The old Shu kicked up his heels just in time to lift the Cowboys Monday night.

After sleepwalking through the opening half, McNeese State was looking for somebody to pump energy into the Legacy Center. 

Christian Shumate became that somebody.

The senior forward scored 17 of his game-high 19 points in the second half to rally the Cowboys to a 67-51 victory over East Texas A&M.

During a 16-minute stretch, Shumate scored those 17 points, collected six rebounds, and dished out three assists. His fun included four dunks, a.k.a. ShuSlams, a twirling layup, and even a 3-point bomb.

When his thunderous run was over, McNeese had moved from five points down to up 64-49 with just over two minutes remaining.

“He looked like his old self,” McNeese head coach Will Wade said of Shumate. “He played tremendous. We need more of that down the stretch.”

Shumate has had a solid season, but it has not been as electric as last year when he lit up the highlight reels. On Monday, the electricity returned.

“Once I made a couple of plays, I just tried to keep things rolling,” said Shumate. 

He finished 9 of 14 from the floor, including that one 3-pointer. His 19 points and 14 rebounds were the 38th double-double of his career, a McNeese record.

With the win, the Cowboys improved to 13-1 in the Southland Conference and kept their lead at three games as they try to repeat as regular season champs. They are also 19-6 overall. 

ETAM fell to 3-22, 1-13.

“We all knew we had to start the second half the right way,” said Shumate. “We wanted to throw the first punches.”

DJ Richards also looked like his old self. For the second straight game, he hit four 3-pointers to finish with 12. 

“I’m just happy my shots are finally going in,” said Richards. “It’s been an up-and-down year for me. My guys have been there for me and told me to keep going. That’s been great.”

Richards hit 4 of 6 from long range, while the Cowboys made 9 of 20 as a team. 

Joe Charles finished with 11 points and seven boards, while Javohn Garcia added nine points and six rebounds.

However, things did not look good early. The last-place Lions made 10 3-pointers in the first half and used a 13-0 run to lead 27-22 at the break. 

“It was a tale of two halves,” said Wade. “They came out more aggressive to start. We played real aggressive for 20 minutes. We got to be able to match that the entire game.”

But McNeese’s defense was tough once against all game, getting 14 turnovers on eight steals. They also forced four shot-clock violations. 

The Cowboys’ 51 points allowed were their second-lowest of the season. They gave up 50 on Saturday at Northwestern State to set the low mark.

“Our defense has been solid,” said Wade. “Our offense has been pretty clunky. We have to get that fixed.”

McNeese guard Quadir Copeland reached a personal milestone as he picked up his 200th career assist during the game. He finished with eight points and six assists. 

McNeese will travel to New Orleans on Saturday for a 5 p.m. game against the Privateers (4-21, 2-12).