NACOGDOCHES, Texas – Stephen F. Austin clamped down defensively on HBU using a late burst to hold off the Huskies, 61-51, in Southland Conference men's basketball Saturday afternoon at William R. Johnson Coliseum.
Senior guard
Reveal Chukwujekwu led HBU (5-7, 1-1 SLC) with 19 points and matched his career high with 14 rebounds. Sophomore guard
Braxton Bonds added seven points and six steals, senior forward
Colter Lasher was held to seven points, while junior center
Josh Ibarra had six points and 10 boards.
TJ Holyfield posted a double-double for SFA (6-7, 1-0) with 14 points and 12 rebounds, while Isaiah Traylor had 12 points off the bench. Kevon Harris pitched in with 10 points, five rebounds, four steals and a pair of blocks.
SFA shot 42.2 percent from the field, 35.7 percent (5-for-14) from 3-point range and made 18-of-23 from the free-throw line, while holding HBU to 31.4 percent from the field, only 20.0 percent (3-for-15) from deep and 16-for-23 from the line. The Huskies edged the Lumberjacks in rebounds, 34-33, and each team turned the ball over 20 times.
After three scoreless minutes, Chukwujekwu got HBU on the board first, following a missed layup by Bonds with a thunderous putback dunk, but Traylor quickly answered with a drive for a layup on the other end. Traylor sank a pair of free throws, but the Huskies scored the next seven as senior forward
Cody Stetler found Lasher for a corner three, Bonds made one-of-two free throws and junior guard
Will Gates Jr. converted a three-point play after a reverse layup to build an 11-4 lead.
HBU led 15-10 after a jumper by Lasher, but SFA scored the next five to tie the score with 8:57 to go. Sophomore guard
Asa Cantwell drilled a three from the corner to regain the lead for the Huskies, but a layup by Holyfield and a three by Traylor put the Lumberjacks ahead, 20-18, with just under six minutes left. Cantwell was ejected at the 5:32 mark, but Holyfield made only one-of-two of the technical free throws. Chukwujekwu tied it with a three-point play, but Dallas Cameron answered with a jumper. Chukwujekwu knocked down a triple to put HBU back up by one, but neither team made a field goal over the final three minutes, trading free throws and going into the break tied, 26-26.
Chukwujekwu had a double-double for HBU by halftime with 10 points and 10 rebounds, while Traylor led SFA with nine points and Holyfield had 10 rebounds going into the locker room.
Charles scored the Lumberjacks' first five points of the second half as they took a four-point lead, but back-to-back layups by Ibarra and senior forward
Atif Russell knotted it back up. Holyfield's three-point play at the 15:17 mark gave SFA a 36-33 lead, but Chukwujekwu sank a 13-footer and one-of-two from the line. Layups by Gilmore and Harris put SFA up by four at the midway point of the second half, but freshman guard
Jalen Weber found Chukwujekwu cutting to the basket for layup. Traylor answered with a three, then Gilmore broke free for a dunk to cap a 9-2 spurt for a seven-point SFA advantage with 7:32 left.
The Huskies trailed by eight with six minutes remaining, until Bonds and Chukwujekwu each knocked down a pair of free throws. Cameron buried a jumper, but Ibarra answered with a sweeping hook across the lane. Ivan Canete's floater restored SFA's lead to eight with two minutes to go and the Lumberjacks took care of the lead the rest of the way.
The Huskies return to action for their conference home opener against Southeastern Louisiana Thursday at 7 p.m. in Sharp Gym.
