Jacks Survive A&M-CC in Thriller, Advance to SLC Title Game

Tuesday, March 10

Lake Charles, La.

6:00 PM

Stephen F. Austin

28-4,20-2Southland

Texas A&M - Corpus Christi

18-15,13-9Southland

A&M-Corpus Christi

SFA

Photo by: Elisabeth Thornquist

Jacks Survive A&M-CC in Thriller, Advance to SLC Title Game

3/10/2026 11:25:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

Thompson’s steal and finish for go-ahead bucket caps strong second-half run

LAKE CHARLES, La. – Southland Conference Player of the Year Keon Thompson jumped in front of a Texas A&M-Corpus Christi pass and raced three quarters of the court inside Townsley Law Arena and finished off glass for a go-ahead bucket with 12.3 seconds remaining and moments later a last-second, second-chance top-of-the-key look at the win for the Islanders was off the mark as the Jacks survived 60-58 to advance to Wednesday's Southland Conference title game.

A&M-CC's Nicholas Shogbonyo, who was unable to get the Islanders' last shot to fall, knocked down a triple try to tie the game at 58 with 2:03 to play. On the next Islanders' possession, SLC Defensive Player of the Year Jerald Colonel, who was earlier in the day named a finalist for the Lefty Driesell Division I Defensive Player of the Year, registered his fourth swat of the night to keep the tie intact before Thompson's theft and drive 60 seconds later.

Thompson's final bucket capped a 16-point half for the senior guard which delivered several other big shots down the stretch. He saw a floater fall for a three-point lead prior to the final media stoppage and then finished inside with the left hand to get the Jacks to 58. Thompson got downhill twice as part of three quick baskets out of the half and registered a crossbody finish on his second bucket as a quick six pulled SFA within 41-38.

Defensively, the Jacks buckled down in the second half forcing a multitude of empty possessions by the Islanders who, after making the first bucket of the second half 16 seconds into play, suffered through an 8:33 scoring drought. The first 2:50 of play in that drought saw SFA engineer an 8-0 run, shooting 4-of-4 from the floor, while forcing three turnovers through the first media stoppage at the 15-minute mark.

Chrishawn Christmas finished with an up-and-under to pull within a point at 41-40 and the Jacks took the lead nearly 3:30 later as Thompson fed Colonel inside for the 42-41 advantage. The lead moved to three as Ahamed Mohammed forced a steal for an extra possession that concluded with a Chotikavanic step-back along the baseline. That was the final bucket on a 12-0 SFA run over 6:24 of play.

A&M-CC pulled within one of the lead at 44-43 to end the lengthy stretch without points, but Thompson responded with a midrange bucket before a streaking Christmas finished near the rim on a quick give from Colonel.

The Jacks then hit a scoring drought of their own that lasted a little over four minutes of play before Mohammed finished off-balance for a 50-47 lead with 5:51 remaining. The two sides traded baskets until Thompson's bucket inside to get the Jacks to 58.

The league's first semifinal game of the night featured a frantic start worthy of a contest with a title game berth on the line.

Texas A&M-CC carried a 6-5 lead into the first media stoppage which was prompted by an SFA timeout. Prior to the Islanders grabbing the lead, Lateef Patrick picked up a steal and dished cross court to Thompson who's second shot of the night was a transition three ball for a brief 5-4 advantage.

SFA forced a pair of A&M-CC shot clock violations in the early going, but the Islanders used a 6-0 run over 1:23 of play through the under-12 media and then used a corner three following the break to grow the lead to eight points at 15-7.

Both teams found success beyond the perimeter in the first half as the A&M-CC shot 71% from deep, as part of a 69.6% effort from the floor in the opening twenty, with five makes in seven attempts, while SFA matched the Islanders in makes in two more attempts including one from Kam Burton that pulled the Jacks to within five of the Corpus advantage.

Patrick delivered 11 first half points with a finish through paint contact on a fast break bringing the Jacks to within a bucket of the A&M-CC lead at 18-16 with the under-8 media looming. The Jacks survived two offensive boards by the Islanders on the following possession and Patrick netted a three off a drive and dish by Thompson to put the Jacks out front 19-18.

A Patrick bucket again pulled SFA to within a possession of the Islanders at the 5:14 mark and again with 4:05 remaining before the intermission with his second three of the night off an assist by Christmas to the corner.

Thompson followed with a drive, spin and finish through the harm to pull the Jacks to within a point of the Islanders' advantage and prompt the media. Following the stoppage, Thompson tied the game at 29. That effort was part of a 6-0 Jacks run over just 35 seconds of play.

Chotikavanic tied the game after a Thompson takeaway as his triple try evened the contest at 32. A&M-CC responded and closed the half on a 7-0 run which was accompanied by an SFA scoreless stretch of nearly 2:30 minutes.

POSTGAME NOTES

The Jacks advance to Wednesday's title game with an NCAA Tournament berth on the line
It is the 28^th win for SFA this season; tied for the fifth-most wins in a single season
Tuesday's victory is the third over the Islanders this season after winning 69-60 on December 17 in Nacogdoches and 78-68 on February 16 in Corpus Christi
It is a fourth-straight win over A&M-CC and a 25th for SFA in the all-time series
The victory is the program's 17th SLC tournament win all-time and evens the program's record in SLC tournament play at 17-17
The contest featured eight lead changes and five ties with seven lead changes and four ties coming in the first half
SFA finished +11 in turnovers committing just two of their six in the second half
With that, the Jacks went +18 in points off turnovers
The Jacks were outrebounded 36-25
A&M-CC shot 47% from beyond-the-arc
The Jacks hit five first-half threes as both teams shot well from beyond-the-arc in the first half, but was unable to net any of its seven attempts in the second half
Thompson finished with 24 points, his 12^th such game this campaign, on 10-of-16 shooting with six rebounds, five assists and three steals
Patrick scored 13 points with six rebounds, three steals and two assists
Christmas went for six and six with an assist and steal
Colonel added four points, two rebounds and four blocks

UP NEXT
The Jacks advance to Wednesday's SLC championship game where an NCAA Tournament berth is on the line against (2) McNeese and (3) UTRGV. Tip-off on ESPN2 is set for 4 p.m. Additional live coverage links are available at www.SFAjacks.com.

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#AxeEm x #WinTogether