ULM Faces South Alabama in Saturday Matinée

Men's Basketball Jan 21

Game 20: South Alabama (13-5, 3-2 SBC) vs. ULM (10-9, 2-5 SBC)
Saturday, Jan. 22 | 2 p.m. CT
Fant-Ewing Coliseum (7,000) | Monroe, La.
ESPN+ | KLIP 105.3 FM

2021-22 ULM Basketball Notes: Game 20 vs. South Alabama

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THE STORYLINE –
ULM and South Alabama face off for their first regular-season contest in nearly two years. The Warhawks and Jaguars split their series in 2019-20 with a 20-point Warhawk win at home (69-49, Jan. 4, 2020) and one-point loss in Mobile (49-50, Feb. 15, 2020).

Russell Harrison's numbers continue to impress as the senior has scored in double figures in 12 of the last 13 games and is second behind Nika Metskhvarishvili by a smidge in Sun Belt scoring at 16.0 ppg.

Andre Jones slides back into the point guard role Saturday. He's averaged 5.8 assists per game over the last four games and needs six to reach the 300-career milestone.

The only meeting of 2020-21 between ULM and South Alabama came in the first round of the Sun Belt Conference Championship with the Jaguars taking an 80-72 win. Eight of the last nine games have been decided by single-digit margins.

THE STARTING FIVE –
• ULM looks to rebound from Thursday night's setback with a Saturday afternoon matchup with another hot Sun Belt foe, in South Alabama. The Warhawks did not play the Jaguars in the regular season during 2020-21, but fell in their only meeting in the first round of the 2021 Sun Belt Conference Championship, 80-72.

• The Warhawks' high-powered offense, which has produced an 86.6 points-per-game scoring average in games in Fant-Ewing Coliseum, faces one of the league's toughest defensive teams, in South Alabama. The Jaguars have allowed an average of 62.4 points per game this season and have the Sun Belt's top-scoring margin at 10.8 ppg.

• Nika Metskhvarishvili has scored in double digits in the last four-straight games and six of his last seven outings. The sophomore was one rebound away from his second double-double with 11 points and a game-high nine rebounds vs. Troy.

• ULM outscored Troy, 36-30, in the second half and battled back with an 11-0 run late in that period, but couldn't overcome the Trojans' substantial first-half lead. The Warhawks matched Troy's .500 field-goal percentage in the second frame, but the Trojans' .596 (28-47) game percentage was the highest by any ULM opponent this season.

• Fant-Ewing Coliseum, which celebrated the 50th anniversary of its first game on Dec. 1, 2021, will play host to three more home games this month, including Saturday's matinée vs. South Alabama. The Warhawks are on the road for five of their eight games in February.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS –
1.37 — ULM continues to have the Sun Belt Conference's best team assist-to-turnover ratio at 1.37 and is ranked 32nd in the nation in that category. The Warhawks lead the SBC with 318 total assists and are 20th nationally with 16.7 assists per game.

14 — Sophomore forward Nika Metskhvarishvili, the Warhawks' top scorer in Sun Belt Conference games at 16.1 ppg., has made 14 3-pointers this season in seven league games. He has 21 on the season, third-highest total on the team.

62 — Junior guard Elijah Gonzales and graduate guard Andre Jones have combined for 62 of the Warhawks' 150 steals this season. Gonzales holds the top spot in the Sun Belt and is 46th nationally with his 33 total. Jones is in third place in the league with 29 and ranks 91st nationally.

85 — Elijah Gonzales has played every minute of the last two games as the junior guard was on the court for all 45 minutes of ULM's win at UTA and for all 40 vs. Troy Thursday night. Gonzales dished off 16 times in those two games with only six turnovers and had a career-high eight rebounds vs. Troy.

93 — Total points scored by Russell Harrison in the last five games, averaging 18.6 points and 7.2 rebounds per game. During that span, Harrison shot a team-best .541 clip (33-for-61) overall, including .455 (15-of-33) from beyond the 3-point arc. The senior scored seven points in the overtime period and had a career-best 13 rebounds to help the Warhawks to a critical road win at UT Arlington.

294 — Career assists by graduate guard Andre Jones, who has 71 so far this season, second behind Elijah Gonzales. Jones is on target to have the best assist year of his career, bypassing his 83 total during 2019-20.

