A season-best five Lumberjacks reached double digits in scoring Friday, as SFA rolled to a 79-52 win over Southern on the opening night of the Etech Lumberjack Classic. The 27-point margin of victory is one off a season-high for SFA and marks the Lumberjacks' widest margin this season against a Division I opponent.
The Jaguars (0-7) shot a solid 41 percent from the field ,but were done in by 25 turnovers, which SFA converted to 28 points. The Jacks (4-2) also outscored Southern, 17-6, in second-chance points and dominated the paint with a 36-18 advantage.
The Jacks led by as many as 19 points late in the first half, when they shot 62 percent. SFA cooled to 34 percent in the second half ,but were aided by 13 Southern turnovers after halftime.
The Jaguars cut the lead to 12 (46-34) on a fast-break lay-up with 16:53 to play in the second period, but that was as close as they would get. SFA answered with buckets on back-to-back possessions, sparking an 11-0 run for SFA that pushed the Jacks to a 57-34 lead by the 12:51 mark. Southern would not breach the 20-point barrier again.
Denzel Barnes, New York junior, led SFA with a career-high 14 points, connecting on all six of his shot attempts, including a pair of 3-pointers. Barnes also ripped off two of SFA's season-high 14 steals and did all his damage in just 13 minutes off the bench.
Jordan Glynn,Waco junior, scored 11 points and pulled down 10 rebounds for the second time in as many games to register his first career double-double as a Lumberjack. Walt Harris, Killeen senior, added 13 points, Eddie Williams, Lawton, Okla. Junior, scored 12 and center Jereal Scott, Houston sophomore, finished with 10 points, giving SFA five players in double digits for the first time since the 2007-08 season.
In the second game of the tournament, Barnes was perfect at the foul stripe, hitting all three opportunities, including the last two with half a second on the clock to seal a 62-61 win over Cal State Fullerton Saturday in the final game of the Etech Lumberjack Classic.
Barnes was named to the all-tournament team for his efforts, joining Harris who was voted the tournament's MVP after pouring in a career-high 20 points against the Titans.
The win is the third straight for SFA (5-2) and improves the `Jacks to 8-0 all-time in home, regular-season tournaments, dating to the 1963-64 Stephen F. Austin Tournament. Cal State Fullerton (3-2) dropped both its games in the Classic after entering the weekend as the No. 18 team in the country in the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25 Poll.
SFA shot just 37.3 percent from the field - the Lumberjacks' lowest percentage in a win this season - but forced 19 Fullerton turnovers and outscored the Titans, 23-19, in points off turnovers. The `Jacks also went 21-for-26 at the foul line, taking advantage of just their second edge in free throw attempts this season. (Fullerton was just 15-of-16).
The Lumberjacks will be back in action Saturday when they travel to Virginia to take on Longwood. The game against the Lancers is scheduled for a 12:30 p.m. start.
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