Stephen F. Austin
Texas A&M Corpus Christi
SFA Cruises Past Islanders
3/5/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
March 5, 2008
NACOGDOCHES, Texas - Josh Alexander scored 20 points, Gerald Fonzie threw in some timely long-range buckets, and the Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks turned in a solid second half defensively to take a 71-56 win over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Wednesday in SFA's home finale.
The win improves SFA to 24-4 overall with a 12-3 record in the Southland Conference and keeps the Lumberjacks' hopes of an SLC championship alive with one game to play. SFA leads the SLC West Division, but East Division foe Lamar holds the conference's overall lead by a game over the Lumberjacks with two contests remaining.
A&M-Corpus (8-20, 3-11) made a game of it early Wednesday, shooting 72.2 percent in the first half, and trailed by only seven (32-25) with 3:53 left in the first half. But Alexander hit a pair of free throws to stretch the Lumberjack lead to nine then jump-started the SFA defense with a trio of steals over the next two minutes, punctuating each theft with a fast-break dunk.
In all, SFA finished the half on a 12-7 run, capped by a buzzer-beating three from Fonzie, a senior playing in his last home game, and the Lumberjacks took a 44-32 advantage to the locker room.
The second half picked up where the first left off, with Fonzie knocking down triples and the Lumberjacks playing better defense. The senior guard opened the second period on fire, hitting three straight 3-pointers to score SFA's first nine points and stake his team to a 53-34 lead.
Meanwhile, the Lumberjacks held A&M-Corpus to 39 percent shooting in the second half, and the Islanders never recovered from Fonzie's quick onslaught. For its part, SFA shot just 33 percent in the second period and 45 percent for the game, but the Lumberjacks beat A&M-Corpus, 33-26, on the boards, including a 16-5 edge on the offensive glass. SFA outscored the Islanders, 13-4, in second-chance points and finished with a 20-5 edge in points off turnovers. The Lumberjacks forced 13 A&M-Corpus turnovers, while giving it up just five times themselves. Sophomore point guard Eric Bell finished with seven assists and no turnovers.
Fonzie had 16 points, leading the Senior Night charge as he, Kyle Jacobs and Scott Weaver played their last home game in the William R. Johnson Coliseum. Fonzie added three steals to his stat line. Weaver finished with four points, three rebounds - all on offense - and an assist, while Jacobs sank a free throw and pulled down three boards. Junior center Matt Kingsley joined Alexander and Fonzie in double figures with 16 points and pulled down six rebounds. Alexander had a team-high eight boards to go along with his 20 points.
The Lumberjacks will wrap up the regular season Saturday when they play Texas-San Antonio on the road. The game is set for a 2 p.m. tip from San Antonio's Convocation Center. With a win in the finale, coupled with a Lamar loss in either of the Cardinals' two remaining games, the Lumberjacks will earn a share of the first SLC championship in program history and will enter the league's postseason tournament as the No. 1 overall seed.
-- SFA --
