Bearkats defeats Bulldogs 74-58
The Sam Houston State Bearkat men’s basketball team defeated Samford Bulldogs by the score of 74-58. They are now 5-8 for the season and are undefeated at the Bernard G. Johnson Coliseum.
“It’s a huge win for us,” head basketball coach Jason Hooten said. “Adversity is what makes us play strong and playing one of the toughest schedules in the United States is going to make us better.”
Sophomore transfer guard DeMarcus Gatlin led the Kats with 20 points, 4 rebounds, 1 block and a steal. Junior transfer guard Darius Gatson contributed with 17 points, 5 assists, 3 steals and 2 rebounds.
The Bearkats came out of the gate and went on a 14-6 run and ended the first half by the score of 39-22.
In the second half, the Bulldogs came out strong as they went on a 14-3 run in the first 8 minutes of the half to cut the Bearkat lead to 47-43. The Bearkats answered with an 8-0 run to increase the lead to 55-43 and would go on to win the game by the score of 74-58.
Freshman guard Brandon Hayman led the Bulldogs with 10 points, 1 rebound and an assist while freshman guard Devin McNeil contributed with 9 points and a rebound.
The Bearkats shot 40.8% from the field while they shot 75.7% from the free throw line. They converted 30 points off the Bulldogs turnovers that was the difference in the game.
The Bearkats last non-conference game will be against Jarvis Christian on January 2, 2012 at 7 p.m. at Johnson Coliseum right before they open up Southland Conference play against the University of Texas at San Antonio Roadrunners on January 8 at 1 p.m. For more information on the team, visit gobearkats.com.
Sam Houston Basketball Team Defeated Lumberjacks 73-49
Sam Houston State Bearkats men’s basketball team defeated Northern Arizona Lumberjacks by the score of 73-49. The win was their fourth of the season and they are 4-7 for the year.
“A win is a win,” head basketball coach Jason Hooten said. “Our defense is what it’s been all year-long and we shot the ball really well.”
Junior guard Konner Tucker led the Kats with 25 points, 7 rebounds, and four assists. He shot six of ten from the three-point line.
Junior forward Steven Werner contributed with 19 points, 7 rebounds, one block and an assist.
The Bearkats started the game strong by scoring the first fourteen out of eighteen points to lead it 14-4. They continued their domination and finished the first half with the score of 38-16.
The Bearkats continued to dominate in the second half as they shot 52.4% from the field and took the Lumberjacks out of their rhythm with their defense that allowed them to commit 16 turnovers for the game.
Senior guard Durrell Norman led the Lumberjacks with 18 points and 13 rebounds while freshman guard James Douglas and freshman forward Gaellan Berernick contributed with 8 points each.
The Bearkats next game will be against Cleveland State on December 22 in Cleveland, Ohio. For more information on the team and their schedule, visit gobearkats.com.
Bearkats Defeats Jaguars 53-50
The Sam Houston State Bearkats women’s basketball team defeated South Alabama Jaguars by the score of 53-50. The win gave them a 4-4 record for the season.
Junior forward Sequeena Thomas led the Kats with 12 points, 15 rebounds, and 4 block shots. Junior forward Britni Martin and junior guard Chanice Smith each had 11 points.
The Jaguars started the game strong by scoring nine straight points to take a 9-0 lead. The Bearkats was trailing for most of the first half by the score of 24-12. The Bearkats came back to life and went on a 14-0 run to finish the half by the score of 26-24.
The second half was a different story as both teams battled and exchange points between them. With the Bearkats trailing 41-40, the Jaguars scored the next four out of six points within two minutes to make it 45-42.
The Bearkats rallied and scored the final eleven out of 16 to defeat the Jaguars 53-50.
“We were excited about the way we manage the game,” head women’s coach Brenda Nichols said. “The coaching staff did a great job and the players listened.”
Junior guard Camille Reynolds led the Jaguars with 10 points, 2 rebounds and one steal while senior guard Lauren Walker contributed with 9 points and one steal.
The Bearkats shot a total of 30% from the field while the Jaguars shot for a total of 25%. At the free thrown line, the Bearkats shot for a total of 75% including the final two from Chanice Smith that sealed the game for the Kats.
