From KLTV.com...
FAST BREAK POINTS
• Ditching the cold temperatures that have gripped east Texas during the Yuletide season, the Stephen F. Austin men’s basketball team embarks on a journey of over 4,000 miles to Honolulu, Hawaii as one of eight entrants in the 2016 Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic. In their first of three games in the eight-team holiday roundball extravaganza, the ‘Jacks will face off against American Athletic Conference adversary Tulsa (5-4) for the third time ever. Tip-off inside the Stan Sheriff Center on the campus of the University of Hawaii is set for 3:30 p.m. CT.
• The tilt between the ‘Jacks and Golden Hurricane is the leadoff game of the three-day Classic and will be televised nationally on ESPNU as well as the ESPN3 online platform and the WatchESPN app. Additionally, Rob Meyers and Tyler DePascal are set to provide play-by-play and analysis of SFA’s first neutral site tilt of the season on Q107.7 FM in Nacogdoches. Their call can be heard nationwide on q1077.com or the TuneIn app for mobile devices.
• SFA aims to pile up the point off of turnovers as the Golden Hurricane rank 333rd out of 351 NCAA Division I men’s basketball teams by averaging 16.4 points per game.
• Thursday’s game against the Golden Hurricane serves as the first neutral-court tilt for both teams. Last season, the ‘Jacks posted a 5-2 record in neutral-site games while Tulsa notched a mark of 2-2.
• One of the ‘Jacks’ strengths - free throw shooting - may be negated as Tulsa has committed the 13th-fewest fouls in the nation (160).
SCOUTING TULSA
• Freshman Will Magnay is the first player born in Australia to suit up for the Golden Hurricane and is quickly making his presence known as a reliable interior defender. His 1.67 blocked shots per game lead the team and represent the 79th best average in the nation.
• Through his two-plus seasons in charge of the Golden Hurricane, head coach Frank Haith has posted a 4-0 record against opponents from the Southland Conference. Tulsa has defeated Abilene Christian, Central Arkansas, Incarnate Word and New Orleans with an average margin of victory of 20.3 points.
• Out of the 351 NCAA Division I men’s basketball teams in the nation, the Golden Hurricane ranks 331st in terms of turnovers per game. The squad averages 16.4 turnovers per game and have committed 20 or more throwaways in two of its nine games so far this season.
• Under the direction of head coach Frank Haith, the Golden Hurricane have held opponents under 50-percent field goal shooting in 62 of their 75 games. Jacksonville State has been the only team to put in greater than 50-percent of its field goals against Tulsa this season.
• Once they hit the court against the Lumberjacks in Honolulu, the Golden Hurricance will complete a stretch of three games against each of the three most recent Stephen F. Austin head coaches. In their most recent game, Tulsa scored a 74-59 win over Texas State led by former SFA head coach Danny Kaspar. On Dec. 10, they fell to Oklahoma State by a 71-67 tally. The Cowboys are led by Brad Underwood who spent his previous three seasons as the head coach of Stephen F. Austin.
LAST TIME OUT
• Eleven days removed from suffering their first loss inside William R. Johnson Coliseum in over two years, the ‘Jacks handled NAIA-foe LSU-Shreveport 93-73, beginning construction on a brand new home court winning streak in the process and snapping a two-game losing skid.
• Leading the ‘Jacks’ assault from three-point range was junior Ivan Canete who drilled all five of his attempts from beyond the arc. In total, the Lake Worth, Fla., product finished the game without a miss, going 6-for-6 from the field and hitting both of his free throw attempts en route to a team-best 19 points. Canete played 23 minutes, giving him a points per minute rate of 0.83 on Sunday afternoon.
• Four players wrapped up their afternoons with 15 or more points as the ‘Jacks put forth their highest offensive output of the season. SFA tied a season high by drilling 54.4-percent of its field goal attempts and that fine shooting percentage was made possible by 19 assists - a season-high.
• Making his first appearance in the starting lineup since Dec. 1, freshman Kevon Harris tied his career high by putting in 16 points on 5-for-8 shooting in 27 minutes. Harris’ inclusion in the starting lineup resulted in the ‘Jacks’ seventh different starting lineup combination of the season.
• There was little that junior Leon Gilmore III found himself unable to do against the Pilots as he finished only two points and two rebounds shy of a double-double. The Houston, Texas, product also added a game and career-high six assists as he neared triple-double territory.
• The other primary culprit of the ‘Jacks’ three-point barrage was junior Isaiah Traylor who came off the bench and put in a career-high 16 points. Hailing from Tupelo, Miss., Traylor connected on four of his six tries from long distance and was responsbile for SFA’s lone block of the non-conference affair. Traylor’s four splashes from long range represented a career high.
