Chris Efretuei hook shot vs. Georgia Southern 2020
Frank Fortune
56
La.-Monroe ULM 6-9,2-4 Sun Belt
67
Winner Ga. Southern GS 10-7,4-2 Sun Belt
La.-Monroe ULM
6-9,2-4 Sun Belt
56
Final
67
Ga. Southern GS
10-7,4-2 Sun Belt
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
La.-Monroe ULM 25 31 56
Ga. Southern GS 37 30 67

Game Recap: Men's Basketball |

ULM Can’t Overcome Halftime Deficit; Falls at Georgia Southern, 67-56

STATESBORO, Ga. – Isaiah Crawley and Elijah McCadden combined for 30 points as Georgia Southern improved to 7-0 at home this season with a 67-56 victory over ULM Thursday night at Hanner Fieldhouse.
 
Georgia Southern (10-7, 4-2 Sun Belt) got off to a slow start against ULM's zone defense, as the Eagles missed their first six field-goal attempts and committed four turnovers. The Warhawks got back-to-back baskets from Chris Efretuei in the low post and Michael Ertel hit a 15-foot jumper from the right elbow for a 6-0 lead at the 14:59 mark. The Eagles responded with a 13-2 run and took a 13-8 lead on Calvin Wishart's 3-pointer from the left baseline with 10:50 left in the opening half. McCadden and Ike Smith hit consecutive 3s from the right wing as Georgia Southern extended its lead to 19-11 with 9:14 on the clock. Efretuei's rebound goal sparked an 8-4 run as ULM pulled to within 23-19 on Tyree White's layup. The Eagles outscored the Warhawks, 14-6, over the final 4 1/2 minutes to build a 12-point halftime lead at 37-25.
 
McCadden hit 3-of-7 3-point field-goal attempts and scored 11 first-half points. As a team, Georgia Southern made 6-of-18 3-pointers in the first 20 minutes while ULM went 1-for-10 from behind the arc.
 
The Eagles, who led by as many as 19 points twice in the second half, missed their last seven shots from the field and went scoreless over the last 5:04. ULM (6-9, 2-4) finished with game with an 8-0 run over the final 3:49, with six points coming from Efretuei, to account for the final 11-point margin.
 
"We had a good start and a good finish, but things got away from us somewhere in between," ULM head coach Keith Richard said. "The result wasn't the lack of playing hard. Georgia Southern is an athletic team that got a bunch of 50/50 balls and 15 offensive rebounds. They have strong guards, who hurt us on dribble penetration.
 
"We played zone in the first half, and Georgia Southern struggled against it early. But they hit some 3s the last 10 minutes of the half to create some separation. We went man in the second half, so they took the ball inside. That team is hard to guard.
 
"We're disappointed in the outcome, but we're going to keep fighting and maintain a positive attitude."
 
Crawley hit 7-of-10 shots from the floor and scored a team-high 17 points. McCadden finished with 13 points, nine rebounds, seven assists and three steals. Georgia Southern also got 11 points and six rebounds from Quan Jackson.
 
The Eagles outrebounded ULM, 41-31, including 15-7 on the offensive glass.
 
JD Williams, who scored 16 of his game-high 20 points in the second half, paced the Warhawks. Efretuei made 6-of-10 field-goal attempts and finished with a season-high 14 points to go along with five rebounds. Ertel added 12 points for ULM.
 
"JD Williams played a lot more aggressive in the second half and the final stats showed it," Richard said. "We need for him to be that type of player more often.
 
"We got the ball inside to Chris Efretuei early, but he picked up two fouls because he got tired. So, we lost the post game for the rest of the half. We went back inside to him the last 5-6 minutes, and he made some one-on-one plays. Georgia Southern didn't double him in the post because they didn't want to give up 3s."
 
ULM concludes its three-game Sun Belt road swing at Georgia State on Saturday, Jan. 11 at 2 p.m. ET/1 p.m. CT.
 
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