By Gene Schallenberg
On the heels of their 73-42 season-opening victory over LeTourneau on Saturday, the Bearkats return to action tonight when they host Texas College.
Sam Houston State shot 44.6 percent from the floor and 22.7 from beyond the arc in the win. But accuracy is one of the things the Bearkats hope to improve on when they welcome the Steers to Johnson Coliseum today.
“This time of the year, the defense is ahead of the offense,” SHSU head coach Bob Marlin said Sunday. “We didn’t shoot the ball well last night, but we had enough points to win.”
From their previous meeting last season, which resulted in an 89-54 Sam Houston State victory, the Bearkats (1-0) know that Texas College will be aiming to play with a fast tempo.
“They’re going to play fast,” Marlin said. “They’ve pressed in the past and they’ve played zone. They’ve shot the ball quick. It’s a lot of penetration and quick shots. They want to play up and down the floor, though. They want the game going at a fast pace. The tempo should be higher than what it was on Saturday.”
The Bearkats expect to have their hands full.
Small forward Jacobie Bias, a versatile 6-4 junior, and point guard Tre Manning will be looking to find a weakness in Sam Houston State’s defense, which held LeTourneau to 20 percent shooting on Saturday.
“Like (Dale) Vanwright with LeTourneau, (Jacobie) Bias is a good player for Texas College, as well as Tre Manning. You’ve got two guys that do a majority of their shooting and scoring. We have a little bit of a size advantage, but not as much as we had against LeTourneau.
“They’re both good players. Bias is a small forward. He can shoot the ball. Bias is a good shooter. He’s a good one-on-one (player). He’s a good athlete. He’s had some good games for them already this year.”
Against Xavier University of New Orleans, Manning drilled a 19-foot jumper at the buzzer to lead Texas College to a 67-65 overtime victory on Saturday.
“Manning is the guy that really makes their offense go,” Marlin said. “He’s a point guard and he’s an exciting player. He’s quick, he pushes the ball. He’s a tough guard for us. We’ll have to keep him in front of us tomorrow night.”