“I love playing with Chanice,” Martin said. “She came out and played hard. She knows how to finish.”
The Bearkats will travel to Lawrence, Kansas as they will face the Kansas Jayhawks on December 28. For more information on the team and the time of the game, visit gobearkats.com.
Willie Fritz Should Have Been Coach of the Year
by Cheval John
When it was all said and done, five finalist were named in the Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year. The interesting part is that Sam Houston State Bearkats head football coach Willie Fritz was not among the finalist. To add insult to injury, Holy Cross head football coach Tom Gilmore was one of the finalist and his team finished with a 6-5 record.
In order to be considered for the award, a person must meet these requirements: sportsmanship, integrity, responsibility, excellence on the field and excellence in the classroom.
Once that person meet the requirements, they must receive the highest number of votes from the fans (20%), the college football Hall of Fame Selection Committee (55%), and from the National Media (25%) in order to win the award.
I understand that the sportswriters, broadcasters, former players and coaches who make up the Hall of Fame Selection Committee and the National Media have been in this business longer than I have and are considered experts, but they drop the ball on this one.
Here are the reasons why Coach Fritz not only should have been finalist, but should have won the award:
Sportsmanship: Though the Bearkats committed 79 penalties during the season, their opponents as a whole committed 83 total penalties.
Integrity: Coach Fritz has run a clean program since he became head coach in 2009. None of the players have been arrested and they have not committed a single NCAA infraction even before he arrived as head coach.
Responsibility: The football team participated in “Operation All In,” a program that was a joint effort with the SHSU ROTC. It ran during the spring 2011 semester and it taught them how to work together as a team. Also, they sported an orange, white and black camouflaged jersey in the homecoming game against Nicholls State Colonels. The jerseys were auctioned off and the proceeds went to the Lone Survivor Foundation, an organization founded by former Bearkat and retired Navy SEAL Marcus Luttrell.
Excellence On The Field: The Bearkats finished the season undefeated and was the outright Southland Conference Champions and made the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision playoffs for the first time since 2004. It was their fourth title in the 25 years that they have been in the FCS. The previous three were shared with McNeese State (1991, 2001) and Northwestern State (2004). Sophomore running back Tim Flanders and junior safety Darnell Taylor was named the Southland Conference “Offensive Player of the Year”and “Defensive Player of the Year,” respectively.
Excellence In The Classroom: Not only is the team successful on the field, but are successful in the classroom. The grade point average (g.p.a.) for the team is a 2.7. Among them, 31 made the 2010-11 Southland Commissioner’s Academic Honor Roll and senior center Travis Watson was nominated for the 2011 National Scholar Athlete Award, the same award that was won by both Eli and Peyton Manning.
In conclusion, I have given examples to show why Coach Fritz should have been the Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year. If this doesn’t convince them that this was the biggest snub that was made, then I don’t know what will.
If you agree or disagree with post, e-mail me at chevaljohn80@yahoo.com.
RG3 Should Go To The NFL
by Cheval John
Normally, I would be for college athletes, especially football and basketball players, stay their entire four years of their eligibility in order to get their college degrees because it will allow them to fall back on something if their dreams of playing in the National Football League (NFL) or the National Basketball Association (NBA) doesn’t work out. With junior quarterback Robert Griffith III, also known as RG3, I take an exception.
Griffith had a phenomenal year, passing for 3,998 yards, 36 touchdowns and 6 interceptions. He became the first player from Baylor University to win the Heisman Trophy and is one of the top prospects that could be drafted in the NFL next year. He also has a chance to return for his senior year in order to help the Baylor Bears improve to an even better record and possibly play for the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) National Championship and forgo the draft.
I honestly think that he should go to the NFL Draft. Now you might be saying, “I thought that you want to see college athletes go for four years in order to get their degrees?” I do, but here is the reason why I take an exception with RG3: He has already attained his Bachelor’s Degree and is about to graduate with his Masters Degree next year, so why should he come back and play his “senior year, when he has the opportunity to make millions of dollars in the NFL? It just doesn’t make any sense and if he does decide to come back and play, then all the power to him and I hope that the team succeeds next year because even though they get another quarterback, they probably will not be like RG3 and that is o.k.
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