HUNTSVILLE — Sam Houston could not take advantage of being back in the friendly confines of Johnson Coliseum as Liberty came away with a 76-68 victory on Thursday night.
The shorthanded Bearkats (7-9 overall) dropped to 0-3 in Conference USA play, marking the first time Sam Houston began league action with that record since the 1996-97 season. The loss also snapped a 17-game home conference winning streak dating back to the Western Athletic Conference during the 2022-23 season for the reigning CUSA regular season champions, who went a perfect 8-0 in Huntsville a year ago.
Lamar Wilkerson scored a team-high 25 points and just missed a double-double with nine rebounds.
Marcus Boykin added 16 points, and
Cameron Huefner finished with nine.
The Flames (13-2, 2-1) built off a two-point lead at the break to go up by as many as 10 at 51-41 eight minutes into the final period. Sam Houston kept fighting.
Boykin drained a 3 to cap a 13-3 run to tie the game at 54 four minutes later. Liberty made some key shots down the stretch to end any Bearkat comeback.
The first half was similar with both teams trading blows.
Jaxson Ford finished off an and one with a free throw to ignite a run as the Kats went up 15-11 midway through the opening period. The game was back and forth as the lead changed hands several times after that.
The Flames went up three with under eight to go, but Wilkerson drilled a 3 to tie it at 22. That was short lived, however, as Liberty used a 7-0 run to get some breathing room.
With 57 seconds, Huefner got the Kats right back in the mix with a 3 then he knocked down a jumper to give Sam Houston the lead at 33-32. The Flames managed to steal the advantage at the buzzer on a 3 just inside the halfcourt line to head into the break.
The Bearkats host FIU in game two of the homestand on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. The call will be on BSN and streamed online on ESPN+.
