Hot-shooting SFA hammers Demons, 97-5

NACOGDOCHES, Texas – When Northwestern State came into Johnson Coliseum last March 2 and ended Stephen F. Austin’s five-year, 45-game homecourt Southland Conference basketball win streak, it was a stinging loss for the Lumberjacks.

They returned the favor Saturday night, blasting the Demons 97-50, shooting over 70 percent until the closing minutes. The visitors had their worst shooting performance in three weeks at 39 percent overall, just 2-11 on 3-pointers and only 6-16 at the free throw line.

SFA junior guard Shannon Bogues hit all five of his first-half 3-pointers while pouring in 24 of his career-high 35 points. He hit 12 of his first 13 shots, finishing 13 of 17 overall and 6 of 8 on 3-pointers. The Lumberjacks (20-5 overall, 9-3 in the Southland) shot 68 percent in the opening half and were even better as they pushed a 47-21 halftime lead out to a margin as large as 51.

Said Demons’ coach Mike McConathy: “We came in here and beat them last year, and nobody’s won here since. No doubt they were loaded up for bear, and you cannot say enough about how well they played, how well they shot, how well they defended, and how well they took advantage of our breakdowns. Bogues had a fantastic night to ignite them and they took off.

“I felt like we were building, but we hit a wall tonight,” said McConathy. “We had the ball Wednesday night in the last seconds with a chance to beat a good Lamar team, but tonight we wilted. We were too timid throughout.

“They got the ball and jammed it down our throat. We were continually caught in what they call no-man’s land in tennis, a poor place to defend. They just torched us,” he said.

“We didn’t see this coming in no way, shape or form,” said McConathy. “Here’s the irony. We had great practices Thursday and Friday, we were locked in. We competed for the first eight minutes or so and then hit the wall and SFA hit the afterburners.”

After holding an 11-10 edge with 12:29 showing in the first half, SFA launched an extended 28-6 run over the next seven minutes, with Bogues bombing in four of his five first-half treys.

Ishmael Lane scored 10 points for the Demons (3-21, 0-13), who lost for the 16th straight game. He is now 36 away from becoming the 31st member of NSU’s 1,000-Point Club. He had a pair of blocked shots to move into ninth on the Demons’ career list, with 93 late in his junior season.

The Demons will take advantage of the two-day break from classes due to Mardi Gras, said McConathy, as they prepare to host Houston Baptist, which is 1-11 in the conference and 5-19 overall, in a 6:30 game Wednesday night.

“We’re going to come out a different team Wednesday night, I’m confident of that,” said McConathy.