Chotikavanic Completes ‘Jacks’ Rally with Trifecta in Waning Seconds

Friday, November 21

Malibu, Calif.

8:00 PM

Stephen F. Austin

5-1,0-0Southland

Pepperdine

3-3,0-0WCC

SFA

Pepperdine

Chotikavanic Completes ‘Jacks’ Rally with Trifecta in Waning Seconds

11/21/2025 11:04:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

SFA bounces back from Tuesday night loss, overcomes second-half deficit for fifth win

MALIBU, Calif. – Keon Thompson drove inside from near the top of the key, drew an immediate double with backside help, spun and delivered a tight helper to Narit Chotikavanic who sank his sixth three-point attempt of the night; this one with .6 seconds remaining as the 'Jacks completed a second-half comeback by outscoring host Pepperdine by 11 points in the final twenty of a 63-60 victory on Friday night inside Firestone Fieldhouse. The win moves SFA to 5-1 on the season, while the Waves fall to .500 at 3-3.

Chotikavanic's three-pointer capped a 7-0 Lumberjack run over the final 1:47 of play as SFA bookended the second half with scoring runs. The 'Jacks led 53-49, its largest lead of the game, at the 5:31 mark of the second half due to a triple try from Chotikavanic on a helper from Chrishawn Christmas. Just over two and a half minutes later, Christmas found Chotikavanic again as a fast break trifecta found net to even the game at 56 with 3:03 left.

After the Waves took a four-point lead as the clock dipped under two minutes, Thompson produced back-to-back bucket-scoring possessions, each on assists from Lateef Patrick Jr., to match Pepperdine at 60 with 66 seconds remaining before Chotikavanic's heroics capped SFA's erasure of an eight-point deficit at the intermission; a deficit that was at 14 with 2:49 to play in the half.

The start of the second twenty minutes saw Pepperdine's lead grow to ten points, before Kam Burton hit a pullup three and Christmas scored inside to cut deficit in half 75 seconds in. Thompson dunked, Colonel recorded a theft with a fast break finish lay in and then Chotikavanic took as assist from Thompson who collected a steal, and drained a lead-grabbing three-pointer at 36-35 three minutes and twenty seconds into the second half. SFA held the lead for over a ten-minute stretch in the frame.

POSTGAME NOTES

SFA wins on the road for the second time in three tries this season
The contest featured six tied scores and seven lead changes
Pepperdine made seven attempts from three for the game, but connected on just one in seven attempts in the second half
The 'Jacks attempted a season high 36 three-point attempts
SFA matched its season-best swipe effort with nine steals led by Chotikavanic's season-high five
The 'Jacks complete their California road swing 4-of-7 from the free throw line after attempting and making just one shot from the stripe in the win over the Waves
The 'Jacks took 18 more shots than the Waves
SFA finished +5 in turnovers, +4 in rebounding, +7 in points off turnovers, +8 in second chance points, +10 in paint points and +10 in assists
Four players accounted for three or more assists
Chotikavanic finished with a team-high 22 points on 8-of-17 shooting and a 50% trigger from three in a dozen attempts
Thompson finished with 10 points, eight rebounds, five assists and one steal
Patrick scored 11 points with four assists and three rebounds
Jerald Colonel grabbed seven rebounds and chipped in with four points, three assists, three blocks and two steals

UP NEXT
Upon returning to the Lone Star State, the 'Jacks prepare for a battle in Arlington with former WAC and SLC foe Texas-Arlington on Saturday, November 29. Tip-off from inside College Park Center is set for 2 p.m. SFA and UTA meet for the 66th time in a series that has the Mavericks currently holding a 34-31 advantage with a 22-10 mark at home. SFA has lost two straight against UTA including the WAC Tournament quarterfinals in 2024. Live coverage links are available at www.SFAjacks.com

#AxeEm x #WinTogether

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