'Jacks Defeat Lopes to Make it 14 Straight Regular Season Conference Wins

Saturday, January 7

Nacogdoches, Texas

2:00 p.m.

Stephen F. Austin

12-5,4-0WAC

Grand Canyon

11-5,2-1WAC

Grand Canyon

SFA

'Jacks Defeat Lopes to Make it 14 Straight Regular Season Conference Wins

1/7/2023 4:22:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

By: Colby Jackson, SFA Student Assistant for Strategic Communications

NACOGDOCHES, Texas - Stephen F. Austin defeated Grand Canyon University 73-68 to win their sixth straight game and 14th consecutive regular season conference game. The Lumberjacks improve to 12-5 (4-0 WAC) and the Lopes fall to 11-5 (2-1 WAC).

The Lumberjacks continue their historic winning streak, while breaking up the Lopes winning streak. It was a defensive battle from the start as it took a minute and a half for any points to be put on the board. However, the Lopes came out firing, with their first three buckets coming from beyond the three-point line. It was a tight back-and-forth fight for the first 20 minutes of the game, as the biggest lead of the half came with 14 minutes remaining when the Lopes had a 13-6 lead. Momentum finally swung to the side of the Lumberjacks with 3:13 remaining when they finished the half with a 12-3 run. Robbie Armbrester played a major role in that run scoring six points, which consisted of a monster dunk that grew a major roar from the crowd, and the lay-up that finally gave the 'Jacks their first lead of the game at 32-31. The Lumberjack defense played a key role in the first half as a whole, as they outscore the Lopes in turnovers forced with 10-2. The Lopes took advantage of their free-throw opportunities, going a perfect 11-11 in the half.

The second half was full of runs and momentum swings. The 'Jacks carried the momentum from the first half into the beginning of the second, scoring five quick points out of the half. The next ten minutes that followed did not go as the Lumberjacks had planned as GCU went on a 18-6 run to take over the lead 52-49. The 'Jacks then tightened up their offense and responded to the Lopes run with one of their own, going 15-4 in the next seven minutes and retaking the lead once again 64-56. The last minute and a half were a matter of holding off the Lopes and making the free-throws when it mattered. That was no problem for AJ Cajuste, who made seven out of eight free-throws to hold a big enough lead to defeat the Lopes.

Cajuste's free-throws led him to player of the game, recording 15 points, two rebounds, and three assists. #42 Sadaidriene Hall put down 11 points along with five rebounds, an assist, a steal, and two blocks. Hall's #3 jersey got torn in the first half, forcing him to wear #42 the remainder of the game. Nigel Hawkins had another double-digit performance, going 2-3 from the three-point line and ten points overall on the day. Every Lumberjack had a day to remember, as every 'Jack that hit the court this afternoon was able to put up some points.

The Lumberjacks were able to outscore the Lopes in: field goal percentage (49.2-43.8), turnovers forced (16-9), bench points (27-18), blocks (5-2), fastbreak points (16-3), points in the paint (48-24), and second chance points (16-10).

The 'Jacks now hit the road for a three-game road trip starting with Utah Tech in St. George, Utah. Tipoff is scheduled for 8:00 p.m. on Thursday, January 12th.