THE BASICS
Teams: ULM (4-12, 1-4 SBC)
Texas State (7-9, 2-3 SBC)
Time: 7:00 p.m.
Location: San Marcos, Texas (Strahan Coliseum)
Listen - Watch - Stats
Monroe, La. - The ULM women's basketball team will travel for a pair of Sun Belt Conference games in Texas this weekend, beginning with a matchup at Texas State on Thursday night.
NOTABLES
Last Time Out: The Warhawks grabbed their first Sun Belt win over Georgia State last Saturday. ULM, down by as much as 12 points in the third quarter caught a second wind and found its rhythm in the final quarter to close the game on a 11-4 run to grab the win. ULM had three that posted double digits in Alexis Collins, Carissa Moody and Gabriella Cortez.
Home Court: Although the Warhawks will be on the road this weekend, ULM will play seven out of the 13 remaining regular season games at home. This Texas trip is one of only three weekends left on the road.
Opponent: Texas State finished its nonconference season at 5-6 and has started the Sun Belt Conference season 2-3. The only conference wins for the Bobcats came against South Alabama and Coastal Carolina. Taeler Deer has had a big impact on the court for Texas State, leading the team in at least four categories: points (144), field goals (57), assists (39) and steals (27).
Head-to-Head: The Warhwks lead the series against Texas State 30-19. The teams first met each other in 1988, with the Warhawks opening the series on a six game winning streak. ULM is 13-12 in San Marcos.
FROM COACH DOW
About Texas State: Texas State is a very unique team offensively in terms of things they like to do. They really spread you out, which makes it tough because they have people that can drive it but also people that can shoot the three as well. They also have some versatility with their players that can play both inside as a post player but also on the perimeter as well. The one thing that they have been known for is shooting a lot of three's. They're attempting over 20 three-point attempts every game.
What our focus is: We have to do a good job defensively and not give them open looks or any in rhythm three's. We definitely made some improvement Saturday against Georgia State, but we have got to have a consistent effort for 40 minutes. On the boards in particular, keeping them off of the offensive boards and then hopefully getting our fair share of offensive rebounds. We always talk about trying to win the possession game and that is going to be big against this team. The last thing is trying to win the free throw battle. We looked at last year's numbers and when we won we made significantly more free throws than what they attempted. When we lost it was the other way around. It will be critical that we are disciplined defensively and at the same time offensively. We emphasize getting paint touches or what we like to say is putting foul pressure on our opponent.
