Meet The Opponent: Sam Houston Looks To Repeat As Conference USA Champs

Sam Houston has the nation’s 17th best 3-point shooting percentage going into Tuesday’s game against Indiana.

Sam Houston Bearkats head coach Chris Mudge instructs his team against Texas Tech. / Michael C. Johnson-Imagn Images

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – After three games in the Bahamas, Indiana has returned home to face Sam Houston Tuesday night. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall, and the game will air on the Big Ten Network.

Coach Mike Woodson and the Hoosiers are looking to get back on track after a disappointing week in the Battle 4 Atlantis. Indiana ended the three-game tournament on a high note, defeating Providence 89-73 Friday, but it suffered back-to-back big losses to Gonaga, 89-73, and Louisville, 89-61 on Thursday and Wednesday, respectively.

That 1-2 stretch knocked Indiana out of the AP Top 25 poll after previously being ranked No. 14 in the nation. It also led to the Hoosiers debuting at No. 71 overall in the first NET rankings release. 

Now 5-2 overall, Indiana has four nonconference games and two Big Ten matchups in December. That starts Tuesday against Sam Houston, which brings a 4-4 record to Bloomington in its second season under coach Chris Mudge. 

Here’s a full breakdown of Sam Houston.

Key returners

• G Lamar Wilkerson: 19.6 ppg, 45.3 3pt FG%
• G Marcus Boykin: 8.2 ppg, 2.3 rpg, 39.5 FG%
• F Cameron Huefner: 10.5 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 37.5 FG%
• F Kian Scroggins: 8.8 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 55.2 FG%

Key newcomers

• G Dorian Finister (Kansas State transfer): 11.4 ppg, 43.5 3pt FG%
• F Kalifa Sakho (Utah State transfer): 8.0 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 57.4 FG%
• G Brennen Burns (Southeastern Oklahoma transfer): 6.0 ppg, 3.3 apg, 56.3 FG%
• G Josiah Hammons (Incarnate Word transfer): 7.1 ppg, 31.7 3pt FG%
• G Erik Taylor (freshman): 4.0 ppg, 1.2 apg 40.0 3pt FG%
• F Jaxson Ford (freshman): 2.0 ppg, 3.1 rpg, 46.7 FG%

Key departures

(2023-24 stats)

• F Davon Barnes: 13.5 ppg, 39.1 3pt FG%
• G Damon Nicholas Jr.: 8.1 ppg, 5.4 rpg, 36.8 3pt FG%
• G Jaden Ray: 6.8 ppg, 4.2 apg, 32.0 3pt FG%
• C Souleymane Doumbia: 6.6 ppg, 5.9 rpg, 51.6 FG%
• G Anthony Wrzeszcz: 3.1 ppg, 31.5 3pt FG%
• G Owen McGlashan: 3.0 ppg, 48.6 3pt FG%

2024-25 schedule (4-4 overall, 0-0 in Conference USA)

• L, 91-75 at Nevada on Nov. 4
• W, 91-62 at Tarleton State on Nov. 9
• L, 104-67 at Baylor on Nov. 12
• W, 85-72 at Lamar on Nov. 17
• W, 105-78 home vs. Trinity on Nov. 21
• L, 66-63 neutral site vs. Appalachian State on Nov. 27
• L, 69-60 at UNC Wilmington on Nov. 29
• W, 82-78 neutral site vs. Colgate on Nov. 30

Series history

Indiana leads the all-time series 1-0. The lone matchup was a 99-45 Indiana victory on Nov. 15, 2012 at Assembly Hall. Under former head coach Tom Crean, Christian Watford led the Hoosiers with 23 points off the bench and Will Sheehey scored 18 points. Sam Houston shot 30.2% as a team and all players were held to single-digit points.

Head coach: Chris Mudge

Mudge is in his second season as Sam Houston’s head coach. Last year, Mudge led the Bearkats to a 21-12 overall record and a Conference USA regular season championship with a 13-3 record in conference play. However, Sam Houston lost to UTEP in the Conference USA Tournament and did not qualify for the NCAA Tournament, which would have been their first appearance since 2010. 

