ULM, SFA Place Winning Streaks On the Line Tuesday

Men's Basketball Dec 13

Game 10: ULM (5-4, 0-0 SBC) at SFA (8-2, 0-0 WAC)
Tuesday, Dec. 14 | 6:30 p.m. CT
William R. Johnson Coliseum (7,203) | Nacogdoches, Texas
ESPN+ | KLIP 105.3 FM

2021-22 ULM Basketball Notes: Game 10 vs. SFA

THE STORYLINE –
ULM heads back to Texas to play its first road game in more than two weeks. Both teams enter the contest with winning streaks as the Warhawks have won three straight and Lumberjacks have four consecutive victories.

Senior forward Russell Harrison recorded back-to-back 20-point games for the first time in his career with a career-best 25 points vs. Northwestern State and game-high 24 vs. Louisiana College.

The Warhawks sit atop the Sun Belt Conference with 17.2 assists per game, good for 21st nationally while scoring a league-best 81.3 points per game for a No. 33 national ranking.

ULM and SFA have played once in each of the last five seasons, with the home team winning each those games.

THE STARTING FIVE –
• In its five wins, ULM has held four opponents below 70 points and to field-goal percentages below .415. The one exception was Northwestern State, in the second game of the season between the two programs, as the Demons scored 71 points and shot .460 from the floor.

• The last time the Warhawks had three-straight games scoring 80 or more points was during league play of the 2018-19 season. ULM went 2-2 with two losses on the road (Coastal Carolina, Appalachian State) followed by two home wins (Georgia State, Georgia Southern) with a team-best 88 points during that stretch. The 2018-19 squad scored 80 or more points in 18 games that season.

• Freshman forward Thomas Howell's .636 field-goal percentage (35-for-55), is best among the Warhawk starters and according to kenpom.com, his effective field-goal percentage (.675) is best in the Sun Belt and 34th overall.

• Three Warhawks rank in the Sun Belt Conference's individual Top 15 in steals per game, contributing to ULM's 9.2 steals per game. Graduate guard Andre Jones checks in at No. 4 (1.75), junior guard Elijah Gonzales is seventh (1.67) and junior guard Koreem Ozier is 13th (1.50).

• Tuesday's game at SFA is the first of three away games this month, and the first of two to be played in Texas. The Warhawks face Southern Miss in Fant-Ewing Coliseum on Saturday, Dec. 18, then travel to Lamar (Monday, Dec. 20) before starting Sun Belt Conference play at Coastal Carolina (Thursday, Dec. 30).

INSIDE THE NUMBERS –
6.3 — A second-straight game with a season-low six turnovers gives the Warhawks an average of only 6.3 turnovers over their last three contests.

7.5 — Junior guard Elijah Gonzales (4.2) and graduate guard Andre Jones (3.3) have a combined average of 7.5 assists per game. Gonzales raised his average with a nine-assist effort, his second-highest single-game assist total of the season, vs. Louisiana College. Jones had three vs. the Wildcats and had his season-best total of seven vs. Centenary.

10 — All 10 Warhawks who saw action in Wednesday's game vs. Louisiana Christian entered the scoring column. Eleven tallied points in the home opener vs. Champion Christian last month.

65.5% — In the last two games, senior guard/forward Russell Harrison has put up back-to-back 20-point scoring games and he's done it efficiently. Harrison went a combined 19-for-29 (.655) from the floor and 7-for-14 from beyond the 3-point arc (.500).

92.3 — Over the Warhawks' current three-game win streak, they are averaging 92.3 points per game with an average margin of victory of 23.6 points per game. ULM possesses a field-goal percentage of .527 (107-203) combined in those three games, which includes a season-best mark of .586 vs. Centenary.

STRENGTH OF SCHEDULE –
According to kenpom.com (as of Dec. 12, 2021), ULM has the ninth-toughest strength of schedule in 2021-22, with a rating of +9.88. ESPN.com ranks the Warhawks' SOS at No. 53.

SFA SCOUTING REPORT –
Head Coach: Kyle Keller (Oklahoma State, 1990)
Record at Stephen F. Austin: 93-42 (sixth season)
Keller's Record vs. ULM: 2-3
Lumberjacks' top scorer: Senior G Gavin Kensmil (15.9 ppg.)
Lumberjacks' top rebounder: Junior F Calvin Solomon (7.5 rpg.)

SFA is 31-3 on its homecourt over the last three seasons with a 5-1 mark at home this season. The loss came last month vs. South Dakota State (Nov. 14) when the Jackrabbits went on a 13-4 run over the final eight minutes to take an 83-71 win.