• After putting in only 60-percent or less of their free throws over the previous two tilts, the ‘Jacks regained their accurate touch from that distance by hitting 70.8-percent of their freebies. At one point this season, SFA ranked ninth in the nation in free throw shooting but has since dipped to as low as 41st.
• Coming off the bench for 11 minutes was sophomore Jovan Grujic who proceeded to reset his career high in scoring by putting a nine points on 3-for-4 shooting from the field and a 3-for-4 clip from the foul line.
• The ‘Jacks held LSU-Shreveport to just eight assists - a season-low by an SFA opponent. Most of the damage the Pilots did came via one-on-one jump shots as the visitors drilled eight threes - the most in a single game by a Lumberjack foe in 2016-17.
• Sunday afternoon marked only the second time in 2016-17 in which the ‘Jacks failed to throw down a slam dunk in a game this season. It was SFA’s first home game without a dunk since Feb. 13, 2016 when the ‘Jacks captured a Southland Conference win over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.
• The Pilots are the only team this season who have not blocked one of the ‘Jacks shots.
• SFA improved to 3-0 all-time against the Pilots with the win. LSU-Shreveport is one of five teams on the ‘Jacks’ 2016-17 schedule that have never defeated SFA. Included with the Pilots on that last are Central Arkansas, Longwood, New Orleans and Tulsa.
• Bench play was another big component of the ‘Jacks’ non-conference win on Sunday afternoon. SFA’s reserves put in a season-high 39 points and it was the third time in the past four games in which the ‘Jacks’ bench has totaled 30 or more points.
• For the fourth time in the last five games, Stephen F. Austin racked up over 20 points off of opponent turnovers. The ‘Jacks totaled 23 points off of 20 LSU-Shreveport turnovers and this season SFA has scored 177 points off of their opponents throwaways. Those 177 points represent 26.9-percent of SFA’s season total.
• By way of his 15-point effort, sophomore TJ Holyfield extended his streak of double-digit scoring games to four - the longest stretch of his collegiate career.
• Stephen F. Austin improved to 3-1 when four or more players score 10 or more points in a game. Since 2015-16, the ‘Jacks are 16-1 when getting 10+ from four different student-athletes. The only loss in games of that configuration came on Dec. 7 in William R. Johnson Coliseum against visiting UAB by an 84-73 tally.
• LSU-Shreveport came into Sunday’s game averaging 93.1 points per game before the ‘Jacks’ held them over 20 points below their season average. The Pilots have scored 100 or more points in six games this season.
FAST BREAK POINTS
• Ditching the cold temperatures that have gripped east Texas during the Yuletide season, the Stephen F. Austin men’s basketball team embarks on a journey of over 4,000 miles to Honolulu, Hawaii as one of eight entrants in the 2016 Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic. In their first of three games in the eight-team holiday roundball extravaganza, the ‘Jacks will face off against American Athletic Conference adversary Tulsa (5-4) for the third time ever. Tip-off inside the Stan Sheriff Center on the campus of the University of Hawaii is set for 3:30 p.m. CT.
• The tilt between the ‘Jacks and Golden Hurricane is the leadoff game of the three-day Classic and will be televised nationally on ESPNU as well as the ESPN3 online platform and the WatchESPN app. Additionally, Rob Meyers and Tyler DePascal are set to provide play-by-play and analysis of SFA’s first neutral site tilt of the season on Q107.7 FM in Nacogdoches. Their call can be heard nationwide on q1077.com or the TuneIn app for mobile devices.
• SFA aims to pile up the point off of turnovers as the Golden Hurricane rank 333rd out of 351 NCAA Division I men’s basketball teams by averaging 16.4 points per game.
• Thursday’s game against the Golden Hurricane serves as the first neutral-court tilt for both teams. Last season, the ‘Jacks posted a 5-2 record in neutral-site games while Tulsa notched a mark of 2-2.
• One of the ‘Jacks’ strengths - free throw shooting - may be negated as Tulsa has committed the 13th-fewest fouls in the nation (160).
SCOUTING TULSA
• Freshman Will Magnay is the first player born in Australia to suit up for the Golden Hurricane and is quickly making his presence known as a reliable interior defender. His 1.67 blocked shots per game lead the team and represent the 79th best average in the nation.
• Through his two-plus seasons in charge of the Golden Hurricane, head coach Frank Haith has posted a 4-0 record against opponents from the Southland Conference. Tulsa has defeated Abilene Christian, Central Arkansas, Incarnate Word and New Orleans with an average margin of victory of 20.3 points.
• Out of the 351 NCAA Division I men’s basketball teams in the nation, the Golden Hurricane ranks 331st in terms of turnovers per game. The squad averages 16.4 turnovers per game and have committed 20 or more throwaways in two of its nine games so far this season.
