Nicholls downed 75-73 in back-and-forth battle at Corpus Christi

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – The Nicholls State University men’s basketball team fell 75-73 to Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Wednesday at the American Bank Center.

The Colonels (10-10, 3-4 SLC) led by as many as nine in the second half following a 7-2 run that made it 65-56 with 7:58 to play, but the Islanders (9-10, 4-2) outscored them 19-8 the rest of the way to steal the win. A&M-Corpus Christi scored 12 points from the free-throw line during that stretch.

The first five buckets of the game were 3-pointers as graduate transfer Jeremiah Jefferson and sophomore Kevin Johnson each drained one for Nicholls and Islanders Jake Babic and Jashawn Talton combined for three to give the home side a 9-6 edge. Babic connected on another triple at the 8:58 mark, following Kareem South’s trey, which gave A&M-Corpus Christi its largest lead of the contest at 27-15.

Graduate transfer Gavin Peppers and junior Danny Garrick quickly answered with back-to-back long balls, ceasing a 2:43 scoring drought for the Colonels. Jefferson and Garrick rattled off consecutive 3-pointers later in the period to spark a 10-3 run that cut the deficit to three with 3:27 to go. Garrick nailed his final trifecta at 1:05. Garrick shot 4-for-4 from long range in the first half. Ten of Nicholls’ 13 first-half field goals were 3-pointers.

Although the Islanders tallied nine of the first 11 points to open the second half, the Colonels responded with a 17-2 run, limiting the opposition to one layup in a 5:46 stretch to grab a 56-49 lead. Nicholls would increase its lead to nine before A&M-Corpus Christi’s late scoring barrage sealed the victory.

Peppers fronted the Colonels offensively with 16 points, followed by Garrick’s 15. Nicholls knocked down 56 percent of its 3-pointers, the best conversion rate in a Southland Conference game since an 8-for-14 performance against McNeese on Feb. 27, 2016.

The Islanders received a game-high 18 points from Babic and Talton. Talton chipped in 10 boards for the double-double.

The Colonels put their 6-0 home record on the line Wednesday against Lamar. Tipoff at Stopher Gym is scheduled for 7 p.m.

Get your season or single-game tickets now by calling 985-448-4790 or visiting nichollstickets.com. For the latest news on Nicholls men’s basketball, follow the team on Twitter @Nicholls_MBB.