ULM Warhawks

ULM (5-9 overall, 1-0 Sun Belt Conference) at Arkansas State (9-5 overall, 1-0 Sun Belt Conference)
2 p.m. Saturday, December 31, 2022 | First National Bank Arena | Jonesboro, Arkansas
WATCH: ESPN+ | LISTEN: 105.3 FM KLIP | LIVE STATS
GAME NOTES

JONESBORO, Ark. - The ULM Warhawks conclude the 2022 portion of the schedule with a 2 p.m. game on New Year's Eve against Arkansas State at First National Bank Arena in Jonesboro. ULM is seeking its first 2-0 start to Sun Belt Conference play since the 2020-21 season, when it swept a weekend series from Arkansas State to open conference play.

ULM (5-9 overall, 1-0 Sun Belt Conference) opened Sun Belt Conference action with a 57-53 road win against Texas State Thursday night at Strahan Arena in San Marcos. Both teams struggled from the field, with Texas State shooting 30% (17-of-56) from the floor and ULM at 29% (15-of-51). The difference for the Warhawks came at the free-throw line, taking advantage of 23-of-31 (74%) opportunities, while Texas State shot 15-of-19 (79%) from the line.

Tyreke Locure led ULM with 12 points, while Victor Bafutto, who had a pair of clutch offensive rebounds in the final 23 seconds, had his first double-double as a Warhawk with 11 points and 10 rebounds. Jamari Blackmon added 11 points and Thomas Howell had eight points with a game-high 13 rebounds.

Through 14 games, Locure leads ULM at 13.2 points per game, which ranks 12th in the Sun Belt Conference through games on Dec. 29. He has scored in double figures 12 times. He also leads the team with 3.43 assists per game (10th SBC) and 2.00 steals per game (tied 3rd SBC). 

Four other active Warhawks are averaging over eight points per game. Jamari Blackmon is second on the team at 9.8 points, 3.31 assists (12th SBC) and 1.46 steals (15th SBC) per game. Savion Gallion is third on the team at 9.0 points per game. Victor Bafutto is averaging 8.7 points, 6.5 rebounds (tied 13th SBC) and 2.36 blocks (2nd SBC) per game. Thomas Howell is averaging 8.6 points and a team-best 7.7 rebounds per game (8th SBC).

Saturday's game is the 77th all-time meeting between ULM and Arkansas State, with A-State leading the series, 45-31. The Red Wolves won two-of-three meetings last year, winning 90-83 in Monroe on Jan. 8 and 81-77 on March 3 at the Sun Belt Conference Championship in Pensacola, Florida. ULM won the meeting in Jonesboro, picking up a 60-59 win at First National Bank Arena on Feb. 3.

SATURDAY'S GAME BASICS    
ULM and Arkansas State meet at 2 p.m. Saturday at First National Bank Arena in Jonesboro, with the winner moving to 2-0 inside the Sun Belt Conference.

The Warhawks (5-9 overall, 1-0 SBC) are led by Tyreke Locure's 13.2 points per game, which ranks 12th-best in the Sun Belt Conference. He is the only ULM player averaging double figures on the season. Thomas Howell leads ULM with 7.7 rebounds per game, good for eighth in the SBC, while also adding 8.6 points per game.

ULM continues to have success on the defensive end, forcing steals and turnovers. The Warhawks are averaging 8.7 steals per game, which ranks fifth in the SBC and 46th in NCAA Division I. ULM is forcing 15.29 turnovers per game, good for fifth in the SBC and 69th nationally. The Warhawks have forced double-digit steals in six contests this season, most recently with 12 against Sam Houston on Dec. 14.

On the offensive end, ULM has done a nice job of creating points off the forced turnovers, averaging 12.57fast-break points per game, which ranks fifth in the SBC and 72nd nationally. The Warhawks also have generated second chances, securing 12.07 offensive rebounds per game, ranking seventh in the SBC and 73rd nationally. ULM has shared the ball effectively, averaging 14.9 assists per game, good for sixth in the SBC and 98th nationally. ULM is 4-2 this season when dishing out 15-or-more assists in a game.

Arkansas State (9-5 overall, 1-0 SBC) won Thursday's game at Old Dominion, 60-57, to pick up its fourth-consecutive victory. The Red Wolves have won six of their last eight overall dating back to Nov. 27. In the current four-game winning streak, A-State has defeated Southeast Missouri State (68-61), Alabama State (72-65), Little Rock (77-75) and ODU.

