Led by Sheldon McClellan who scored 16 points and pulled down eight rebounds, the University of Texas defeated Sam Houston State 65-37 in a non-conference men’s basketball game at the Erwin Center Tuesday night.
The Longhorns won the game at the free throw line where Texas hit 27 of 36 attempts. Sam Houston was 5-of-11 at the line.
The Bearkats had a poor shooting night, hitting 21 percent from the field (13-of-62) including six of 28 from three point range.
“We didn’t shoot the ball very well,” Sam Houston head coach Jason Hooten said. “Against a team this big and this talented you have to make your shots. That was disappointing.”
Texas (4-2) led most of the way. Paul Baxter tied the game 4-4 with a jumper at the 14:45 mark in the first half before the Horns went on a 10-0 run to build a 16-4 margin. Texas led by as many as 17 points in the first period and were up 31-18 at intermission.
Sam Houston (3-4) came back early in the second period, cutting the Texas lead to 11 points twice. Will Bond hit a three-pointer with 13:47 to play to pull to 36-25. Darius Gatson took a steal all the way for a layup at the 11:43 mark as Texas led 38-27.
But, with the Horns in the bonus, the free throws helped Texas pull away and finish with a 28-point win.
Sam Houston was led by Baxter with 12 points. The Bearkats, who now stand 3-4 for the season, face three more road games before returning to Bernard G. Johnson Coliseum.
SHSU plays at Northern Arizona Saturday, Dec. 1; Houston Baptist Saturday, Dec. 8 and Samford Saturday, Dec. 15 before returning to Huntsville to host Huston-Tillotson Wednesday, Dec. 19.