MONROE, La. – Junior Nick Coppola poured in a career-high 26 points and senior Majok Deng registered a double-double as the ULM men's basketball program defeated Texas State, 73-59 on Saturday at Fant-Ewing Coliseum.
With the win, ULM (10-11, 6-4 SBC) capped a 4-0 homestand and improved to 9-0 at Fant-Ewing Coliseum this season.
Coppola went 11-17 from the floor and 3-6 from long-range to go along with his five assists and two steals. Deng's double-double came on 15 points and 10 rebounds. Both Coppola and Deng played 40 minutes.
Also in double-figures, freshman Travis Munnings came off the bench and totaled 12 points and seven rebounds. He connected on a pair of key three-pointers in the second half.
The Bobcats (9-9, 3-6 SBC) were led by Kavin Gilder-Tilbury's 15 points. Cameron Naylor ended with 12 points, and Emani Gant had 10 points, eight rebounds and six assists.
ULM led 11-6 early when Coppola buried a three-pointer at the end of the shot clock and Deng scored on a put-back to increase the lead to 16-6 at the 14:16 mark. Still ahead 18-10, the Bobcats responded with an 8-0 run to tie the game, 18-18 with 11:05 remaining.
Jumpers by senior Jamaal Samuel and Deng gave the Warhawks slight separation, leading 30-25 with 4:56 left. Texas State's Bobby Conley hit a three-pointer at the buzzer, but ULM led 36-33 at the half.
ULM was on top 44-41 in the second half when a three-pointer by Deng, a strong drive by Coppola and a pair of free throws by Deng accounted for a 7-0 run to up the lead to 51-41 with 13:52 to go in the second half.
After the Bobcats tried to creep back in it, a pair of three-pointers by Munnings pushed ULM's lead up to 63-52 at the 7:18 mark. Texas State got the deficit down to 66-59 with 3:15 remaining but did not get any closer as ULM answered with a final 6-0 run which included a pair of layups by Coppola to make it 72-59 with 1:13 remaining.
The Warhawks never trailed in the contest.
Up next, ULM will play a game on Tuesday at UL-Lafayette with a 7:15 p.m. tip. The Warhawks won the first meeting this season, 81-70 on Dec. 3, 2015. ULM has won three consecutive games against the Ragin' Cajuns.
NOTES
- ULM is at least two games over .500 at the halfway point of conference play for the second year in a row
- The Warhawks have won all nine of their home games this season by at least 10 points. They improved to 23-4 (.852) at home over the last two seasons and 413-173 all-time in Fant-Ewing Coliseum
- ULM improved to 28-18 all-time against Texas State and 18-5 at home. It was ULM's third consecutive victory over the Bobcats after sweeping the season series last year
- The Warhawks have held SBC opponents to under 75 points in 37 of the last 38 games including postseason play
- ULM entered the game leading the SBC in field goal percentage (.455) and went 29-57 (.509) in the contest. It also ranked third in rebounding margin (+3.4) and outrebounded the Bobcats 38-28
- The Warhawks are now 4-0 with the starting lineup of Coppola, senior Justin Roberson, Samuel, Deng and senior DeMondre Harvey
- ULM outscored Texas State 38-29 in the paint
- Coppola topped his previous career-high of 19 points set three times. It was his 40th career double-figure scoring game, 12th this season and fourth in a row. Coppola's five assists gives him 336 for his career, just three away from catching Tony Hooper and moving into fifth all-time in school history. Coppola played at least 40 minutes for the 31st time in his career. He's started every game in his career and is top-five in career minutes played at ULM
- Deng notched the 14th double-double by a Warhawk this season. It was his fifth this year and 13th of his career. Deng has scored at least 14 points in 13 of his last 14 outings. It was his 41st career double-digit scoring game and 16th of the year. It was also his 13th career double-figure rebounding game and fifth this season. His four assists matched a career-high
- Munnings entered the game ranking second in the SBC in field goal percentage (.543) and went 4-5 in the match. He submitted his 10th double-figure scoring game
- Roberson entered the game as both the reigning Sun Belt Conference and Louisiana Student-Athlete of the Week honoree. He ended with six points, four rebounds and three assists. Deng also came in as a weekly winner after being named College Sports Madness SBC Player of the Week on Monday
- The Warhawks are the second-winningest program over the last two seasons in terms of Sun Belt Conference victories
- ULM coaches and staff participated in Suits and Sneakers Awareness Week, a Coaches vs. Cancer initiative that supports the American Cancer Society. In addition to sneakers, the staff wore gold Princess Lacey's Laces in honor of Lacey Holsworth, an 8-year-old hoops fan who passed away from pediatric cancer in 2014
Quoting ULM head coach Keith Richard
Opening Statement
“I'm probably more proud of our team today than I was of any of the four games of the homestand. I really thought this was going to be a fist-fight type of game. Texas State has a lot of pride. They are a very physical team, very well-coached and they weren't going to come in here and play the same way teams did here the last three games. It was going to be a war, and we tried to warn our players and get them ready for it, but I don't really think they fully understood it until they got into it. We went up by 10 in the first half and they came back with some offensive rebounding and tough plays. It became a slugfest from there, but once again, give our guys credit. We found a different way to win. We needed a point guard to strike off the dribble and that was there. Once Nick felt that and got a little confidence getting in there he did an outstanding job. Nick did what he needed to do as a point guard.”
On Justin Roberson
“He defended well, but was out of sync offensively. Our team looked fatigued a little bit out there. Though again, give our guys credit for being able to tough it out. Justin lost his legs on some plays out there and I noticed Majok and DeMondre looked weary. We had to dig deep in this one and finish this one out and that's what Justin did. He didn't necessarily have a lot of points but he played hard; DeMondre played hard and Majok played hard. Also, which I thought was huge, Travis came off the bench and hit two big three-pointers in the second half. That turned the game right there in our favor.”
Quoting junior Nick Coppola
On how big this game was coming in
“They are all the same in terms of Sun Belt Conference games. We treat them each the same way. It was really great to finish this four-game home stretch with another win.”
On when he realized this might be a big game for him
“Early in the game, Texas State was paying a lot of attention to Majok and Justin. I saw the floor was spread and Coach Richard kept telling me to attack and make plays so I did my best to get in there.”
On UL-Lafayette on Tuesday
“It is a quick turnaround but we're going to prepare for it and we're looking forward to it. UL-Lafayette has been winning lately, and we've been winning lately so it's setup to be a good matchup.”
Quoting freshman Travis Munnings
On the team's performance
“It was great. I told my teammates beforehand let's come out, be focused and be locked in. We have to keep winning at home, this is our floor. We just have to keep it going.”
On winning all four games on the homestand
“These were great wins. They helped bring our confidence back up. We were on a little fall before that but we had to dig in and do what the coaches were telling us.”
