Box Score 
KATY, Texas – John Jordan scored 20 points, but a late 7-0 run by Sam Houston State lifted them past the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi men's basketball team, 70-67, in the Southland Conference Tournament Semifinal on Friday night at the Merrell Center. The Islanders fell to 19-13 on the season, while the Bearkats improved to 25-7 and will face Stephen F. Austin in the championship game on Saturday.
Along with Jordan's 20 points, he snared five rebounds and dished out five assists. Bryce Douvier added 13 points, while Jelani Currie had eight. The Islanders held SHSU to 17-for-51 (.333) shooting, marking just the second time this season Texas A&M-Corpus Christi has lost holding the opposition under 40 percent (13-2).
Jabari Peters led SHSU with 19 points and nine rebounds, while Michael Holyfield added a double-double with 12 points and 14 boards. Dakarai Henderson added 11 points for the Bearkats, who outscored the Islanders 29-16 at the line.
Early on, the Islanders offense was clicking, as the squad jumped out to a 9-3 lead on the strength of four points from Rashawn Thomas and a three-ball from Brandon Pye. Holyfield did the bulk of the work for the Bearkats, as he scored their first five points. The Islanders were able to push the advantage to 15-7 after an Ehab Amin jumper. A&M-Corpus Christi held SHSU to just 2-for-13 from the field to start the game.
But back-to-back threes from Henderson jump-started the Bearkats offense, putting together an 11-0 run to regain the lead at 18-15. Jordan came through with a huge response, though, hitting a jumper in the lane to make it 18-17.
The teams traded points, to a 20-17 score, and then the Islanders defense locked down to send them on a 12-0 run. Joe Kilgore hit a running jumper in the lane in the stretch, and Currie's three also provided a lift. A dish from Jordan to Douvier for two and a gorgeous reverse layup by Jordan capped off the rally. SHSU was able to get one point back, with a Holyfield free throw with 13.1 seconds left in the half, to send it to the locker room with the Islanders up 29-21.
Out of the break, both teams saw the offense increase, with the squads trading points nearly every possession to a 39-32 score. Douvier converted a three-point play and Emmanuel Toney drilled a triple during the early going. But the Bearkats went on a rally at that point, netting eight straight points to regain the lead, 40-39.
Again, though, the Islanders had an answer. Pye came up with a big three from the right corner, and after two SHSU free throws, Currie added a triple of his own to make it 45-42 Islanders. After a Jamal Williams layup, two common fouls and a technical foul on DeMarcus Gatlin gave the Islanders three free throws to push the lead to 48-44.
From there, the two teams went blow-for-blow, with the Islanders able to stretch their lead to six, 56-50, at the free-throw line. After the Bearkats trimmed it to 57-52, Jordan called his own number and buried a three from the top of the key to push the lead to eight. But SHSU was undaunted, and ran off seven straight points, four from Holyfield, to cut the deficit to just one a 60-59.
With the Bearkats in a zone, the Islanders failed to convert on consecutive threes, but then Douvier came up big with a triple from the left wing to push the lead back to four. After the teams traded points to a 65-61 score, SHSU locked in defensively and put together a 7-0 run. Three points came on a fast-break three-point play for Henderson and then the final three came on a Peters triple to make it 68-65 with 1:20 to play.
The Bearkats got a big steal on the ensuing possession, but the Islanders defense answered with a stop of its own, and A&M-Corpus Christi held the ball, down 68-65 with 21.8 left. The Bearkats defense denied the three, so Jordan settled for a dunk to cut it to 68-67 with 4.2 seconds left. After SHSU got two free throws, Jordan got the ball on the inbound and put up a three from the left wing, but it caromed out and the Bearkats escaped with the win.
The Islanders will now wait to see if they are selected for a postseason tournament on Sunday night. Last year, the team was chosen for the College Insider Tournament, where it knocked off Northern Colorado in Greeley before falling at Pacific in the second round.
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