Bearkats back on top

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Sam Houston forward Sequeena Thomas led the Bearkats to an easy 67-46 win over Southeastern Louisiana on Saturday. D.J. Shafer

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February 4, 2012

SHSU women lead West Division again after 67-46 win over Lions

By Brandon K. Scott Staff Reporter The Huntsville Item Sat Feb 04, 2012, 09:09 PM CST

HUNTSVILLE — The Bearkats got caught playing down to Southeastern Louisiana’s level in the first half, but a lights-out second half led to a 67-46 victory over the Lions on Saturday.

Sam Houston State turned the ball over 10 times, which resulted in nine Southeastern points at the break. That’s why the Lions trailed by only three at halftime, though they only shot 26.5 percent (9-of-34) from the floor.

Southeastern played even worse in the final 20 minutes, but most of that had to do with Sam Houston’s raised intensity level, thanks to a firm halftime message that stuck.

“Our coaches didn’t want to just hang with them and we didn’t either,” Bearkats forward Britni Martin said of the turnaround in the second half. “We knew we were better than that, defensively. So we came out really focused on our defense, pushing the ball and running the floor.

“So running the floor got us some easy buckets and defense getting steals and everything, it really helped out a lot.”

With Sam Houston’s win and Texas State’s loss to Nicholls, the Bearkats are back on top of the Southland Conference West Division with a 6-3 league record.

Martin got the Kats going early with a trio of baskets from 3-point range. She had 14 of her 19 points in the first half.

Southeastern’s Aja Gibson, Kelli Jenkins and Jessica Sommers accounted for the Lions’ scoring power, combining for all but two of the team’s first-half points.

But Sam Houston’s ball-handlers — Martin, Jasmine Johnson and Khamra Echols — each had three first-half turnovers, with even fewer assists between them.

That also changed after the break, as Johnson and Echols didn’t turn the ball over at all in the second half, while Martin had just one. The trio each finished with five assists.

“We bring different things to the floor,” Johnson said of the backcourt combination of Echols and herself. “We run the floor when we’re on and we just do what we can to help our team.”

Sam Houston opened the second half on a 16-4 run, capped by another 3 from Martin, which separated the Bearkats from the Lions for the rest of the game.

Sequeena Thomas, the Southland Conference’s rebounding leader, came alive in the second period and finished with a game-high 24 points and 16 rebounds.

Thomas’ coaches and teammates joked that she wouldn’t have a big game because she had been unstoppable in practice this week.

“We thought she wouldn’t hit nothing tonight,” Sam Houston head coach Brenda Nichols said with a laugh.

Even if Thomas didn’t have a superb shooting night, the Bearkats could have gotten by on their defense, which limited Southeastern to 24.2 percent shooting.

“Defensive pressure is something we work on every day,” Johnson added. “We work on just going hard, getting after it, and not letting the other team get what they want.”

Sam Houston returns to the court on Wednesday for a road game against UT Arlington at College Park Center, the Mavericks’ new gym.

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Bearkats back on top

SHSU women lead West Division again after 67-46 win over Lions

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