The Lumberjacks topped Liberty, 63-51, Saturday in Fort Worth, Texas, in the inaugural Hall of Fame Classic, running their win streak to four games for an 8-2 record. SFA had three players score in double figures with David Kachelries and Gavin Kensmil each with 14 points and Nigel Hawkins adding 10. Kensmil grabbed a team-best nine rebounds.

Five Lumberjacks are averaging 10 or more points per game, with four projected starters and freshman F Sadaidriene Hall, who is contributing 10.4 points per game. Hall has started three contests this year and red-shirt freshman G Jaylin Jackson-Posey, has been in the starting lineup six times.

SFA is one of the top teams in the nation defensively year after year. The Lumberjacks ranked sixth in the country in turnovers forced (18.1) in 2020-21 and are eighth nationally (19.5) in 2021-22. SFA is 13th in total steals (103) and 15th in steals per game at 10.3 this season.

Four starters returned for SFA for the 2021-22 season with 69.5 percent of its scoring and 62.3 percent of its rebounding from last season back on the floor. In terms of experience together, just over 70 percent of the team's total minutes played from last season were back, too, including three players (Roti Ware, Gavin Kensmil, David Kachelries) who recorded over 550 minutes of action.

QUOTING KEITH RICHARD –

Scouting SFA
"I think that they're very similar to how they've been in the past: forcing 20 turnovers a game, (with) 10 steals a game, (and a ) big-time offensive rebounding team. (They) throw it inside a lot. It's the same blueprint for all of Coach Keller's teams there and he's got some returning players. They are good players and they're a very aggressive team that we're going to have to match that aggressiveness.

"Their system is more important than one single person and they've been like that for years, since Coach Keller's been there, and they're a tough team to play against home or away. We were fortunate. We beat them last year in a really tough, low-scoring game and we'll have to play very well."

On developing team chemistry before conference play begins
"This time of the year you got a lot of time to watch film and I really enjoy that with with the team. We spend a lot of time in the film room, and obviously (get) extra shots out on the court. We can get a lot done in this month off, so to speak, that sometimes you can't do that in the school year because you got school going on and you know it's just busier. It's a good time right now."

Louisiana College recap
"We struggled some in the first half, but it wasn't due to a lack of effort. We also played great defense in the first half. The problem was we missed nine shots right around the rim in the first half. We got the shots we wanted, but we missed them from close range. We shot 38 percent from the field in the first half and had a seven-point lead because of our inability to finish at the rim.

"At the half, I told them to keep playing the same way, but when you get the ball close to the basket, then concentrate on finishing. I also told them to slow down a little on the fast break and make a better pass. That's what we did a lot better in the second half and our field-goal percentage reflected that."
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On Russell Harrison's confidence
"Russ has looked confident shooting the ball. He's become a more patient offensive player, allowing the game to come to him. It's pretty neat because in these last two games, he's a different looking player than he was last year. Russ has a better understanding of knowing when to take a shot and when to turn one down. The experience he's gained is really beginning to show, and hopefully, he can keep that going as we continue to prepare to head into conference play."

On defensive efforts by Andre Jones and Langston Powell
"Andre and Langston are dead tired, and one of the reasons they are is because they were asked to guard Louisiana Christian's best player, in Kae'ron Baker. They had to pay attention at all times when guarding him because he moves so well without the basketball. They both really had to work hard to hold him to 19 points. He came into the game averaging nearly 21 points per game. Both Andre and Langston exerted a lot of energy because they played a lot of minutes and played so hard."

On Elijah Gonzales' play on both ends of the court in Louisiana Christian win
"Louisiana Christian does a good job of switching defenses, from zone to man-to-man, so we needed Elijah to get us into the right offense. We also needed his help on the defensive boards and we needed for him to be good on the fast break. We started getting some defensive stops, so we needed for him to be good with the ball in his hands on the break, not only in terms of decision making but with completing passes that led to layups and dunks. He's tired because he played almost 39 minutes, but he played well on both ends of the floor."

ULM/SFA SERIES NOTES –
The home team in the series has won each of the last five games, but ULM leads the overall series 33-22. Neither team has won back-to-back games in the series since the 2010-11 season when SFA won both non-conference meetings.

As ULM head coach, Keith Richard is 3-4 in seven meetings against SFA.

THE LAST MEETING–
ULM 66, SFA 55, (Dec. 12, 2020, in Monroe, La.): Aiming for the first home win of the season, ULM shooters were on the mark. Koreem Ozier led the Warhawks with 28 points with four 3-pointers in a 66-55 victory over SFA at Fant-Ewing Coliseum.

