LAKE CHARLES – Sha'markus Kennedy set a McNeese H&HP Arena scoring record with 37 points while the Cowboys, as a team, posted a new school record with their fifth 100-point game of the season in a 102-89 Southland Conference win over HBU on Saturday.
The victory, which came in front of a crowd of 3,214 as the second-largest crowd of the season, was the sixth straight for the Cowboys as they improve to 11-9 overall and 6-3 in league play. HBU, who entered the game as one of the fastest tempo teams in the country, fell to 1-16 overall and 1-7 in the league.
"It's a great win for us. I'm really proud of our guys. We found a way to win when we didn't play great, especially defensively," said head coach
Heath Schroyer.
Kennedy added 14 rebounds for his eight double-double of the season while sinking 14 of 15 from the field.
A.J. Lawson added 21 points, eight assists and six rebounds for McNeese while
Roydell Brown scored 12 points with eight dimes and seven rebounds.
Trey Johnson chipped in with 11 points to round out the double-figure scorers.
HBU was led by Ian DuBose's 23 points while Jason Gates scored 19 and Myles Pierre 18.
The Cowboys shot 58 percent from the field (35 for 60) while holding HBU to 39 percent (32 for 82). But the Huskies pulled down nine more rebounds than the Cowboys, including 23 off the offensive glass.
"We really got it handed to us on the glass," said Schroyer. "We gave up 23 offensive rebounds. That's what they do. They send five guys to the glass. We didn't do a very good job of rebounding the ball."
McNeese turned to someone other than
Dru Kuxhausen for three-pointers for the game as
Trey Johnson and
Myles Hutchinson combined to hit 5 of 6 while Kuxhausen drained 3 of 8 to push his season total to 86, which continues to lead the NCAA.
"I thought Trey hit two really big threes in the corner," said Schroyer.
Those threes by Johnson came midway through the second half when HBU battled to cut a double-digit deficit to single digits.
However, the play of Kennedy was too much for the Huskies to overcome as the senior scored 14 of his points in the final 10 minutes of the game.
McNeese led 46-37 at the half and built as much as a 15-point lead late before HBU finished the final 3:26 on an 8-2 run.
Lawson put McNeese up 53-43 off a layup with 17:37 to play but HBU bounced back with a couple of Jason Thompson baskets then a Gates 3 to cut McNeese's lead to 55-51 with 16:13 remaining.
Kennedy and Lawson then took control by scoring nine of the Cowboys' next 12 points then Johnson's 3 with 11:28 to play put the Cowboys back up by double figures at 71-59.
McNeese maintained that cushion for the rest of the game while Kuxhausen put a stamp on the win with his third three-pointer of the game with 1:07 to play to make it 99-85.
The Cowboys will continue their three-game home stand on Wednesday when they host Nicholls.
POSTGAME NOTES:
• It's the first six-game winning streak for the Cowboys since the 2011-12 season.
• McNeese is 9-3 since Dec. 1 and 8-2 at home on the season.
• The team's 26 assists is the second-most this season and seventh time with 20 or more.
• The Cowboys turned the ball over just 11 times, the second-lowest on the year.
• Kennedy's double-double is his third in the last four games.
• Kennedy's 37 points scored is a career-high and ties the most points scored by a Cowboy this season (
A.J. Lawson with 37 at Abilene Christian).
• Kennedy posted 6 "Sham Slams" in the game, a season-high and brings his season total of dunks to 45.
•
Myles Hutchinson's two 3-pointers made is a career-best.
• McNeese's 102 points scored marks the fifth time this season the Cowboys have reached the century mark and setting a new school record by breaking the old record of four set by the 1975-76 Cowboys.
• It's also the first 100-point game against a Division I team since scoring 103 points against Northwestern State in 2001.
• McNeese is now 18-7 all-time vs. HBU.
• The two teams will face each other again on Feb. 29 in Houston.