Mudge was previously Sam Houston’s associate head coach from 2021-23 and an assistant coach for the Bearkats from 2010-21. He was also an assistant coach at Midland College from 2008-10 and a graduate assistant at Texas, his alma mater, from 2006-08. Mudge, 40, was born in Round Rock, Texas.

Strengths

Sam Houston is led by 6-foot-4 senior guard Lamar Wilkerson. He was a first-team All-Conference USA member last season, but he’s taken his game to another level this year. Wilkerson’s scoring average has increased from 13.8 to 19.6 points per game, thanks to a massive leap in his 3-point shooting ability. 

Wilkerson averaged 4.8 3-point attempts per game last season and shot 34.7%. His attempts have increased to 8.0 per game, and his percentage is all the way up to 45.3%. Among all players with at least 8.0 3-point attempts, Wilkerson is one of just five to shoot over 45%. Indiana’s defense has to keep an especially close eye on Wilkerson from beyond the arc.

His 3-point shooting is a big reason Sam Houston ranks 17th nationally with a team 3-point shooting percentage of 40.3%. The Bearkats don’t take a very large amount of 3-pointers – 22.6 per game, which ranks 207th in the nation – but their 9.1 makes per game ranks 90th. They’ll need to continue that long-range efficiency against Indiana, because their 49% 2-point field goal percentage, which ranks 280th, does not match up well against a tall Indiana front court.

Indiana struggled to keep opponents off the offensive glass in the Bahamas, allowing 41 offensive rebounds across three games. Woodson and the Hoosiers will have to clean that up against a Sam Houston team that ranks 71st nationally in offensive rebounding. 

Weaknesses

Sam Houston’s strong 3-point shooting is a big reason it ranks 101st nationally in adjusted offensive efficiency, but its defense has been the weaker side of the ball through eight games. Sam Houston ranks 184th in adjusted defensive efficiency, according to Bart Torvik. 

Opponents are shooting 36.8% from 3-point range against the Bearkats, giving them the nation’s 308th ranked 3-point defense. They’ve struggled to limit opponents inside the arc too, ranking 292nd in 2-point defense. That combination puts Sam Houston’s defense 318th in the country with a 55.4% effective field goal percentage. It’s also allowing 77.5 points per game, which ranks 303rd nationally, boosted by allowing 91 points in a loss to Nevada and 104 points in a loss to Baylor.

Indiana, which starts three players 6-foot-9 or taller, should have an advantage on the defensive glass. Sam Houston ranks 351st in defensive rebounding despite its strong offensive rebounding numbers. The Bearkats have a veteran front court with 6-foot-11 junior Kalifa Sakho and 6-foot-7 junior Cameron Huefner, but only plays two others at 6-foot-7.

Season outlook

After winning the regular season Conference USA title last year, Sam Houston was picked to finish third in the preseason Conference USA coaches poll. However, the Bearkats received three first-place votes, the same amount as Louisiana Tech, which was picked to win the conference. Lamar Wilkerson was Sam Houston’s lone representative on the 10-player preseason All-Conference USA team. Heading into Tuesday’s game at Indiana, Sam Houston is ranked No. 133 in the nation by Bart Torvik, the fourth-highest among Conference USA teams, behind Liberty, Western Kentucky and Louisiana Tech.

Related stories on Indiana basketball

• 3 THINGS TO WATCH: The Bearkats come to Bloomington as the Hoosiers try to find themselves after a disappointing trip to the Bahamas. CLICK HERE

• INDIANA HAS LOW NET DEBUT, FALLS OUT OF TOP 25: The metrics and the polls brought bad news to Indiana basketball on Monday. CLICK HERE.

• HOW TO WATCH: How to watch Indiana's men's basketball game against Sam Houston. CLICK HERE.