ULM shot 53 percent from the field and took control with a 16-2 run late that broke open a tight game. The contest featured 11 lead changes and nine ties before the Warhawks found another gear and made six of their last seven field-goal attempts to close it out. As a team, ULM shot 55 percent from beyond the arc while making 11-of-20 3-pointers.

Ozier's breakout performance came with crisp shooting as he made 9-of-13 from the field and was 4-for-5 on 3-pointers. Elijah Gonzales added 16 points with three treys and seven assists, and Russell Harrison reached double figures for the fourth time in four games with 11 points and six rebounds.

Ozier also was an early catalyst for the Warhawks. ULM held a 17-15 lead through the first 10 minutes. Ozier, who scored 10 of ULM's first 17 points with two 3-pointers, helped the Warhawks keep pace despite six turnovers during that stretch.

Overall, the first half featured 23 total turnovers, six ties and seven lead changes. ULM took a 29-26 advantage into halftime, thanks to Ozier's 15 points. ULM offset 12 turnovers by shooting 53 percent from the field with five 3-pointers in the half.

ULM pushed its lead up to seven to open the second half before a field goal drought allowed SFA to creep back within 35-33. Marco Morency's 3-pointer at the 14:12 mark broke the stretch without a bucket and helped the Warhawks maintain their lead.

SFA cut the deficit back to 41-40 with a 5-0 run as ULM endured a scoring drought over three minutes. The Warhawks committed three turnovers during the stretch. The Lumberjacks grabbed their first lead of the second half at 42-41 when Roti Ware scored with 8:58 remaining. Ozier's layup and free throw on the other end stopped the freefall and put ULM back on top 44-42.

David Kachelries, who led his team with 14 points, buried a 3-pointer at the 7:55 mark to match SFA's biggest lead of the game to that point, 47-44. But ULM owned the final seven minutes.

Gonzales was active down the stretch as he stroked a 3 to tie the game for the eighth time, then hit another with 5:47 to go.

Ozier followed with back-to-back 3-pointers during a 9-0 run that quickly had the Warhawks on top 58-49 at the 4:17 mark. The Lumberjacks went more than five minutes without scoring as the Warhawks pulled away.

THE LAST MEETING IN NACOGDOCHES–
SFA 66, ULM 59, (Dec. 14, 2019, in Nacogdoches, Texas): After starting hot from the field, ULM sputtered offensively in the final six minutes and SFA erased a seven-point second-half deficit to win 66-59 at William R. Johnson Coliseum.

ULM 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 its 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.

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.

Hodge had an efficient night from the field, leading ULM with 17 points including four 3-pointers. 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.

THE LAST TIME OUT –
ULM 89, Louisiana Christian 68 (Dec. 8, 2021, in Monroe, La.): Russell Harrison scored a game-high 24 points, hitting 8-of-13 shots from the field including 5-of-8 3-pointers, to lead ULM to an 89-68 victory over Louisiana Christian in Fant-Ewing Coliseum. It marked ULM's third-straight win and 11th consecutive victory over Louisiana Christian, formerly known as Louisiana College. There were three ties and four lead changes in a tightly contested first half.

With the score tied at 12-all, Andre Jones made back-to-back layups to spark a 16-4 run as ULM built a 28-16 lead on Thomas Howell's left-handed layup, off a nifty pass from Nika Metskhvarishivili, with 6:10 left in the opening half. During that 6:08 stretch, the Wildcats committed six turnovers and hit just 2-of-6 field-goal attempts. LCU converted four-straight free-throw attempts in the final five seconds of the first half to cut its halftime deficit to seven points at 37-30.
Both teams shot below 40 percent from the floor in the opening 20 minutes. The Warhawks scored 11 points off the Wildcats' 10 first-half turnovers. Jones (12) and Harrison (11) combined for 23 first-half points to pace the Warhawks.

Kae'ron Baker buried a 3-pointer from the left wing as LCU pulled to within 44-40 with 15:48 remaining in the second half, but the Wildcats failed to close the gap any further. ULM put together a 14-2 spurt to take control of the game. Harrison started the run with a 3-pointer from the right wing and capped it with another trey from the top of the circle with 10:26 on the clock. Langston Powell's 3 from the left baseline gave ULM its largest lead at 85-62 with 2:09 left.

