56.7 F
Clarksville
Thursday, March 28, 2024
HomeSportsAPSU Governors Basketball's Josh Robinson nets 30 in 86-80 road win over...

APSU Governors Basketball’s Josh Robinson nets 30 in 86-80 road win over Southeast Missouri

Austin Peay Sports Information

Austin Peay State University Governors - APSUCape Girardeau, MOJosh Robinson scored 30 points, including the go-ahead jumper with 2:56 left, as Austin Peay State University claimed its first Ohio Valley Conference road win with an 86-80 victory, Saturday afternoon, in men’s action played at the Show Me Center.

Austin Peay's Josh Robinson scores 30 points in OVC road win over Southeat Missouri Redhawks Saturday. (APSU Sports Information)
Austin Peay’s Josh Robinson scores 30 points in OVC road win over Southeat Missouri Redhawks Saturday. (APSU Sports Information)

The Governors, who led by as much as 13 second-half points, found themselves trailing 74-72 after the Redhawks’ Joel Angus scored on a lane jumper with 3:48 left.

But Govs’ freshman forward Jared Savage tied the game with a pair of free throws with 3:29 left before a strip and steal by Khalil Davis helped set up Robinson for his go-ahead jumper.

After both team failed to take advantage of offensive opportunities, Davis then was fouled going after an APSU offensive rebound.

APSU Khalil DavisThe senior then drilled home both free throws to give APSU a 78-74 advantage with 2:11 left. SEMO only could answer with an Antonius Cleveland free throw to make it a three-point contest before Robinson literally put the game away with a long three pointer with 1:44 left to put the Govs up by six, 81-75.

It literally came down to free throws for the Govs for the game’s remainder as Robinson, who is shooting better than 85 percent for the season, made four-of-six down the stretch to eliminate any comeback by SEMO, which came in amidst a three-game winning streak. The Govs, meanwhile, improved to 10-14 overall and 3-6 in the OVC.

APSU Josh Robinson“It’s like Coach (Jay Bowen) said, ‘in conference play you have to grind it out,’ APSU coach Dave Loos said. “We did that tonight and that is what I am most proud about. SEMO came in feeling pretty good about themselves after winning two straight conference games and to come in here and get this win… that was encouraging.”

The Governors, in fact, had four players in double figures. Robinson was joined by Davis, who had a seemingly quiet 18 points.

“Khalil did a lot of good things tonight,” Loos said. “He did a good job on the defensive end, he made his free throws (six-of-six) and got on the floor there in the last minute and got us a loose ball.”

Chris Horton tallied 15 points while Kenny Jones added 12. Robinson, Davis and Jones all reached double figures before their leading scorer, Horton, did. Jones, in fact, reached double figures for the first time in six games—his 12 points were one more than he totaled in those previous five contests.

“It was good to see Kenny come alive,” Loos said. “He made half his shots and he missed two or three that he knows he could have. He also got us eight rebounds—you would take 12 points and eight rebounds from him almost any night.”

APSU Tre' IvoryThe Governors trailed by as much as six first-half points, taking advantage of some Governors turnovers before Loos turned to sophomore point guard Tre’ Ivory, who gave APSU starter Zach Glotta a breather. Ivory’s defense and passing helped turned the deficit into four-point halftime lead as the Govs went on a 12-0 run before Eric McGill closed out the half with a layup to make it a 34-30 halftime advantage.

“I thought Tre’ was really good on the defensive end in the first half,” Loos said. “We had seven straight stops on the defensive end.”

The Governors seeming took control of the game in the second half’s first five minutes. After the Redhawks scored first, the Governors used an 18-7 burst to lead 52-39 with 14:59 left. But SEMO used a 1-3-1 half-court trap to change the momentum and by the time the game reached the 7:39, it was tied.

APSU Chris HortonThe Govs pushed the lead back to four but back-to-back Jones’ three pointers gave SEMO the short-lived lead until Robinson took over. Robinson ended the night 9-of-16 from the floor, including 7-of-12 from three-point territory.

“Josh was feeling it tonight,” APSU coach Dave Loos said. “He had some of his home boys in town (Robinson is from St. Louis) and put on a good show.”

The Governors finished the night shooting 52.7 percent (29 of 55), the first time in seven games they shot 50 percent or better. They also shot 80 percent (20 of 25) at the free-throw—it was an OVC-season best performance.

Jones led SEMO, now 5-17 overall and 2-7 in the OVC, with 18 points while Cleveland and Trey Kellum added 15 apiece.

Up Next

The Austin Peay Governors are on the road Thursday, February 4th, to play the UT Martin Skyhawks. Tip is set for 6:00pm CT.

RELATED ARTICLES

Latest Articles