STRENGTH OF SCHEDULE –
According to kenpom.com (as of Jan 21, 2021), ULM's strength of schedule in 2021-22 is 168th with a rating of +0.31. ESPN.com ranks the Warhawks' SOS at No. 154. ULM had a non-conference strength of schedule rating of +3.21 (No. 90), according to kenpom.com.

SOUTH ALABAMA SCOUTING REPORT
Head Coach: Richie Riley (Eastern Kentucky, 2005)
Record at USA/Career Record: 67-44 (4th season)/102-72 (6th season)
Riley's Record vs. ULM: 3-1
Jaguars' Top Scorer: Senior G Charles Manning Jr. (17.6 ppg.)
Jaguars' Top Rebounder: Senior F Javon Franklin (7.4 rpg.)

South Alabama won its third-straight game as senior guard Charles Manning Jr. finished with 20 points to lead four Jaguars in double figures in Thursday's 77-70 win over the Ragin' Cajuns in Lafayette. The Jaguars scored 57 points in the second half, including 18 points off a perfect 6-for-6 effort from 3-point territory, to pull away for the victory. Jay Jay Chandler knocked down four free throws over the final 14 seconds to secure the 77-70 victory.

The Jaguars are off to their best start with a 13-5 mark since 2007-08, when that squad opened 13-3. South Alabama picked up its second road win of the season and its first Sun Belt Conference road victory in dealing the Ragin' Cajuns their second home loss of the year.

The Jaguars are 10-1 when scoring 70 or more points this season, with their lone loss coming in overtime at the hands of UT Arlington, 89-87. South Alabama had several season bests vs. the Ragin' Cajuns Thursday with its 57 second-half points, 18 assists and 75-percent field-goal percentage in the second half (21-of-28), its highest percentage in any half this season.

Jaguar senior guard Charles Manning Jr. not only leads the Sun Belt in scoring with his 17.6 points-per-game average, but he is also ranked in the Top 10 for field goal percentage (fifth), free-throw percentage (sixth), minutes played (sixth), assists per game (seventh) and blocked shots per game (seventh). Thursday night's win over the Ragin' Cajuns marked his eighth game with at least 20 points and 11th time leading the Jaguars in scoring.

Graduate guard Jay Jay Chandler holds four spots in the Sun Belt Conference Top 10, including No. 7 in scoring. He is eighth in field-goal percentage and free-throw percentage and fifth in minutes played. Chandler has scored in double figures in 16 consecutive contests.

ULM/SOUTH ALABAMA SERIES NOTES –
South Alabama evened the series record at 14 games apiece after an 80-72 first-round win in the 2021 Sun Belt Conference Championship last March. The two teams did not face each other in the regular season as part of the Sun Belt Conference COVID-adjusted schedule in 2020-21. The Jaguars have won two consecutive games in the series, with each team winning three of the last six contests.

Keith Richard is 14-8 against South Alabama all-time, including an 11-6 mark as ULM head coach.

THE LAST MEETING –
South Alabama 80, ULM 72 (March 5, 2021, Sun Belt Conference Championship first round in Pensacola, Florida): Michael Flowers scored a season-high 34 points to lead South Alabama to an 80-72 win over ULM Friday in the first round of the Sun Belt Conference Championship. Flowers, who scored 18 consecutive points for the Jaguars during one second-half stretch, outscored the entire ULM team over the final 20 minutes, 29-26.

There were nine ties and 13 lead changes in the first half alone of this tightly contested first-round game.

ULM got a dunk from Thomas Howell while Josh Nicholas followed with a 3-pointer from the right wing and a 15-foot fall-away jumper from the left baseline as the Warhawks took a 19-15 lead with 11:06 left in the first half. Nicholas buried another 3 from the left wing and Koreem Ozier hit the first of two free-throw attempts as ULM built a 25-19 lead with 7:40 to play. The six-point margin was the largest enjoyed by either team in the opening half.

South Alabama claimed a 40-37 advantage on Jamal West's three-point play with 2:25 on the clock. Russell Harrison's 17-foot, pull-up jumper at the first-half buzzer sent the Warhawks to the locker room with a 46-44 lead. Nicholas, who netted eight first-half points for the Warhawks, did not return in the second half due to an ankle injury.

ULM put together a 9-2 run midway through the second half and took its largest lead at 65-57 on Elijah Gonzales' 3-pointer from the right wing with 8:54 remaining.

