Box Score
CLEMSON, S.C. – The Sam Houston State men's basketball team (2-2) claimed the lead on four separate occasions, but two big Clemson runs in the second half were too much for the Bearkats as the squad fell to the No. 19 ranked Tigers 74-59, Wednesday night at Littlejohn Coliseum.
Kai Mitchell, who reached double digits for the second time this season, paced the squad with 14 points and six field goals. Josh Delaney was the other Bearkat to reach double figures as he knocked down 11 points.
The first half was a constant battle between the two squads. Mitchell opened up the game with a jumper in the short corner. A three-point play from Clemson's Marcquise Reed gave the Tigers the lead just 30 seconds later but Chad Bowie sunk a pair of free-throws shortly after to give Sam Houston a narrow 4-3 lead.
The teams traded buckets before Clemson took off on an 8-0 run to put the Bearkats in an eight-point deficit. After staying silent for five full minutes, freshman Zach Nutall ended the Sam Houston scoring drought with the Bearkats' first three-pointer of the night at the 12:27 mark. Josh Delaney followed up in the next minute with a trey of his own to make it a two-possession game at 17-13.
The Sam Houston defense, which forced seven turnovers in the first half, buckled down and prevented a Tiger field goal for six minutes until Reed and Elijah Thomas put up four quick points.
Making his first appearance of the season Bubba Furlong drew a Clemson foul shortly after he entered the game. He stepped up to the stripe and made one of two free throws and both Delaneys recorded short-range jumpers to send Sam Houston on a 5-0 run with seven minutes remaining.
A three-pointer from Clemson's David Skara ended the Tigers' nearly four-minute dry spell and he and Mitchell traded off four points before back-to-back buckets from Albert Almanza and Nutall cut Clemson's lead down to two points.
With just 43 seconds Almanza gave the Kats a one-point lead on an impressive four-point play in which he was fouled beyond the three-point arc. However, a late three-pointer for the Tigers was enough for Clemson to retake the lead, 32-30, just before halftime.
Clemson was the first to draw blood coming out of the break, but Mitchell fought back with his fifth bucket on the night. The Tigers tried to create separation with a three-pointer but clutch, back-to-back three-pointers from Cameron Delaney and RJ Smith gave Sam Houston six quick points, as well as a 38-37 lead.
After the Tigers answered with a layup and two free throws, Smith evened up the game at 41 points apiece with his second consecutive trey. Despite closing the gap, the Tigers went on a 12-0 run over the span of two and a half minutes.
Sam Houston responded with back-to-back threes from Smith and Josh Delaney, but the Clemson offense went off once again with nine unanswered points.
Bowie broke up the late run with his sixth point of the night, but the Bearkats couldn't make up ground and dropped its second game of the season by a score of 74-59. Led by Smith with a team-high five boards, Sam Houston tallied 29 rebounds and forced 12 Tiger turnovers.
Coming Up Next
The Bearkats continue action in the Cayman Island Classic with a 6 p.m. matchup at Georgia on Friday, Nov. 16. Live stats, as well as a live stream, will be available for the contest. For all the latest information on the Sam Houston State men's basketball team, visit gobearkats.com or follow @BearkatsMBB on Twitter.
