Kats gets an important away win in Wilmington

WILMINGTON, North Carolina – Sam Houston withstood a barrage of 3-pointers to close out the Live Oak Bank Holiday Classic 82-78 on Saturday at Trask Coliseum.

The Bearkats went 1-2 in the three-team tournament, which also included two losses to host UNCW on Friday and Appalachian State on Wednesday. Lamar Wilkerson Sam Houston led the way with 17 points and Burn Burns And Dorian Finister each contributed 15 points.

The game was hard fought from the start as neither team was able to make up ground.

At halftime, the Bearkats held a modest two-point lead. Wilkerson hit a deep 3 to give Sam Houston a 43-40 lead just before Huefner scored from long range after a defensive stop three minutes into the second period. Colgate simply answered with 3s, keeping the Raiders in the game and allowing them to retake the lead at 50-49.

The rest of the way it was just back and forth. Every time the Bearkats took a three-point lead, Colgate hit a 3-point shot on the other end and finished the game 12-for-32.

Sam Houston found itself trailing again, 63-62 Josiah Hammons was fouled while shooting a 3. He made every free throw to put the Kats back on top, and Finister was able to hit two free throws moments later for a 67-63 lead.

It was a more productive shooting night for Sam Houston than Friday’s loss to UNCW, as the team shot 52 percent from the floor.

The Bearkats got off to a much better start on both ends of the floor. Kalifa Sakho had a pair of dunks and Wilkerson knocked down a mid-range jumper to take a 6-0 lead. The Raiders finally made it onto the court, but Hammons drilled a three-pointer in the opening minutes to make it 9-3.

Colgate struggled to get to one just to see it Kian Scroggins Drop two free throws to bring the game back to three points. The Raiders responded with a 5-0 run and took their first lead.

Sam Houston continued to push back. Finister hit a 3 to cut the lead to 19-18, and Cameron Huefner forced a turnover to help Scroggins tie the game with a free throw. Unfortunately, Colgate continued its hot streak from behind the arc, using one of its six 3s in the first half to regain the lead and advance as many as four.

The Bearkats got a shot in the arm from Wilkerson, who hit a three-pointer to make it 24-0. The Raiders hit one at the other end to take the lead back, but Eric Taylor scored five straight points, including a 3 to tie the game at 29.

Burns made a great play when he scored on a layup to give Sam Houston the lead, 33-31, for the first time since the opening minutes. Sakho was able to sink two free throws in the final seconds of the half to take a narrow lead of 35:33 at the break.

The Bearkats will complete this four-game road swing with a matchup against No. 14 Indiana on Tuesday at Assembly Hall in Bloomington.

Read the full article