Jan. 10, 2008

Box Score

THIBODAUX, La. - With the seconds rapidly ticking off the clock in overtime, junior Ryan Bathie had a put back lay up after a missed three point attempt by freshman Anatoly Bose to give the Colonels the 58-57 win over the Lumberjacks in Stopher Gym on Thursday night.

Nicholls (6-10, 1-0) fell behind in the overtime period 57-52, and then went on a 6-0 run to close out the game for the win. Both teams entered the extra period tied at 50 as the Colonels overcame a two-point halftime deficit, 32-20, to send the game into overtime. Stephen F. Austin (12-2, 0-1) had a chance to extend its lead in overtime to two with eight seconds left, but Matt Kingsley missed the front end of a one-and-one opportunity. Kingsley, the conference's leading scorer, was 0-for-6 from the floor for the game, and was limited to just four points, all of which came from the free throw line. The Lumberjacks, who were riding a 10-game win streak that included a victory over Oklahoma, did boast the contest's leading scorer as Josh Alexander had a double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds, but his efforts fell short.

"I'm just so proud of my guys and the heart and effort that they showed tonight," said head coach J.P. Piper about the Colonels' performance. "They were tired, but they played with a high level of intensity and toughness. We preach toughness all the time, and they showed toughness tonight."

The Colonels played the game without two usual starters: leading scorer sophomore Michael Czepil and lone senior Adonis Gray due to injury. In light of their absence, Bose came off the bench to score a team best 17-points and sophomore Mitch Boyce stepped into the starting role to score four points and recorded three rebounds, two assists, a block, and a steal.

Nicholls shot 43.1 percent (22-of-51) from the floor for the game and 37.5 percent (9-of-24) from downtown, while Stephen F. Austin shot 40.8 percent (20-of-49) from field goal range and 34.8 percent (8-of-23) from three-point territory. The Lumberjacks held the rebounding edge, 39-to-30, but turned over the ball 18 times to the Colonels' 15, which led to 22 Nicholls' points. Stephen F. Austin's bench only manufactured two points in the loss, while Nicholls' pine players rung up 19.

At halftime, Bose lead all scorers with 14 points as he was 4-of-5 from downtown and 5-of-7 from the floor. The Sydney, Australia native finished 5-of-8 from three-point land for the game and 6-of-10 from field goal range. Although Bose only contributed three points in the second half, the Colonels opened up the second stanza on a 20-8 run that lasted for the first 17:46 of the period.

Joining Bose in double-digits was Bathie with 14 and a team best six rebounds, while junior Justin Payne added 10 to round out the Colonels 10-plus scorers. The Lumberjacks had three players cross the decade mark with Alexander leading the way with 18. Eric Bell had 13 and Nick Shaw had 11.

The Colonels will continue conference play at Sam Houston State (12-2, 0-1) on Saturday at 7 p.m. Nicholls lost last year's contest in Stopher Gym, 81-61, despite a 20-point effort by former Colonel Stefan Blaszczynski. The Bearkats hold the all-time series advantage, 22-18.