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NACOGDOCHES, Texas – The UIW men's basketball team plays arguably their toughest week of the season, when the Cardinals play at Stephen F. Austin on Thursday at 8 p.m. and conference leader Sam Houston State two days later on ESPN3. Thursday's tilt against the Lumberjacks will be shown nationally on American Sports Network and locally on WOAI-DT2, channels 80 or 1244 on Charter Spectrum.
 
OPENING TIP
 
UIW defeated SFA for the first time in program history last month, Jan. 21, by a score of 70-68. Shawn Johnson hit two crucial three-pointers in the final minute, the latter coming in the final seconds to turn a one-point UIW deficit to a two-point Cardinal lead. He finished with nine points, while Jorden Kite scored a career-high 18 points.
 
SCOUTING THE LUMBERJACKS
 
2016-17 Record: 12-11 (7-4 SLC)
Last Game: W 75-73 (OT) at Northwestern State (2/4)
Head Coach: Kyle Keller (1st season)
Key Players:
#11 Ivan Canete – 12.0 ppg, 3.0 rpg, 38 asts, 34 stls, 44.9 3-Pt%
#22 TJ Holyfield – 11.4 ppg, 6.1 rpg, 21 asts, 31 blks, 20 stls, 53.5 FG%
#3 Leon Gilmore III – 10.0 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 35 asts, 20 stls
Summary: Stephen F. Austin is starting to click, winning three of its last four games and six of its last eight. The Lumberjacks defeated Northwestern State on the road, 75-73 in overtime.
 
On the season, Ivan Canete is 18th in the conference with 12.0 points per game. TJ Holyfield is 14th in the SLC with 6.2 rebounds per game and 7th with 1.3 blocked shots per contest. As a team, the Lumberjacks are 6th with a -0.1 scoring margin (68.7-68.9) and leads the conference with a +4.7 rebounding margin (34.4-29.7).
 
THE CARDINAL FILE
 
2016-17 Record: 10-12 (5-6 SLC)
Last Game: L 84-70 at HBU (2/4)
Head Coach: Ken Burmeister (11th season)
Key Players:
#41 Shawn Johnson – 15.2 ppg, 6.7 rpg, 34 asts, 28 blks, 28 stls, 43.3 3-Pt%
#3 Simi Socks – 15.9 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 29 asts, 12 blks, 20 stls, 83.2 FT%
#1 Jalin Hart – 14.9 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 106 asts, 35 stls, 7 blks, 51.3 FG%
Summary: UIW was unable to sweep the season series with HBU as the Cardinals fell to the Huskies, 84-70, on Feb. 4. UIW was outscored 40-28 in points in the paint and out-rebounded 48-23. Shawn Johnson was tied for the game high of 22 points to lead UIW.
 
On the season, Simi Socks is 5th in the Southland Conference with 15.8 points per game. He has scored in double figures in nine-straight games, the longest stretch since Kyle Hittle performed the feat Dec. 22, 2015-Jan. 30, 2016. Socks' 83.0 free throw percentage is second in the conference. Jalin Hart (15.0 ppg) and Johnson (14.9 ppg) are in 7th and 8th place, respectively. Johnson, who hit five triples against the Huskies, is 3rd in the conference in both 3-point field goal percentage (43.1; 26th nationally) and threes made per game (2.5). His 6.9 rebounds per game ranks him T-8th in the SLC. Devin Wyatt remains 2nd in the SLC and T-27th nationally with 2.3 blocked shots per game. As a team, the Cardinals are 9th in the SLC with a -2.3 scoring margin (77.9-80.2) and 10th with a -3.4 rebounding margin (34.6-38.0).
 
UP NEXT
 
UIW plays the first of a home-and-home series with Sam Houston State on Saturday, Feb. 11 at 6:15 p.m. on ESPN3 and the WatchESPN app.
 
STAY TUNED
 
The Cardinals open a three-game home stand next Wednesday, Feb. 15 at 7:30 p.m. against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.
 
For the most up-to-date information on UIW Athletics visit uiwcardinals.com. Be sure to follow UIW Athletics on Twitter @UIWAthletics and like UIW Athletics on Facebook at UIW Athletics.