Cowboys beat TAM-Corpus Christi 67-59 in conference opening game

[Guest abovetherim]

McNeese State took advantage of its bench here Saturday as the Cowboys opened Southland Confernce play by turning back defending champion TAM-Corpus Christi 67-59 in basketball action.

The Cowboy bench scored 35 points in the game and made other considerable contributions in the victory which lifted McNeese's record to 7-6 on the season.

Freshman Stephan Martin came off the bench and led all scorers with 16 points while Diego Kapelan, also off the bench, scored 11 points. Senior Al Wardell also came off the bench and helped out by taking late charges while pulling a pair of rebounds, dishing out an assist and making a steal.

"I thought that we really played well," head coach Dave Simmons said of the Cowboys. "I thought that going in we were going to play well. You can't say enough about the guys who came off the bench and made such a big contribution.

"Stephan had a big game and so did Al. I thought that John Ford did a great job of leading the team, Jarvis (Bradley) played tough and got physical when it was needed and Kleon (Penn) neutralized big Chris (Daniels)."

Martin, one of the leading prep scorers in the state last year, was six of seven from the floor including a four for four effort from three point range. He was also two for two at the line.

The Islanders, now 3-11 on the season, jumped off to a 10-4 lead and held a 12-10 edge with 11:43 left in the first half. McNeese took its first lead at 13-12 with 10:13 left and did not trail again. The Cowboys were up 25-20 at the end of the half, Ford getting nine of his game total of 11 points in that period.

McNeese outscored TAM-Corpus Christi 42-39 in the second half, making 57.1 percent of its shots from the floor, 66.7 from three point range and 92.3 from the free throw line. The Cowboys were 12 of 13 at the line in the second half.

Also scoring in double figures for McNeese was Bradley with 10 points. He also pulled a team high six rebounds.

Daniels, the Islanders' seven foot returning SLC player of the year, led his team with 14 points and 11 rebounds but he was kept in check for most of the night by the Cowboys' 6-11 Penn who finished with five points and a pair of blocked shots before fouling out.

Also for the Islanders, Justin Reynolds and Kevin Perkins both scored 11 points.

It was the first win for the Cowboys against TAM-Corpus Christi. The schools had met only twice previously and the Islanders won both of those games last year.

McNeese will be back in action on Thursday when the Cowboys host Sam Houston State. They will also play on the road on Saturday against Stephen F. Austin.

COWBOY NOTES: the 67 points the Cowboys scored enabled the team to meet the Cane Challenge....the local Raising Cane's restaurant has joined with McNeese in a promotion this season....anytime the Cowboys score 65 or more points, everyone attending the game can receive a combo meal from the diner.

[Guest Jags]

Congrats McNeese