University of North Texas Athletics
Mean Green Wins Fourth Straight 87-73 Over Arkansas State
1/24/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
JONESBORO, Ark. (1/24/04) Four North Texas players scored in double figures to lead the Mean Green (9-8, 4-1) to its fourth consecutive victory with an 87-73 win over Arkansas State (11-7, 2-5) on Saturday in a Sun Belt Conference men’s basketball game.
The Mean Green extended its longest winning streak of the season, which is also its longest since the 2001-02 season. NT entered the game tied for first place in the West Division with Louisiana-Lafayette and New Orleans.
North Texas went into the break ahead 37-28, but ASU used a 10-3 run over the first 1:44 of the second half to pull within two points, but North Texas, which never trailed, didn’t let the Indians get any closer. The Mean Green went on a 13-3 run over the next 5:02 to regain control of the contest at 53-41 and held at least a seven-point lead the rest of the way.
Junior guard Leonard Hopkins led the North Texas attack with a career-high 25 points and was joined in double figures by Michael Degrate (14), Calvin Watson (14) and Marqus Mitchell (10). Watson’s 14 points were a career-high for the freshman guard as well. DeGrate has now scored in double digits the last three games, while Mitchell scored at least 10 points for the first time since scoring 24 against Lamar in the second game of the season.
Leading 4-3 early, North Texas used a 13-0 run to take a commanding 17-3 lead at the 13:31 mark of the first half. The Mean Green did a good job of playing with the lead the remainder of the opening 20 minutes, never allowing a big ASU run and never letting the Indians get any closer than seven points.
North Texas used a strong shooting performance to fuel the victory, shooting 53 percent from the field and 47 percent from beyond the arc. The Mean Green improved to 8-1 this season when it shoots 45 percent or better. Arkansas State hit just 31 percent of its shots from the floor and 26 percent from three-point range. ASU was able to keep the game close for a while due to a strong effort on the offensive boards, finishing with 20 offensive rebounds. The Indians outrebounded NT 43-38 for the game.
The Mean Green, now 9-8, has its best overall record through 17 games since it was 9-8 in 2001-02. NT improved to 4-1 in Sun Belt Conference play and holds its best record ever in the league through five games. The last time North Texas had a better record through five games in any conference was 1988-89 when it started 5-0 in the Southland.
North Texas’ 87 points ties its second highest scoring total this season and marks the fourth time this year it has scored at least 80 points. The Mean Green is 4-0 in those games and 17-4 all-time under head coach Johnny Jones when it scores at least 80.
The Mean Green returns home for a two-game road swing next week, hosting New Orleans on Jan. 29 and South Alabama on Jan. 31. Both games are scheduled to get under way at 7 p.m.
