Box Score The Chicago State men's basketball team held Lamar scoreless for nearly nine minutes to start the second half and outscored the Cardinals 33-15 in the final 20 minutes to secure a 67-56 victory at the Montagne Center in Beaumont, Texas on Saturday. The win was the Cougars first conference road victory since Jan. 12, 2017 when CSU beat Utah Valley in Orem, 70-61.
The Cougars had four players score in double figures with
Brandon Betson leading the way with 18, followed by
Favour Chukwukelu with 14 and
Coreyoun Rushin and
Dominique Alexander each with 11.
Noah Bigirumwami led the team with 11 rebounds and Rushin completed a double-double with 10 boards.
The teams traded baskets early with 11 lead changes in the first nine minutes before Lamar went on a 5-0 run to create some early separation. Betson and Chukwukelu handled the scoring in the opening minutes with Betson scoring nine of the first 15 points and Chukwukelu adding five.
Trailing 21-15,
Bryce Johnson hit a three for the Cougars to close the gap, then
Dominique Alexander followed with another three to tie the game 21-21. Following a Lamar bucket,
Coreyoun Rushin converted an and-1 to put CSU back on top, 24-23. The Cardinals went on a 6-1 run stopped by a pair of
Jincho Rivera free throws and the Lamar lead was three, 30-27. Following a pair of Alexander free throws, Lamar closed the first half on a 7-3 run and a 41-34 halftime lead.
Lamar came out cold in the second half and failed to score for nearly nine minutes and Chicago State took advantage, turning a seven-point halftime deficit into a 46-43 lead, expanding the run to 26-6 and a 60-47 CSU lead with just under four minutes to play.
The Cougars held Lamar to 31.1 percent shooting (19-of-61), including just six-of-19 from beyond the three-point arc and the Cougars out rebounded the Cardinals by 10, 40-30.
The Cardinals fall to 2-14 overall and 0-5 in the WAC while Chicago State improves to 6-13 overall and 2-4 in conference play. Next up for the Cougars will be a pair of home games, hosting Utah Valley on Thursday, Jan. 27 and 7 p.m. followed by. Dixie State on Saturday, Jan. 29 at 2 p.m.
About Chicago State
Chicago State University Athletics is comprised of 15 intercollegiate teams involving over 150 student-athletes that compete in basketball, cross country, golf, soccer, tennis, indoor and outdoor track and volleyball. CSU held memberships in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and NCAA Division II before transitioning to NCAA Division I in 1994. Melvin Bland was the first CSU student-athlete to gain NAIA All-American status in 1974 as a wrestler. Fred Evans became the first black swimmer ever to win a national championship in 1975. CSU's women's basketball team earned a spot in the 2011 Women's Basketball Invitational and CSU's men's basketball team won the 2013 Great West Conference Tournament title and made an appearance in the CollegeInside.com Postseason Tournament (CIT). The Men's Outdoor Track & Field 4x100-Meter Relay team were 2019 Honorable Mention All-Americans and WAC Champions. Their feat marked the first time the Chicago State's men's track & field program was represented at the national meet. In 2021, three different CSU teams earned victories over Big Ten opponents with men's soccer beating Northwestern, women's basketball upending Wisconsin and volleyball, which established a school record 17 wins and hosted a post-season volleyball tournament for the first time in program history, swept Indiana in Bloomington.
Follow the Cougars
For complete coverage of Chicago State University athletics, follow us on social media @ChiStateCougars (Twitter), @ChiStateCougars (Instagram), /ChiStateCougars (Facebook), or visit the official home of Chicago State athletics at GoCSUCougars.com.
