Stephen F Austin beats rival Sam Houston St to close season (Mar 04, 2017)
NACOGDOCHES, Texas (AP) Leon Gilmore III scored 16 points and Stephen F Austin closed out its regular season with a 64-56 win over Sam Houston State on Saturday night.
Stephen F Austin (17-13, 12-6 Southland Conference) finishes in a three-way tie for second place with Texas A&M--Corpus Christi and Houston Baptist. The Islanders claim the No. 2 seed based on tiebreakers. The Lumberjacks and Huskies both have first-round byes into the quarterfinals, which will be played Thursday in Katy, Texas.
Sam Houston State (19-12, 10-8) is locked into the No. 5 seed and plays a preliminary round game Wednesday.
Ty Charles finished with 15 points and Kevon Harris added 14 for the Lumberjacks, who shot 47 percent and held a dominating 41-26 edge on the glass.
Paul Baxter and John Dewey III each scored 11 points for Sam Houston State. The Bearkats had a poor shooting night all around, finishing 39 percent from the field, 13 percent from long range, and 54 percent at the line.
A Dallas Cameron 3 gave the Lumberjacks a double-digit lead early in the second half. The Bearkats made a push midway through the period, but never got within three points.