Flowers scored the next 14 points as South Alabama turned an eight-point deficit into a 71-65 lead on his 3 from the left wing with 5:14 left. His 3-pointer from 25-feet straightaway gave USA its biggest lead at 76-67 with 4:01 to go. The Jaguars outscored ULM, 19-2, during a stretch of 4:33 in the second half. The Warhawks missed nine consecutive field-goal attempts and went 5:17 between made field goals.

ULM cut its deficit to five points at 77-72 on a layup from Gonzales with 44 seconds on the clock, but USA converted 3-of-4 free-throw attempts to ice the game.

The Jaguars connected on 10-of-21 field-goal attempts (48 percent) in the second half, including 5-of-10 3-pointers (50 percent). ULM shot just 28 percent (10-of-36) from the floor after the intermission, including 3-of-13 from behind the 3-point arc (23 percent).

The Warhawks, who outrebounded USA 41-38, also held an edge in points in the paint, 30-16; second-chance points, 11-7; and bench scoring, 24-16.

In the second half, Flowers hit 8-of-11 shots from the floor, including 5-of-6 3s, and 8-of-9 free-throw attempts while accounting for 29 of USA's 36 points.

Three other Jaguars scored in double figures, including Sam Iorio, who scored 12 first-half points, followed by Kayo Goncalves and Tyreke Locure, who added 10 each.

Gonzales paced the Warhawks with 14 points while Harrison recorded his fourth double-double of the season with 13 points to go along with a season-best 13 rebounds. Marco Morency collected a season-high 14 rebounds, including four offensive boards.

THE LAST TIME OUT –
Troy 73, ULM 65 (Jan. 20, 2022, in Monroe, La.): All signs pointed up for ULM entering Thursday night's home game with Troy.

Coming off an inspiring win at UT Arlington, the Warhawks were back at full strength after playing several games in a row shorthanded due to COVID-19 protocols. For the eighth time this season, ULM deployed its most frequent starting lineup of Elijah Gonzalez, Koreem Ozier, Andre Jones, Russell Harrison and Thomas Howell.

But Troy was a visitor eager to wear out its welcome. Thanks to a blistering shooting touch from start to finish, the Trojans claimed a 73-65 win over ULM at Fant-Ewing Coliseum.

Despite trailing the entire game, ULM made a late run at Troy and pulled within seven after being down double digits the entire second half. However, the Warhawks couldn't climb out of their sinkhole.

Troy shot 60 percent overall (28-of-47) while making 9-of-19 3-point shots. ULM fell to 0-6 when allowing an opponent to shoot better than 50 percent.

Harrison led ULM with 15 points, Jones scored 13 and Nika Metzkhvarishvili and Ozier added 11 each.

Troy jumped on ULM 8-0 early and led by as many as 15 points over the first 10 minutes. The Trojans shot better than 70 percent out of the gate while ambushing the home team.

Back-to-back 3-pointers by Duke Deen extended Troy's advantage to 23 points at 39-16 with 7:42 remaining in the half. The Trojans at that juncture were shooting 80 percent (16 of 20) overall and 71 percent on 3-pointers (5 of 7).

The Trojans cooled off but still led 43-29 at halftime. Troy was shooting 67 percent at the break, despite a scoring drought over the final 4:24 of the first half. ULM shot 34 percent in the half while sinking just 2-of-13 3-pointers (15 percent).

Gonzalez energized the crowd when he hooked up with Jones for an alley-oop dunk that cut Troy's lead to 11 with 17:41 to go in the game.

ULM wouldn't move closer until an 11-0 run cut the Troy lead to 69-61 with 2:16 remaining on Metzkhvarishvili's putback. A driving layup by Howell at the 1:50 mark made it a seven-point game for the first time since early in the first half, but Troy held off the comeback.

Zay Williams led four Trojans in double figures with 18 points. Deen scored 14 while Duke Miles and TK Smith added 11 each.

QUOTING KEITH RICHARD –
South Alabama scouting report
"South Alabama is one of the hottest teams in the Sun Belt, with three-straight wins in league play. This is a team that's really good in transition. So, we must get back in transition, stop the ball, defend the one-on-one plays, contest all shots, contain Charles Manning and rebound the basketball because they will attack the offensive glass. USA will look to attack off the dribble, but won't hesitate to shoot 3s as well.

"Offensively, we must take care of the basketball because USA will apply a lot of ball pressure, and they defend the passing lanes extremely well.

"Manning leads the league in scoring at almost 18 points per game and ranks among the Top 10 in assists. He plays with a lot of energy, especially on the offensive end of the floor, and loves to attack the basket off the dribble.

