Stephen F. Austin
Texas State*
Lumberjacks Thump Texas State
1/25/2007 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Jan. 25, 2007
SAN MARCOS, Texas - The Stephen F. Austin Lumberjack basketball team rebounded from its first Southland Conference defeat Thursday by collecting an 82-62 road win over Texas State. The victory washed away the effects of last Thursday's 55-52 loss to Sam Houston State and improved SFA's season record to 12-6. The Lumberjacks are 5-1 in SLC play with three straight conference road wins.
The Lumberjack frontcourt dominated the game against the Bobcats at both ends of the floor. SFA outscored Texas State, 36-18, in the paint, led by centers Matt Kingsley and Antuane Miller. Miller, a senior, led all scorers with 23 points, while Kingsley, a sophomore, added 14 points. The two Lumberjack big men established their presence early as each player broke into double figures before halftime, both hitting 5-of-6 first-half shots.
"Our big men gave us a great effort tonight," SFA head coach Danny Kaspar said. "Texas State gave us some opportunities inside and we attacked them."
Texas State could find no answer on offense. The Bobcats, who came into the game with the second-best offensive output in the SLC, shot just 37 percent and scored 15 fewer points than their season average. Unable to get any scoring down low, Texas State fired off 21 3-pointers, connecting on just seven.
The strong inside game for the Lumberjacks led to an outstanding night in the shooting percentage column. SFA hit 65 percent from the floor - the Lumberjacks' second-best percentage of the year - including a 69.6-percent effort in the first half - SFA's best first-half percentage of the season.
Plagued by 22 turnovers in the loss to Sam Houston, the Lumberjacks feasted on Texas State's miscues Thursday night. SFA forced 13 Bobcat turnovers and converted them to 22 points.
SFA built a commanding lead with a big run late in the first half. The Lumberjacks held Texas State to just two field goals in the last 10 minutes of the half, as part of a 12-3 run that staked SFA to a 19-point advantage (42-23) with 1:56 to play. The Bobcats fared no better in the second half, as the Lumberjacks stretched the lead to as many as 27 points.
Senior guard Will Johnson and sophomore forward Josh Alexander narrowly missed breaking into double digits scoring, each player finishing with nine points. Senior guard Keith Hardaway added eight points.
The Lumberjacks outrebounded Texas State, 33-29, behind five boards each from Alexander and junior forward Kyle Jacobs. Johnson pulled down four rebounds and led all players with a career-high five assists.
The Lumberjacks will return to action Saturday, when SFA hosts Texas-Arlington. The game against the Mavericks is set for a 6 p.m. start in the William R. Johnson Coliseum. Texas-Arlington knocked off Sam Houston, 78-65, Thursday to improve to 6-13 on the year and 2-5 in league play.
- SFA -