• Under the direction of head coach Frank Haith, the Golden Hurricane have held opponents under 50-percent field goal shooting in 62 of their 75 games. Jacksonville State has been the only team to put in greater than 50-percent of its field goals against Tulsa this season.
• Once they hit the court against the Lumberjacks in Honolulu, the Golden Hurricance will complete a stretch of three games against each of the three most recent Stephen F. Austin head coaches. In their most recent game, Tulsa scored a 74-59 win over Texas State led by former SFA head coach Danny Kaspar. On Dec. 10, they fell to Oklahoma State by a 71-67 tally. The Cowboys are led by Brad Underwood who spent his previous three seasons as the head coach of Stephen F. Austin.
LAST TIME OUT
• Eleven days removed from suffering their first loss inside William R. Johnson Coliseum in over two years, the ‘Jacks handled NAIA-foe LSU-Shreveport 93-73, beginning construction on a brand new home court winning streak in the process and snapping a two-game losing skid.
• Leading the ‘Jacks’ assault from three-point range was junior Ivan Canete who drilled all five of his attempts from beyond the arc. In total, the Lake Worth, Fla., product finished the game without a miss, going 6-for-6 from the field and hitting both of his free throw attempts en route to a team-best 19 points. Canete played 23 minutes, giving him a points per minute rate of 0.83 on Sunday afternoon.
• Four players wrapped up their afternoons with 15 or more points as the ‘Jacks put forth their highest offensive output of the season. SFA tied a season high by drilling 54.4-percent of its field goal attempts and that fine shooting percentage was made possible by 19 assists - a season-high.
• Making his first appearance in the starting lineup since Dec. 1, freshman Kevon Harris tied his career high by putting in 16 points on 5-for-8 shooting in 27 minutes. Harris’ inclusion in the starting lineup resulted in the ‘Jacks’ seventh different starting lineup combination of the season.
• There was little that junior Leon Gilmore III found himself unable to do against the Pilots as he finished only two points and two rebounds shy of a double-double. The Houston, Texas, product also added a game and career-high six assists as he neared triple-double territory.
• The other primary culprit of the ‘Jacks’ three-point barrage was junior Isaiah Traylor who came off the bench and put in a career-high 16 points. Hailing from Tupelo, Miss., Traylor connected on four of his six tries from long distance and was responsbile for SFA’s lone block of the non-conference affair. Traylor’s four splashes from long range represented a career high.
• After putting in only 60-percent or less of their free throws over the previous two tilts, the ‘Jacks regained their accurate touch from that distance by hitting 70.8-percent of their freebies. At one point this season, SFA ranked ninth in the nation in free throw shooting but has since dipped to as low as 41st.
• Coming off the bench for 11 minutes was sophomore Jovan Grujic who proceeded to reset his career high in scoring by putting a nine points on 3-for-4 shooting from the field and a 3-for-4 clip from the foul line.
• The ‘Jacks held LSU-Shreveport to just eight assists - a season-low by an SFA opponent. Most of the damage the Pilots did came via one-on-one jump shots as the visitors drilled eight threes - the most in a single game by a Lumberjack foe in 2016-17.
• Sunday afternoon marked only the second time in 2016-17 in which the ‘Jacks failed to throw down a slam dunk in a game this season. It was SFA’s first home game without a dunk since Feb. 13, 2016 when the ‘Jacks captured a Southland Conference win over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.
• The Pilots are the only team this season who have not blocked one of the ‘Jacks shots.
• SFA improved to 3-0 all-time against the Pilots with the win. LSU-Shreveport is one of five teams on the ‘Jacks’ 2016-17 schedule that have never defeated SFA. Included with the Pilots on that last are Central Arkansas, Longwood, New Orleans and Tulsa.
• Bench play was another big component of the ‘Jacks’ non-conference win on Sunday afternoon. SFA’s reserves put in a season-high 39 points and it was the third time in the past four games in which the ‘Jacks’ bench has totaled 30 or more points.
• For the fourth time in the last five games, Stephen F. Austin racked up over 20 points off of opponent turnovers. The ‘Jacks totaled 23 points off of 20 LSU-Shreveport turnovers and this season SFA has scored 177 points off of their opponents throwaways. Those 177 points represent 26.9-percent of SFA’s season total.
• By way of his 15-point effort, sophomore TJ Holyfield extended his streak of double-digit scoring games to four - the longest stretch of his collegiate career.
• Stephen F. Austin improved to 3-1 when four or more players score 10 or more points in a game. Since 2015-16, the ‘Jacks are 16-1 when getting 10+ from four different student-athletes. The only loss in games of that configuration came on Dec. 7 in William R. Johnson Coliseum against visiting UAB by an 84-73 tally.
• LSU-Shreveport came into Sunday’s game averaging 93.1 points per game before the ‘Jacks’ held them over 20 points below their season average. The Pilots have scored 100 or more points in six games this season.