The Warhawks shot 56 percent (19-of-34) from the floor in the second half, including 4-of-9 from behind the 3-point arc, while outscoring the Wildcats, 52-38, over the final 20 minutes. For the game, ULM held a decided edge in points off turnovers, 20-6; points in the paint, 42-20; and fast-break points, 12-3. The Warhawks outscored LCU, 19-8, from the free-throw line and outrebounded the Wildcats, 41-35.

Harrison, who recorded his second-straight 20-point game and the fourth of his career, netted 13 second-half points and collected six of his seven rebounds after the intermission.

ULM featured a balanced-scoring attack as four of five starters posted double figures. Jones finished with 18 and a season-high eight rebounds (three offensive boards). Powell added 14 points while Howell contributed 12 points and seven rebounds, including three off the offensive glass. Elijah Gonzales tallied a career-best seven rebounds (all defensive) to go along with nine assists, just one off his career high.

Three LCU players scored in double figures, led by Baker who managed 19 points on 6-of-18 shooting from the field, including 3-of-6 3s. The Wildcats also got 14 points from KJ Bilbo and 12 from Jakobey Hitchens.

2021-22 ULM STARTING LINEUPS –
Nov. 9 at LSU: Gonzales, Jones, Gee, Harrison, Howell
Nov. 12 at Auburn: Gonzales, Boston, Gee, Harrison, Howell
Nov. 16 vs. Champion Christian: Gonzales, Jones, Gee, Harrison, Howell
Nov. 22 vs. Northwestern State: Gonzales, Jones, Ozier, Harrison, Howell
Nov. 24 vs. Louisiana Tech: Gonzales, Jones, Ozier, Harrison, Howell
Nov. 28 at SMU: Jones, Ozier, Powell, Harrison, Howell
Dec. 1 vs. Centenary: Jones, Ozier, Powell, Harrison, Howell
Dec. 4 vs. Northwestern State: Gonzales, Ozier, Jones, Harrison, Howell
Dec. 8 vs. Louisiana Christian: Gonzales, Jones, Powell, Harrison, Howell

Different Starting Combinations (5):
Gonzales, Ozier, Jones, Harrison, Howell: 3 (2-1)
Gonzales, Jones, Gee, Harrison, Howell: 2 (1-1)
Jones, Ozier, Powell, Harrison, Howell: 2 (1-1)
Gonzales, Boston, Gee, Harrison, Howell: 1 (0-1)
Gonzales, Powell, Jones, Harrison, Howell: 1 (1-0)

2021-22 WARHAWK STATISTICAL TRENDS –
Games played in Fant-Ewing Coliseum: 4-0
Games played on the road: 0-4
Games played at a neutral site: 1-0

Games played in November: 2-4
Games played in December: 3-0
Games played in January: 0-0
Games played in February: 0-0
Games played in March: 0-0

When leading at halftime: 5-2
When trailing at halftime: 0-2
When tied at halftime: 0-0

When shooting .500 or better from the field: 4-0
When shooting less than .500 from the field: 1-4
When opponent shoots .500 or better from the field: 0-2
When opponent shoots less than .500 from the floor: 5-2

When outrebounding opponent: 4-0
When outrebounded by opponent: 1-4
When rebounding totals are equal: 0-0

When hitting more free throws than opponent: 4-0
When hitting fewer free throws than opponent: 1-4
When hitting the same number of free throws as opponent: 0-0

When committing fewer turnovers than opponent: 5-0
When opponent commits fewer turnovers: 0-4
When turnover totals are equal: 0-0

When ULM scores less than 50 points: 0-1
When ULM scores 50-59 points: 0-0
When ULM scores 60-69 points: 0-2
When ULM scores 70-79 points: 0-1
When ULM scores 80-89 points: 2-0
When ULM scores 90+ points: 3-0

When opponent scores less than 50 points: 0-0
When opponent scores 50-59 points: 1-0
When opponent scores 60-69 points: 3-0
When opponent scores 70-79 points: 1-1
When opponent scores 80-89 points: 0-0
When opponent scores 90+ points: 0-3

Games decided by five points or less: 0-0
Games decided by 6-10 points: 0-1
Games decided by 11-19 points: 1-0
Games decided by 20 points or more: 4-3

Largest deficit overcome to win: 2 (9-7 vs. Champion Christian, Nov. 16; 4-2 and 6-4 vs. Northwestern State, Nov. 22; 2-0 vs. Northwestern State, Dec. 4, 4-2 vs. Louisiana Christian, Dec. 8)
Largest lead surrendered in a loss: 10 (28-18 and 60-50 at SMU, Nov. 28)

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