STILLWATER, Okla. — The Texas A&M–Corpus Christi men's basketball team traded punches with Oklahoma State through a tightly played first half, but the Islanders couldn't overcome a second-half surge from the home team in an 85–69 loss Sunday at Gallagher-Iba Arena.
The matchup had a layer of familiarity to the non-conference meeting, as the Islanders faced their former head coach Steve Lutz, where current head coach
Jim Shaw served on staff before taking over the reigns in 2023-24.
A&M-Corpus Christi (1–4) shot 44.8% in the opening half and trailed just 37–35 at the break, buoyed by a late 7–0 run that sliced the deficit to one possession. But the Cowboys (4–0) responded with a 57.1% shooting performance in the second half and used a 21–4 stretch to take control.
The bench contributed 41 points, marking one of the team's strongest collective outings of the season.
Nick Shogbonyo was the big contributor, coming off for his return since the Islanders' exhibition game to lead the team in scoring with 13 points.
Although OSU opened with an early three ball, the Islanders answered behind a three-pointer from
Sheldon Williams and a second-chance three from
Kam Parker for the lead reversal. The Cowboys pushed back, but the Islanders stayed within a couple possessions for most of the period.
OSU built an 11-point lead with 4:42 in the half, but A&M-Corpus Christi rallied again as
Mason Gibson buried a transition three off a turnover at the :38 mark off the denial from
Franck Yetna.
Jaden Haire scored on a fast-break layup with six seconds remaining to send the Islanders into the locker room down just two.
Williams opened the second half with a putback to tie the score 37–37, but the Cowboys responded with a quick burst that stretched the lead to double digits, and the advantage grew to as many as 24 with 7:25 left.
The Islanders continued to battle as Parker added a late fast-break layup, and Gibson converted a steal as A&M-Corpus Christi chipped away in the closing minutes ultimately falling 85-69.
It was the first time the Islanders played back-to-back games against Power opponents since the 2015-16 season after taking on #25 Kansas this past Tuesday. With today marking the 12
th meeting between the programs, it is the second time in the series the Islanders faced Oklahoma State right after facing a ranked opponent (first came in 2016-17).
After a grueling stretch that saw five games in 13-days and four straight road games, the Islanders will take the week to recover before getting back to action on their home court Saturday at 1 p.m. against Howard Payne.
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