The Chippewas outscored Sam Houston State, 51-26, in the game's final 20 minutes to secure victory in their first true road contest of the season. CMU, in handing the Bearkats just their third home setback in three seasons, improves to 6-1 on the season while SHSU falls to 3-5.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Chippewas found themselves in a nine-point hole to start the second half, but a 13-3 run rendered their first lead of the game. The Bearkats would tie the game at 50-50 but three-straight 3-pointers gave the Chippewas a nine-pont advantage of their own.
CMU continued its second half dominance, holding the Bearkats to 28.1 percent from the floor while extending its lead to as large as 18 points.
LEADERS
Senior Larry Austin Jr. was one of four Chippewas to finish in double figures with a game-high 23 points, seven assists and a team-leading six rebounds. In the decisive second half, he went 3-for-3 from the floor and 7-for-8 from the line.
Kevin McKay added 18 points on 7-of-11 shooting while Shawn Roundtree Jr. contributed 14 points, 11 of which came in the second half. Junior David DiLeo added 10 points on 2-of-3 shooting from 3-point range and a flawless 4-of-4 from the free throw line.
SECOND HALF SUCCESS
After a 12-of-30 finish from the field and committing 10 turnovers in the opening 20 minutes, the Chippewas regrouped at the half and finished strong, shooting 63.6 percent in the second half, making 17-of-22 free throw attempts and knocking down 6-of-10 from beyond the arc.
NEXT
The Chippewas will stay in the Lone Star state to clash with TCU in Fort Worth on Friday. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
(Courtesy of CMU Athletics)