#11 RJ Johnson dribbles the ball on the perimeter at VyStar Arena against FIU on Jan. 14. Photo by Jackson Louneoubonh.
Despite a third straight career-high scoring performance from RJ Johnson, men’s basketball fell to Sam Houston State on Wednesday on the road, 93-87 at Bernard G. Johnson Coliseum.
Following the indictment of guard Simeon Cottle last week, a scandal that shook the program, the Owls responded about as well as they possibly could have in their following game.
Kennesaw State pulled off an 81-65 road win over Western Kentucky last Thursday behind a 31-point outing from Johnson who had scored 26 in the game prior against Florida International, vaulting the Owls to third place in Conference USA.
Looking to continue their momentum, the Owls traveled to Huntsville, Texas to face a Sam Houston team that came into the contest at 3-4 in conference play but looking to build on back-to-back road victories.
A closely contested early first half saw the Bearkats maintain a slim advantage for a majority of the opening 12 minutes before a pair of free throws from Johnson tied the game at 26-26 with 7:40 to play in the opening half.
SHSU regained the lead 22 seconds later on a layup from Damon Nicholas Jr. and did not trail again in the half, with both teams trading buckets on the way to a 43-39 Bearkats halftime lead.
A layup and second-chance three-pointer from KSU’s Braedan Lue to open the second half gave the Owls a 44-43 lead, their first of the game, less than two minutes into the second frame.
KSU relinquished the lead, however, 45 seconds later.
The Bearkats soon after ballooned their lead to as large as 63-49 with a 16-3 run led by Po’Boigh King and Nicholas Jr..
KSU fought back to within a possession at 73-71 with 5:31 thanks to strong stretches from Trey Simpson, Frankquon Sherman and Jaden Harris but the Owls were never able to retake the lead, falling 93-87.
Johnson finished with a game-high 32 points, his second straight with over 30 and third straight career-high in scoring, while King led SHSU with 23 points on 8-of-15 shooting.
Lue posted 18 points, his most since KSU’s loss to Middle Tennessee State on Dec. 17 to go along with seven rebounds before fouling out.
Sherman finished the night with eight points and 12 rebounds, his third straight game with double-digit boards and eight this season.
Simpson scored 17 points 6-of-9 shooting from the field and Harris joined him in double-figures with 10.
The loss brought an end to a four-game winning streak for the Owls.
KSU is set to close out its road trip on Friday, when it faces Louisiana Tech in a game rescheduled due to weather concerns.