"USA is a well-balanced scoring team, with three players averaging in double figures. Jay Jay Chandler is a left-handed shooter, who is always in the attack mode and can score at all three levels. Javon Franklin is a long, athletic post player, who is an outstanding offensive rebounder, can score around the basket but is also comfortable attacking off the dribble."

On performing consistently game to game for opportunities to win
"We've got to continue to work and find our way defensively. Good performance this past Saturday (UTA), bad performance vs. Troy defensively speaking. Just inconsistent in that area and it's hard to win if you can't be consistent in certain phases of the game. That's one of them.

"You can't give up 60 percent from the field and 47 percent from the 3-point line on your homecourt and expect to win. The offense wasn't much better in the first half.

"Obviously, the first half was a disaster for us. It was too big a hole to climb back."

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, Powell, Jones, Harrison, Howell
Dec. 14 at SFA: Gonzales, Powell, Jones, Harrison, Howell
Dec. 18 vs. Southern Miss: Gonzales, Ozier, Jones, Harrison, Howell
Dec. 20 at Lamar: Gonzales, Ozier, Jones, Harrison, Howell
Dec. 30 at Coastal Carolina*: Gonzales, Ozier, Jones, Harrison, Howell
Jan. 1 at App State*: Gonzales, Ozier, Jones, Harrison, Howell
Jan. 6 vs. Little Rock*: Jones, Ozier, Russell, Metskhvarishvili, Howell
Jan. 8 vs. Arkansas State*: Jones, Ozier, Powell, Russell, Howell
Jan. 13 at Texas State*: Gonzales, Powell, Harrison, Metskhvarishvili, Howell
Jan. 15 at UT Arlington*: Gonzales, Williams, Harrison, Metskhvarishvili, Howell
Jan. 20 vs. Troy*: Gonzales, Ozier, Jones, Harrison, Howell

Different Starting Combinations (8):
Gonzales, Jones, Ozier, Harrison, Howell: 8 (4-4)
Jones, Ozier, Powell, Harrison, Howell: 3 (1-2)
Gonzales, Powell, Jones, Harrison, Howell: 2 (2-0)
Gonzales, Jones, Gee, Harrison, Howell: 2 (1-1)
Gonzales, Williams, Harrison, Metskhvarishvili: 1 (1-0)
Jones, Ozier, Harrison, Metskhvarishvili, Howell: 1 (1-0)
Gonzales, Powell, Harrison, Metskhvarishvili, Howell: 1 (0-1)
Gonzales, Boston, Gee, Harrison, Howell: 1 (0-1)

2021-22 WARHAWK STATISTICAL TRENDS –
Games played in Fant-Ewing Coliseum: 6-2
Games played on the road: 3-7
Games played at a neutral site: 1-0

Games played in November: 2-4
Games played in December: 6-1
Games played in January: 2-4
Games played in February: 0-0
Games played in March: 0-0

When leading at halftime: 7-4
When trailing at halftime: 2-5
When tied at halftime: 1-0

When shooting .500 or better from the field: 7-0
When shooting less than .500 from the field: 3-9
When opponent shoots .500 or better from the field: 0-6
When opponent shoots less than .500 from the floor: 10-3

When outrebounding opponent: 7-1
When outrebounded by opponent: 3-8
When rebounding totals are equal: 0-0

When hitting more free throws than opponent: 6-1
When hitting fewer free throws than opponent: 4-7
When hitting the same number of free throws as opponent: 0-1

When committing fewer turnovers than opponent: 8-3
When opponent commits fewer turnovers: 2-6
When turnover totals are equal: 0-0

When ULM scores less than 50 points: 0-1
When ULM scores 50-59 points: 0-1
When ULM scores 60-69 points: 1-5
When ULM scores 70-79 points: 1-1
When ULM scores 80-89 points: 5-1
When ULM scores 90+ points: 3-0

When opponent scores less than 50 points: 0-0
When opponent scores 50-59 points: 2-0
When opponent scores 60-69 points: 5-0
When opponent scores 70-79 points: 3-3
When opponent scores 80-89 points: 0-1
When opponent scores 90+ points: 0-5

Games decided by five points or less: 1-0
Games decided by 6-10 points: 3-4
Games decided by 11-19 points: 2-1
Games decided by 20 points or more: 4-4

Largest deficit overcome to win: 10 (42-32 at Lamar, Dec. 20)
Largest lead surrendered in a loss: 11 (66-55 vs. Arkansas State, Jan. 8)

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