Lamar sports information

HUNTSVILLE – Senior Josh Nzeakor scored 15 points and pulled down 10 rebounds, but Lamar struggled from the field dropping a 69-59 decision at Sam Houston State on Saturday afternoon in the Johnson Coliseum.

The Red and White never could get into any rhythm offensively, opening the game shooting just 8 of 30 (.267) from the field, and just 3 of 13 from three-point range. The Cardinals had one of their better nights from the free throw line converting 17 of 21 (.810) attempts.

The Cardinals also dominated the glass recording a 42-33 advantage on the boards, including 16 offensive rebounds. Unfortunately, LU couldn’t do enough damage with their offensive rebounds scoring just 12 second chance points.

The Bearkats also got out to a slow start offensively but began to heat up from beyond the arc midway through the first half. SHSU finished the game shooting 24 of 56 (.429) from the field, including 13 three-pointers.

Nzeakor led a trio of Cardinals in double figures as senior Nick Garth came off the bench to score 14 points and junior Jordan Hunter added 12. Cameron Delaney paced the Bearkats’ attack with 24 points.

“I thought at times tonight we played with good effort, but it wasn’t consistent,” said LU head coach Tic Price. “Offensively, our rhythm just wasn’t there tonight. Our spacing and our timing were off. When a team challenges you, you have to challenge back. We had opportunities to make a run at them in the second half and we didn’t convert.”

Neither team got out to a quick start offensively as the first points of the game came from junior Michael Kolawole from the free throw line two minutes into the contest. The two teams went into the first media timeout with a total of six points being scored. The Cardinals started the game just one for their first eight from the field, but LU managed to hold Sam Houston to a 1-of-5 start.

After the combined 2-of-13 start between the two schools, both teams came out of a media timeout and hit their next five shots. Unfortunately, the Bearkats got the better end of the run building an 18-13 lead. The Cardinals battled right back to trim the deficit to one and had the ball but couldn’t convert.

Sam Houston State responded with a 9-2 run to build their advantage to eight points, 27-19 (its largest lead of the game). The run was sparked by some hot shooting from beyond the arc knocking down seven of their first 15 three-point attempts (after missing their first three).

The Cardinals appeared to grab the momentum momentarily following a three-ball from junior Laquarious Paige to pull LU within three, 29-26, but Paige was called for a technical foul and the Bearkats responded by hitting both free throws. Following the technical foul, SHSU pushed its lead back to eight points, but the Cardinals closed the half with a triple to go into the locker room down just five at halftime, 34-29.

LU continued to struggle offensively throughout the first half knocking down just 8 of 30 attempts (.267). The Bearkats overcame their slow start to finish the half 12 of 30 (.400) from the field, which included an 8-of-16 (.500) effort on threes.

The Cardinals overcame their first half woes with their strength on the glass recording a 26-15 advantage on the glass, including 10 offensive rebounds.

Sam Houston opened the second half on an 11-4 run to build a double-digit lead and built their lead to 12 points, 43-31, with less than 17:21 remaining in the contest. The Cardinals responded by rattling off a 14-5 run to pull within three, 48-45, following a Garth three with 9:02 remaining. SHSU responded to the Cardinals run by sinking consecutive threes and pushed its lead back to seven. The Bearkats pushed the lead back to double digits with less than 4 minutes remaining. Big Red was unable to answer the run in the closing minutes.

The Cardinals return to action Wednesday when they travel to Thibodaux, Louisiana, to take on Nicholls State. The game against the Colonels will tip off at 7 p.m. from Stopher Gym.