Despite having two starting players injured, the Nicholls men’s basketball team began the conference half of their schedule with an overtime win against Stephen F. Austin and a hard fought loss to Sam Houston State. The Colonels (6-11, 1-1 SLC) opened conference play Jan. 10 by hosting the heavily favored Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks (12-2, 1-1 SLC) in Stopher Gym.
The Lumberjacks came into the contest riding a 10-game winning streak including wins against Oklahoma, SMU and Northern Illinois.
Stephen F. Austin also came into the game with the Southland Conference’s top two scorers: junior guard Josh Alexander and junior forward Matt Kingsley.
Both teams played competitively in the first half, and Stephen F. Austin entered halftime with a two-point lead, with a score of 32-30.
However, the Colonels defense found their stride in the second half and only allowed Stephen F. Austin to score eight points in 18 minutes.
With two minutes left in regulation, Nicholls appeared to have the game under control with a 50-40 lead.
However, Stephen F. Austin battled back with intentional fouls and tied the contest 50-50 to send the game into overtime.
The Lumberjacks quickly jumped on top of the Colonels in overtime with a seven-point run, making the score 57-50.
With less than three minutes remaining in the extra period, the Colonels’ offense fought back and scored six unanswered points to cut the deficit to one.
With three seconds remaining in the game and possession of the ball, the Colonels needed a miracle.
They got it when junior forward Ryan Bathie retrieved an offensive rebound from a teammate’s shot and made the game winning buzzer beater to seal the team’s 58-57 win.
The Colonels shot 43% from the field and 37% from three-point land while the Lumberjacks shot 40% from the field and 35% from three-point range.
Leading Nicholls in scoring was freshmen guard Anatoly Bose who shot 60% from the floor and hit five out of eight shots from beyond the arc to finish with a total of 17 points.
The Lumberjacks leading scorer was Alexander who hit 6 out of 13 shots from the field.
Head basketball coach J.P. Piper said he was proud of the team’s performance against the Lumberjacks, but he wished the players could have controlled the game late in the second half.
“I really don’t know how I feel right now. I am absolutely elated and very proud of the team because they found a way to win tonight against a great team,” Piper said.
“On the other hand, I am frustrated we couldn’t slam the door shut with a 10-point lead and two minutes left in the game.”
Nicholls then took to the road Jan. 12 to face off against another formidable opponent, the Sam Houston State Bearkats (13-2, 1-1 SLC).
Sam Houston jumped out to a 19-point lead in the first half and never looked back in the contest. In the second half, the Colonels put together offensive production and outscored the Bearkats by nine points, yet still lost 61-51.
“I am very proud in how we fought back in the second half, and was very pleased with the youth of our team tonight,” Piper said.
Nicholls played both games without the help of two key starting players.
Leading scorer Michael Czepil and senior Adonis Gray were both injured and did not dress out for either game.
The Colonels improved 4-0 while playing in Stopher Gym with the win over the Lumberjacks. With the loss against Sam Houston, Nicholls is 2-9 on the road.
The Colonels will be back in action tonight when they take on the University of Texas at Arlington Mavericks in Arlington, Texas. The match is slated for 7 p.m.
UTA is 11-4 overall and 0-2 in the Southland Conference. The Mavericks boasts four starters averaging double-digits in scoring and are undefeated while playing at home.
