Stephen F. Austin
6-1
North Dakota State
3-3
'Jacks' Punishing Defensive Effort Wears Out North Dakota State in 54-50 Win
11/28/2017 10:13:00 PM | Men's Basketball
SFA emerges victorious in a grind-it-out defensive battle over Bison
NACOGDOCHES, Texas - Neither offensive performance submitted by Stephen F. Austin and North Dakota State in the non-conference men's basketball clash between the two squads Wednesday night would ever be put in the pantheon of all-time bests.
What was highlight-reel worthy, however, was the defensive pressure cooker the 'Jacks put their Summit League adversaries in for a 40-minute span that left the Bison thoroughly cooked.
Leon Gilmore III submitted a 10-point, 10-rebound double-double, Shannon Bogues pumped in a game-high 15 points and the team of them teamed with the rest of the 'Jacks to make life miserable for North Dakota State in a 54-50 victory inside William R. Johnson Coliseum.
Taking great pride in taking care of the basketball, the Bison headed into Nacogdoches averaging just 11.4 turnovers per game, but the 'Jacks took their foes from the north well out of their comfort zone with a haranguing defensive effort that resulted in 28 turnovers. Those throwaways loomed large during a tilt in which neither team shot above 38.5-percent.
"Make no mistake, this was a gritty, slimy, hard-fought win tonight," SFA head coach Kyle Keller exhaled following the conclusion of the tilt. "In order to win, we knew we had to take them out of their set plays. North Dakota State is so polished on offense, they would absolutely pick us apart if we let them run their sets. Fortunately, we came out and played the best 40 minutes of defense during my time here so far."
The Bison drilled only 38.3-percent of their field goal tries and while SFA's accuracy mark stood at only 32.7-percent (17-of-52) the home team finished with a +12 advantage in free throws made (18-6) and racked up 13 steals to get the job done. TJ Holyfield and Kevon Harris added seven points each and a combined 10 rebounds for the 'Jacks while Ivan Canete went for six points. Sophomore John Comeaux racked up a game-high four of SFA's 13 steals.
There wasn't much the Bison could accomplish in the opening half with the 'Jacks' staunch defense standing in its way. The only lead North Dakota State obtained in that stretch came when the Bison answered Harris' game-opening three-pointer with a flurry of five points to go up 5-3 with 17:31 left.
Harris single-handedly kept the Bison at bay early, netting the 'Jacks' first seven points before his teammates came to his aid. Making his first appearnace on the hardwood for SFA in the 2017-18 campaign, senior Ty Charles splashed a midrange jumper on his first shot attempt of the year before dishing to Bogues for another midrange pull-up score that pushed SFA ahead 11-7.
North Dakota State's Jared Samuelson connected on the first of his three first-half triples that cut the 'Jacks' lead to 15-14 with 10:27 remaining in the opening frame before the 'Jacks placed an almost impenetrable lid on the Bison basket. For the next 7:17, North Dakota State was held without a field goal and thanks to their defense, the 'Jacks' offense sprang to life.
During an 11-1 SFA run, Leon Gilmore III put in a pair of layups as well as a free throw to help the home team go up 27-17 with 3:18 remaining in the frame. Following Gilmore III's free throw make, the North Dakota State offense finally snapped out of its funk.
Samuelson canned another pair of three-pointers sandwiched around a free throw make by Paul Miller that trimmed the 'Jacks' lead all the way down to 27-24 with 2:02 left in the frame.
Finally the 'Jacks halted the Bison surge when Bogues drilled a pair of free throw tries in the closing seconds of the half to give the home team a 28-24 lead. North Dakota State answered a Gilmore III layup to begin the second half with a 7-0 run to take a 31-30 lead but Canete's smooth jumper sparked a 6-0 SFA run that ensured the home team wouldnt trail again.
During a 10-2 run that pushed the 'Jacks' lead to 46-36 with 6:11 remaining, Bogues asserted himself on offense by hammering down a dunk and adding two more close-range scores as well as a pair of free throws.
No lead, however, was safe as the Bison began heating up from three-point range as the half wore down. AJ Jacobson splashed two triples in the span of 1:11 that trimmed the 'Jacks' edge down to 46-42 with 4:33 left before Holyfield took over on offense.
SFA's junior put in a pair of free throws and added a big-time three-pointer from the top of the key that helped the 'Jacks reestablish a 51-44 lead with 3:02 to go before the Bison made things interesting.
Unable to hit a field goal after Holyfield's three-pointer, SFA was held to only three free throw makes the rest of the way. Canete provided the two biggest ones of the night when he answered a long trey from Miller with a pair of game-clinching makes at the foul line with three seconds to go which accounted for the final margin.
Miller put in 15 for North Dakota State while Samuelson added 14 for the Bison.
Remaining at home, the 'Jacks next challenge comes in the form of Louisiana-Monroe who is set to pay a visit to William R. Johnson Coliseum Saturday afternoon for a 3:30 p.m. showdown.
-SFA-
