Nika Metskhvarishvili layup vs Arkansas State 2022
Luke Richard/ULM Athletics
90
Winner Arkansas St. ASU 11-4,2-1 Sun Belt
83
La.-Monroe ULM 9-7,1-3 Sun Belt
Winner
Arkansas St. ASU
11-4,2-1 Sun Belt
90
Final
83
La.-Monroe ULM
9-7,1-3 Sun Belt
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Arkansas St. ASU 42 48 90
La.-Monroe ULM 51 32 83

Game Recap: Men's Basketball |

ULM Falls Short in Offensive Shootout Against A-State, 90-83

By ULMWarhawks.com Online Columnist Paul Letlow

MONROE La. – ULM's successful run at home ended Saturday afternoon with a 90-83 loss to Arkansas State. The Warhawks (9-7, 1-3 Sun Belt) saw an eight-game home winning streak end as they dropped their first decision in seven games at Fant-Ewing Coliseum this season. "The last five minutes of the game, I just told them, we didn't earn it," ULM coach Keith Richard said. "We didn't stop 'em and we didn't score. You have to give Arkansas State some credit. They kept chipping away and chipping away and finally caught us. We didn't respond." Nika Metskhvarishvili came off the bench to score a career-high 22 points with five assists and seven rebounds for ULM. Four players reached double figures for the Warhawks, with Andre Jones scoring 19, Russell Harrison 18 and Koreem Ozier adding 14. Arkansas State (11-4, 2-1 Sun Belt) made its last six field goals and erased an 11-point ULM lead in the second half. Marquis Eaton scored 25 points while Norchad Omier scored 24 with 11 rebounds. Caleb Fields added 17 points with 11 boards for the Red Wolves. "It's a 40-minute game, not a 35-minute game," Richard said. "We played for 35 and needed 40." The Warhawks overcame an early deficit in the first half and showed plenty of firepower while taking control into the second half.

The Red Wolves bolted to an 11-0 lead to begin the game and held a 19-6 advantage at the 15:55 mark. Arkansas State nailed its first seven shots and hit three 3-pointers in pouncing early. However, ULM's shooters heated up after a cold start and erased the early deficit. With a 14-0 run, ULM led 35-30 at the 7:11 mark on a layup by Luke Phillips.  Metskhvarishvili scored 10 points during the comeback. Arkansas State was scoreless over the last 3:21 of the first half, which allowed ULM to claim a 51-42 halftime lead. Metskhvarishvili scored 17 first-half points on 7-of-9 shooting with three 3-pointers and four rebounds. "I thought he played great in the first half," Richard said. "He was bringing their five man out in the first half, so we were able to get to the rim and get a lot of layups because Nika had hit some threes. That's why we started him in the second half, but then they went to a switching man-to-man, so it didn't matter about him popping out. He cooled down in the second half like all our players." The Warhawks shot 62 percent in the opening half with seven 3-pointers. Arkansas State cooled off slightly but still shot 57 percent in the half. "The first half it was great and we played really well," Richard said. "But the last five minutes, we didn't get anything done. We really could have gotten to the wire if we'd just scored down the stretch." ULM weathered an 0-for-10 stretch but still led 68-60 with 7:34 after Jones hit a layup to end the drought. But the trend wasn't sustainable. The Red Wolves cut ULM's lead to four at 72-68 on a  Eaton's 3-pointer with 5:22 remaining and drew within three at 74-71 on another 3-pointer from Fields. The Arkansas State comeback continued as Eaton's jumper at the 2:44 mark cut the ULM lead to one at 76-75. A layup by Avery Felts tied the game for the second time at 77-77, then the Red Wolves reclaimed the lead at 80-77 on a 3-point play from Omier with 1:38 to go. Riding an 11-1 run Arkansas State increased the lead to 82-77 with 1:09 left. ULM went more than three minutes without a bucket in falling behind and never recovered. ULM shot just 34 percent in the second half while going 2-for-13 from 3-point range. Arkansas State shot 56 percent in the second half while outscoring ULM, 48-32, over the final 20 minutes. "They started switching all five spots in their man-to-man defense," Richard said. "When people switch, you have an opportunity for some mismatches where you can drive 'em a little bit. But when you drive them, you've got to finish at the rim or you kick it out for some wide-open threes. We didn't do either very well." Up next: A Texas two-stop road trip is upcoming as ULM is scheduled to visit Texas State on Thursday, Jan. 13 and UT Arlington on Saturday, Jan. 15. Tail feathers: The ULM bench outscored Arkansas State, 19-0, in the first half. … Harrison reached double figures scoring for the 11th time this season. … ULM had just three turnovers at halftime and finished with eight. … Point guard Elijah Gonzalez missed a second-straight game out because of Covid-19 protocols. … With seven assists, Jones led ULM for the seventh time, matching Gonzales for the team lead.

 
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