Box Score HUNTSVILLE, Texas – For the first time ever in Islanders history, the men's basketball team has swept the regular season series against Sam Houston State, defeating the Bearkats 75-70 at Johnson Coliseum Saturday night.
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"It's a huge road win," Head Coach Willis Wilson said. "We've played close games in this building every time we've been here over the years, but it's been tough for us to walk away with a win. To do it in that fashion, where we come from behind, it makes me excited for our guys."
The Islanders (22-6, 13-3) were trailing 66-55 with 6:12 to play in the game, but the Blue and Green never gave up. Key defensive stops, timely buckets and stellar shooting from the free throw line allowed A&M-Corpus Christi to outscore the Bearkats (15-13, 10-5) 20-4 in the final six minutes and leave Huntsville with the victory.
Down two points after a pair from the stripe by Rashawn Thomas with 1:31 to play, the Islanders turned up the heat. The press turned Sam Houston State in back-to-back possessions. The Islanders converted both times, as Bryce Douvier had a putback on the first and then fed Thomas for a slam on the second to make it 72-70 and put them up for good.
"It really shows me what we're capable of," Wilson said. "We haven't been in these situations very much. To be in that situation, and to pull it out, it's a confidence booster in the biggest way."
The two Islander big men took advantage of their time on the court in the second half after playing just 12 minutes combined in the first frame. Both sat much of the first 20 minutes with two fouls, but the guards stepped up, giving the Islanders a 34-33 lead at the break.
Thomas finished with a team high 18 points, six rebounds and three blocks in just 19 minutes on the court. Douvier totaled nine points and nine boards in the victory.
Hameed Ali, Jelani Currie and Ehab Amin all finished in double figures for the Islanders. Ali went for 14 points, six rebounds and five assists. Ranked second in the nation with 3.0 steals per game, the senior matched his average with three on Saturday.
Currie scored in double figures for the second straight game, scoring 13 and grabbing seven boards against the Bearkats. Amin scored all 10 of his points in the first half and added eight rebounds in the victory.
Senior Brandon Pye scored six points on two three-pointers. His first of the game set a new Islander record for career three-pointers with 170 in his four seasons. Pye passed Travis Bailey, who knocked down 169 from 2001 to 2005.
"Records don't happen in one play," Wilson said. "They're earned over time and it's a testament to how hard he's worked. There's not a more deserving guy to hold a record like that."
The Islanders remain in second place in the Southland Conference standings at 13-3. The Blue and Green will next head to Houston Baptist to take on the Huskies. Tip-off on Thursday is set for 7:30 p.m. on ESPN3.
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