NACOGDOCHES, Texas – After starting hot from the field, the ULM men's basketball team sputtered offensively in the final six minutes, as SFA erased a seven-point second half deficit in a 66-59 win over the Warhawks Saturday night at William R. Johnson Coliseum.
"Our effort was great," ULM coach Keith Richard said. "We played really well a lot of this game to win on the road, but not quite enough. We didn't play smart a couple of times. We played aggressive, but not smart. That's a sign of a lot of inexperience out there that hurts you in that respect. We certainly have to play a little smarter in close games to walk away with a win."
ULM (4-4) opened strong from deep. After Michael Ertel canned a 3-pointer on the opening possession, Jalen Hodge and Josh Nicholas would follow to put the Warhawks up 9-5 with 15:23 left in the first half.
A traditional three-point play by Youry White pushed the ULM run to 8-0 and extended their lead to nine at 14-5. The Warhawks resumed a nine-point lead on a dunk by White off an assist from JD Williams with 9:24 to go before halftime.
SFA (8-2) started to heat up from the floor. After opening 3-of-19 from the field, the Lumberjacks scored on the next three possessions, including a pair of 3-pointers from Cameron Johnson, to cut the deficit to one at 16-15 with 6:46 left.
A 3-point shooting contest quickly broke out. With ULM up one, Powell and Ertel knocked down treys around a 3-pointer by Kevon Harris for SFA. After JD Williams buried a 3-pointer, SFA answered with another by Harris to get back within two at 25-23. Williams added a layup before a dunk by Johnson and free throws by Charlie Daniels knotted the game at 27 at halftime.
In the second half, SFA would take a pair of brief leads early, at 30-27 and 34-32, but ULM answered each time. With ULM down 38-35, Hodge completed a 4-point play to put ULM up 39-38. SFA would eventually tie the game at 41 and again at 43 before ULM went on a 7-0 run, using a pair of layups by Williams, to lead 50-43 with 8:03 left.
The Warhawks would take a 53-48 lead on a 3-pointer by Hodge, his fourth of the night, with 6:10 to play. However, the Warhawks would not hit another field goal over the next 5:39, with a free throw by Williams the only point in the stretch as SFA scored 18 of the next 19 points.
ULM employed a zone defense against SFA, which slowed the Lumberjacks early and often.
"I thought it gave us a real chance to win this game, and it did," Richard said. "We didn't win because around the six minute mark, we were stymied offensively. A couple turnovers, a couple missed shots. That's all it took for them to catch us and go ahead a little bit."
Hodge had an efficient night from the field, leading ULM with 17 points on 4-of-6 shooting, including 4-of-5 from 3-point range and 5-of-5 at the free throw line. Ertel added 12 points while Williams had 10. SFA was led by 17 points, eight rebounds and seven assists from Harris. Ware added 15 points and Johnson had 12 for SFA.
ULM shot 43.9% (18-of-41) from the floor, 52.6% (10-of-19) from 3-point range, and 72.2% (13-of-18) from the free throw line. The Warhawks had 28 rebounds, eight assists, six steals and one block. SFA shot 41.5% (22-of-53) from the field, 27.6% (8-of-29) from the 3-point line and 73.7% (14-of-19) at the free throw line. The Lumberjacks had 32 rebounds, 15 assists, five steals and one block.
The Warhawks are off until Thursday's home Sun Belt Conference opener against Little Rock. Purchase one ticket and get another of the same value for Thursday's game vs. the Trojans. Call 318-342-HAWK for tickets or visit ULMWarhawks.com. Links to live video, audio and stats are available at ULMWarhawks.com.
