SAN ANTONIO – The HBU men's basketball team was unable overcome a late surge by Incarnate Word in falling 97-86 on Saturday afternoon inside McDermott Center.
Up 74-73 with 7:31 to go, the Cardinals (17-12, 12-6 SLC) rode an 11-1 run to take a 85-74 advantage and then turned in a perfect 12-for-12 showing at the free throw line over the final two minutes to hand the Huskies (16-15, 10-8 SLC) their fourth straight loss to close out the regular season.
Senior
Anthony Odunsi led HBU with 22 points, his 12th scoring performance of 20 points or more on the season. The native of Sugar Land, Texas, finished 8-for-14 from the field and 6-for-10 at the free throw line.
Senior
Jourdan Stickler paced the Huskies' perimeter shooting, recording a 4-for-4 showing for 12 points, while juniors
Colter Lasher and
Reveal Chukwujekwu chipped in 11 points each, respectfully. Chukwujekwu also recorded a team-high seven rebounds.
HBU shot 51.6 percent (32-62) from the field, 55.6 percent (10-18) from the 3-point line and 66.7 percent (12-18) at the line. UIW outscored the Huskies 14-0 in the fast break and 15-9 off turnovers.
Despite playing a highly contested first half, the Cardinals never trailed in taking a 51-47 advantage into the lockerrom.
Stickler (3-pointer) and junior
Cody Stetler (layup) combined for five points to give HBU its first lead of the game at 52-51 just 1:21 into the second half to force a timeout by UIW. Both teams then traded baskets to sit at 57-56 in favor of the Cardinals, before UIW used a 9-2 surge to go up by eight points at the 13:54 mark.
The Huskies kept it close and continued to chip away at the lead over the next few minutes, cutting it to at 74-73, before the Cardinals' offense caught fire down the stretch. Sophomore Shawn Johnson, who finished with a career-high 27 points, turned in 24 second-half points. Johnson knocked down all 10 of his free throw attempts over the final 1:17.
HBU, the No. 4 seed in the 2016 Southland Conference Tournament, will enjoy a first-round bye and will await to see who they will play in the second round on Thursday. The Huskies will play the winner of No. 5 seed Southeastern Louisiana and No. 8 seed New Orleans in a 5 p.m. tip broadcast on ESPN3.
