HBU Huskies (10-14, 6-7 SLC) at Sam Houston State Bearkats (18-9, 13-1 SLC)
Saturday, Feb. 23 – 7 p.m.
Johnson Coliseum – Huntsville, Texas
TV (Matt Pedersen)
Radio (Husky Sports Network/Lonnie King)
Live Stats
Game Notes
HUNTSVILLE, Texas – Riding a three-game win streak and having won five of its last six games, the HBU men's basketball team will head north on I-45 this Saturday to Johnson Coliseum to face first place Sam Houston State at 7:00 p.m. Husky fans can listen to all the action on the Husky Sports Network with Lonnie King providing play-by-play commentary, available at HBUHuskies.com. The game will also be available via ESPN+.
When the two teams met on January 19 in Sharp Gym, HBU (10-14, 6-7 SLC) took a two point lead into the half and held the lead with less than 10 minutes to go but Sam Houston State (18-9, 13-1 SLC) closed the game by out-scoring the Huskies 23-16. The Huskies played that game without starting center, senior
Edward Hardt.
HBU went into that previous meeting having lost the previous three games. This go-round, the Huskies are riding a three-game winning streak and have won five of their last six outings. The last time out, HBU rolled to a 38-point win over Northwestern State, the program's largest margin of victory ever in a Southland Conference game and the largest against a Division I opponent since January 31, 1984.
Through the team's earlier six-game losing streak, the Huskies were averaging just 70.8 points per game but during this recent six-game stretch they are averaging 83.5 ppg. Additionally, the Huskies have been a solid rebounding team all season but have stepped it up a notch on the boards over the last two games with a plus-15.5 rebounds per game margin.
Sam Houston State dropped its first SLC game of the season two games ago, a 75-72 loss at Lamar, before pulling out an overtime victory at home against Nicholls, 84-74. Through their first 10 conference games the Bearkats out-scored opponents by 12.5 ppg but in their most recent four-game stretch that differential has shrunk to 3.2 as they have posted a 3-1 record but have gone to overtime once and double overtime in another.
Senior Cameron Delaney leads the Bearkats in scoring, averaging 15 ppg in SLC play while Kai Mitchell, a junior, Is second at 14.6 ppg and 7.6 rpg. Mitchell led all players with 18 points the last time HBU and SHSU met and pulled down nine rebounds. In conference play, the Bearkats boast a league-leading turnover margin of plus-3.5.
With five games left in the regular season, the Huskies are in a three-way tie for sixth place in the SLC standings along with Stephen F. Austin and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. Lamar sits a game-and-a-half ahead in five while Central Arkansas lurks just a game behind.
The Huskies will next travel to Beaumont, Texas for a midweek matchup against the Lamar Cardinals on Wednesday, Feb. 27, at the Montagne Center with tip-off at 7:00 p.m.
