Box Score (html)
WEATHERFORD, Okla. – SWOSU Men's Basketball dropped its fifth conference game of the season on Saturday afternoon, falling to Southern Arkansas by a final score of 84-73 inside the Pioneer Cellular Event Center.
After trailing by as many as 15 points in the middle part of the first half, SWOSU clawed back to within one possession heading into the halftime locker room following a
Charles Beauregard, Jr. three point shot as the final seconds ticked down to zero.
The deep ball kept the Bulldogs in the game all half, accounting for seven of the eight total shots the offense converted. SWOSU shot 8-for-25 (32%) overall, but went 7-of-17 (41.2%) from beyond the arc while knocking down 14 free throws to trail Southern Arkansas just 39-37 at the intermission.
SWOSU never managed to hold a lead in the second half, but had the game within four points at 56-52 with 11:38 remaining in the half after
Nick Shoemaker knocked down a three-point shot – one of his four in the game. SAU would respond though, pushing their lead almost immediately back to double digits following a small run, and with 9:05 on the clock SWOSU trailed 63-52.
From that point on, the Bulldogs got within six points just once after fouling to extend the contest with extra possessions. The Muleriders, who shot 79.2% (19-of-24) from the charity stripe, eventually iced the game with free throws and earned their first conference win of the season.
As a team, SWOSU shot 33% from the field overall on 19-of-57 shooting including 11-of-32 (34.4%) from the three-point line. Southern Arkansas ended at 48.3% from the field on 28-of-58 attempts, while also knocking down nine deep balls themselves. SAU outscored SWOSU 30-16 in the paint and 18-9 off of the bench.
Beauregard finished with his best point total of the season, scoring 25 points while grabbing five rebounds.
Devin Pugh tallied 17 points while Shoemaker also finished with his season best scoring effort by adding 16 points.
SWOSU (3-9, 1-5 GAC) will host East Central at home next Thursday, January 11 for more conference play before hitting the road to Durant, Okla. to take on Southeastern two days later and wrap up the week of action.
