Box Score
ATHENS, Ga. – Led by RJ Smith with 14 points, four Bearkats reached double figures but it wasn't enough as the Sam Houston State men's basketball team fell to the Georgia Bulldogs, 75-64, Friday night at Stegeman Coliseum.
Cameron Delaney followed right behind Smith with 13 points and Chad Bowie and Josh Delaney tallied 10 apiece.
Knocking down two threes on the night, Josh Delaney collected his 148th career three-pointer and moved into eighth overall in program history for career treys. He moved past Boney Watson, who collected 147 from 1996-2000.
Sam Houston, who shot just seven free throws on the night, was plagued by fouls and allowed 29 points from the Georgia free-throw line.
Going back-and-forth throughout the opening 20 minutes, the first half saw six lead changes and six tied scores. Cameron Delaney led the Kats in the first with 13 points in a 4-for-6 effort from the field while William Jackson II led the Bulldogs with seven points.
Georgia's Nicolas Claxton opened up the game with a pair of free throws and an early layup before Cameron Delaney put up the Bearkats' first points on a trey beyond the three-point arc. Following two more Bulldog free throws, back-to-back buckets from Chad Bowie and Delaney gave Sam Houston its first lead of the night at 7-6.
However, Georgia answered back with four unanswered points to retake the lead. The Bearkats tied up the game twice with a layup from Josh Delaney and trey from RJ Smith. After a pair of free throws from Jackson II gave the Bulldogs a two-point separation, the Bearkats ran off on a seven-point run that saw layups from Kai Mitchell and Cameron Delaney, as well as Josh Delaney's 147th career three-pointer.
The Bulldogs and Bearkats swapped three-pointers and a four-point run by Georgia cut Sam Houston's lead down to one point. The fouls started flying with six minutes to go and the lead swung three separate times from the free-throw line.
Mitchell responded to a 4-0 Georgia run at the 2:30 mark with the Kats first field goal in five minutes. The Bulldogs knocked down a quick five points and with one second remaining in the half, Cameron Delaney used one free throw to cut into Georgia's lead, 38-33.
Sam Houston forced seven Bulldog turnovers and both teams stood at an even 12 field goals and 19 rebounds at the halfway mark.
Marcus Harris got the Bearkats rolling in the second half and Bowie's first three-pointer of the season tied up the game at 38 points apiece. A layup from Nutall just 30 seconds later gave Sam Houston a one-possession lead but a seven-point run for the Bulldogs put Sam Houston in a five-point deficit at 45-40.
The Bearkats reclaimed the lead with a seven-point run of their own but five consecutive Bulldog free throws gave Georgia a 50-47 advantage at the 10:40 mark.
Josh Delaney's 148th career three-pointer and Smith's second trey of the night swung the lead back in favor of the Bearkats and Zaqwaun Matthews got in on the scoring action with a bucket under the basket to put Sam Houston up five points with just under eight minutes remaining.
However, the Georgia offense came alive and scored 11 unanswered points before Bowie broke up the momentum with a layup after four scoreless minutes for the Bearkats.
As the Bearkats trailed 61-57, Georgia scored eight points off of free throws in the final two and a half minutes to go along with three field goals.
Almanza drained a trey in the corner with eight seconds to go, but the Bearkats' efforts fell short as the final buzzer sounded and Sam Houston dropped its fifth game of the season, 75-64. With the loss, the Bearkats drop to 2-3 overall on the season.
Coming Up Next
The Bearkats hit the road for Johnson City, Tenn., where the squad will take on Jackson State on Monday, Nov. 19 at 3 p.m. Sam Houston will wrap up its run in the Cayman Island Classic on Tuesday against either East Tennessee State or Chicago State. For more information on the Sam Houston State men's basketball team, visit gobearkats.com or follow @BearkatsMBB on Twitter.
