Michael Ertel dribble vs. Georgia Southern 2012
Nicolas Galindo/The News-Star
67
Winner Ga. Southern GS 14-10,8-5 Sun Belt
65
La.-Monroe ULM 6-16,2-11 Sun Belt
Winner
Ga. Southern GS
14-10,8-5 Sun Belt
67
Final
65
La.-Monroe ULM
6-16,2-11 Sun Belt
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Ga. Southern GS 31 36 67
La.-Monroe ULM 32 33 65

Game Recap: Men's Basketball |

ULM Drops Another Close One at Home; Falls to Georgia Southern, 67-65

By Paul Letlow, ULMWarhawks.com Online Columnist
 
MONROE, La. – ULM lost another close one Thursday night as Georgia Southern prevailed 67-65 at Fant-Ewing Coliseum.
 
"We played really hard in this game," ULM coach Keith Richard said. "Playing hard is not good enough to beat good people in this league. You have to play well. We played well in this game at times. But then some times, not so good at all."
 
Despite weathering a major dry spell after halftime, the Warhawks had a shot at victory at the end.
 
Michael Ertel's driving layup with 45 seconds narrowed the gap to 65-62 and Erie Olonade's 3-pointer with six seconds remaining cut the lead to 67-65.
 
After a timeout, ULM quickly fouled Quan Jackson, who missed the front end of a one-and-one. The Warhawks rebounded and Josh Nicholas launched a half-court shot that rimmed out as time expired.
 
Seven of ULM's 16 losses have come by a combined 25 points. The Warhawks dropped their ninth straight to fall to 6-16, 2-11 in the Sun Belt Conference.
 
Heroic in defeat, Ertel scored 30 points, including 22 in the second half.
 
"We really needed Mike and he responded," Richard said. "He made a lot of hard shots and played tremendous on the offensive end today."
 
Olonade added a career-high 11 points for the Warhawks.
 
Quan Jackson scored 24 to lead Georgia Southern (14-10, 8-5). Ike Smith contributed 17 points and Simeon Carter had 13.
 
Tyree White was part of ULM's fast start and helped the team to a 32-31 halftime lead. White scored eight of ULM's first 16 points as the Warhawks doubled up their foe 16-8 over the first 10 minutes.
 
The Warhawks led 19-10 after a 3-pointer by Olonade capped an 11-4 run.
 
Georgia Southern used an 11-2 run of its own to tie the game at 21-21 with 5:42 left in the half.
 
The beginning of the second half wasn't kind to ULM. The Eagles took a 52-35 lead with a 21-3 run out of the break. The Warhawks made six turnovers during the downturn.
  
"Turnovers got them back into the game," Richard said. "Late in the game, free points for the other team were bad moments for us."
 
Ertel's 3-pointer with 12:32 ended a long drought for ULM and opened a 12-0 run for the Warhawks that cut the lead to 52-47 with 9:26 to play. Ertel stroked five-straight free throws to cut the lead to five and scored 14 of ULM's first 17 points in the second half.
 
ULM closed within three points at the 4:51 mark as Youry White's layup made it a 57-54 game.
 
But Georgia Southern's Jackson hit back-to-back 3-pointers as the Eagles surged back to a 63-54 advantage.
 
Ertel's 3-pointer brought ULM within 63-57 with 3:14 remaining in the game. The Warhawks moved even closer at 63-59 on a hook shot by Chris Efretuei. Olonade's free throw made it a three-point game again at the 1:23 mark 63-60. But again, the Eagles got a timely bucket and led 65-60 with 1:09 showing to keep the Warhawks just out of reach at the end.
 
"We fought hard," Richard said. "Obviously, Mike Ertel made a lot of great plays. Their all-conference player Jackson made a lot of plays in the second half. It just wasn't quite enough."
 
Up next: ULM plays host to Georgia State on Saturday, Feb. 8. The game begins at 2:30 p.m.
 
Tail feathers: Tyree White ignited the crowd early with a soaring one-handed alley-oop dunk on a long Ertel lob from beyond the arc. White added a two-handed alley-oop dunk later in the half. … The ULM baseball team signed schedule posters prior to the game and was introduced on the court at halftime. ULM opens the season at home on Feb. 14 vs. SE Missouri State. The hardball 'Hawks play 11 of their first 13 games at home. 
 
 
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