Stephen F. Austin
rv/rv Miami
Nicholas Nears Double-Double in Battle at rv/rv Miami
11/13/2018 8:21:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Sophomore turns in team-high 17 points and adds seven rebounds
CORAL GABLES, Fla. - In its first road action of the 2018-19 campaign, the SFA men's basketball team fell behind by 21 points at the break and went on to drop a 96-58 decision to the Hurricanes Tuesday night at the Watsco Center.
In the program's third matchup against an ACC adversary, the 'Jacks ran into a Miami squad that drilled 37 of its 68 shots (54.4-percent) and committed only eight throwaways on the night.
First Half
• The only tie of the game - aside from the 0-0 score prior to tip-off - came when graduate student Davonte Fitzgerald connected on a runner in the lane 1:56 in to answer a layup by the Hurricanes.
• SFA remained within four points of their ACC adversary after Kevon Harris connected for a put-back layup with 13:16 left in the frame to make matters 14-10, but the Hurricanes opened things up after that.
• Using a 10-0 run over the span of 2:55 consisting of three-pointers from Dejan Vasiljevic and Zach Johnson as well as a pair of layups by Anthony Lawrence, Miami opened up a 24-10 lead.
• From there, the 'Canes' edge never dipped below double-digits.
• Most of the damage Miami did came as a result of nine SFA turnovers. The Hurricanes turned those throwaways into 18 of their 53 first-half points.
• At the break, three of the Hurricanes' five starters had reached double-digits in the scoring column. Ebuka Izundu had a game-best 12 at the half, Lawrence II accumulated 11 while Lykes finished with 10 through the opening 20 minutes.
• Sophomore Karl Nicholas came off the bench and netted six points for the 'Jacks while Shannon Bogues finished with a team-high eight at the break.
• After forcing 20 or more turnovers through their first two games of the season, the 'Jacks could not get the Hurricanes to cough up the ball in the opening half. Miami finished the frame with zero throwaways, marking the first time the Hurricanes didn't commit a turnover in the first half since Feb. 15, 2014 against Virginia Tech.
• The 'Canes held a 21-point lead at the break, 53-32, and shot .561/.400/.500 while limiting the 'Jacks to shooting splits of .467/.200/.750 in the frame.
Second Half
• The only points SFA posted through the first 5:44 of the second half came when Nicholas put in a layup off of an assist from Harris 50 seconds into the frame.
• After that layup, Miami scored 11 unanswered to open up a 32-point lead, 66-34, with 14:38 left.
• The Hurricanes' lead grew to as large as 40 points when Zach Johnson's three-pointer with 33 ticks left made matters 96-56.
• Nicholas continued his strong play from the opening half, netting another seven points through the final 20 minutes of action reach double-digits.
• SFA's defensive intensity was turned up a notch through the final 20 minutes as the 'Jacks forced all seven of the Hurricanes' turnovers through the last frame.
• Though the 'Jacks were finally able to force some turnovers, the Hurricanes still didn't cool off from the field. Miami put up a shooting split of .519/.625/.625 in the second half.
Key Performers/Statistics of Note
• SFA lost for the first time in 2018-19 and is now 0-3 all-time against opponents from the ACC.
• Nicholas totaled a team-high 17 points while Bogues amassed 14 on 5-of-10 shooting from the field. Nicholas also snared seven rebounds while junior Nathan Bain turned in a team-high eight.
• For the Hurricanes, Izundu finished with a 22-point, 17-rebound double-double to lead a group of five Hurricanes in double figures. Lykes totaled 20 points while Lawrence, Vasiljebvic and Johnson registered 18, 17 and 15 respectively.
• Miami netted 30 points off of 19 SFA turnovers and outscored the 'Jacks 46-34 in the painted area.
Coming Up Next
• After a break of almost exactly one week, the 'Jacks return to Nacogdoches for two home games over the span of five days. First up is a date with MAAC adversary Marist who visits William R. Johnson Coliseum for the first time ever. Tip-off between the 'Jacks and Red Foxes is set for 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 20.
-SFA-
