went 13-1, and a potential 15-1 mark would be the best since going 15-0 in 2002-03. Sam Houston finished each of those seasons with a berth into the NCAA Tournament.
- Sam Houston saw its 8-game win streak come to an end the last time they played Abilene Christian on February 4. Still, the 8 consecutive conference wins was tied for the longest SLC win streak for the Kats in the Jason Hooten era. The 2014-15 squad also won 8 in a row on their way to a 26-9 overall mark and 15-3 record in league play.
- The 18 total wins by Sam Houston is the most in the Southland Conference this season.
- With its win over Southeastern Louisiana, Sam Houston finished with a 7-0 record in the month of January. It is the first undefeated January for the Kats since joining Division I.
- The Kats have reached the 70-point mark 21 times this season, going 17-4 in those games. Their first 2 losses when scoring at least 70 points came on the road early in the year at Ohio and Georgia Tech and recently in overtime at Lamar and at Houston Baptist.
- With 2 more wins this season the Kats would reach the 20-win mark for the 17th time in school history and the third time under Hooten, including 3 of the last 4 years. The 18 wins already equals its win total for all of the 2015-16 season.