Caleb Fields leads three Red Wolves in double-figure scoring at 12.8 points per game, which is good for 17th in the SBC. His 4.8 assists per game rank fourth in the SBC. Omar El-Sheikh is averaging 10.9 points per game and a team-best 9.1 rebounds per game, which ranks fourth in the SBC.

A-State has been particularly strong on the defensive end of the floor, allowing 63.8 points per game to rank fourth in the SBC and 63rd in NCAA Division I. Teams are also shooting 41.2% against the Red Wolves, ranking seventh in the SBC and 100th nationally. A-State has also distributed the ball and protected it well, ranking fifth in the SBC and 86th nationally at 15.1 assists per game and fourth in the SBC and 78th nationally with a 1.23 assist-to-turnover ratio.

Saturday's game will stream on ESPN+ with Graham Doty (play-by-play) and Brian Boyer (analyst) on the call. The game will also air on 105.3 FM KLIP, la105.com and the TuneIn app on the Warhawk Radio Network from Learfield with Mike Hammett on the play-by-play.

PREVIEWING ARKANSAS STATE
The Red Wolves are 9-5 on the season and 1-0 in the Sun Belt Conference after Thursday's 60-57 win at Old Dominion. A-State also owns wins against Harding, Lyon, UT Martin, Bethel (Tenn.), Mississippi Valley State, Southeast Missouri State, Alabama State and Little Rock.

Mike Balado is in his sixth season leading Arkansas State. He has improved A-State's win total in four of his first five seasons at the helm. He spent 15 seasons as an assistant coach before getting his first head coaching opportunity at A-State, coming to the Red Wolves after spending four seasons as an assistant at Louisville.

Caleb Fields has started all 14 games and leads the team at 12.8 points (17th SBC) and 4.8 assists per game (4th SBC). He has scored in double figures 10 times and topped 20 points twice, scoring a season-high 25 points at UC Davis on Nov. 18 and 22 points vs. Alabama State on Dec. 19. He has handed out at least five assists seven times, including a season-high seven assists three times. 

Omar El-Sheikh has played in all 14 games with 11 starts and is second on the team at 10.9 points per game. He leads the club with 9.1 rebounds per game (4th SBC). He is third in the SBC with 3.07 offensive rebounds per game. He has scored in double figures seven times and has pulled down 10-or-more rebounds five times, resulting in four double-doubles. He is coming off back-to-back double-doubles, with season-highs of 25 points and 15 rebounds vs. Little Rock on Dec. 22 and 18 points and 13 rebounds at ODU on Thursday.

Malcolm Farrington has played in just eight games with six starts, but returned to the lineup on Thursday at ODU after being out since Dec. 9 at Air Force. He scored in double figures in each of his first five appearances of the season, but has totaled nine points over his last three appearances. He has hit five 3-pointers in a game twice, doing so with 18 points (5-of-8 3-pointers) vs. Bethel (Tenn.) and 15 points (5-of-9 3-pointers) vs. MVSU.

Three more Red Wolves average at least eight points per game, with Markise Davis at 8.9 points, Terrance Ford Jr. at 8.4 points and Avery Felts at 8.0 points per game.

LOCURE SHOOTS TO TOP OF SCORING COLUMN    
ULM junior guard Tyreke Locure leads the team in scoring at 13.2 points per game, which ranks 12th in the Sun Belt Conference. He also leads the team with 3.43 assists per game, which ranks 10th in the SBC, and 2.00 steals per game, which ranks third in the SBC. He is 13th in the SBC in assist-to turnover ratio (1.50), 15th in 3-point field goals made per game (1.71) and 21st in minutes per game (29.14).

He led the team with 12 points and added a season-high eight rebounds with four assists in Thursday night's 57-53 win at Texas State.

He has scored in double figures in 12 of 14 games this season. Locure had an efficient outing on Dec. 17 vs. Lamar, scoring 17 points (7-of-9 field-goal attempts, 3-of-4 3-point field-goal attempts), with four rebounds, seven assists and one turnover. He led ULM with 14 points (5-of-9 field-goal shooting), four rebounds, four steals and three assists on Wednesday vs. Sam Houston. He scored 13 points with two rebounds, two assists and two steals on Dec. 10 at Northwestern State. Locure picked up 14 points with seven assists, two rebounds and one steal on Dec. 3 vs. Champion Christian. He led the team with 14 points and added five rebounds, three assists and two steals on Nov. 28 at Tulane. Locure had 14 points, reaching double figures for the fifth consecutive game, with two assists and two steals vs. Omaha at the Emerald Coast Classic on Nov. 25. He netted 18 points with six rebounds and four steals at Louisiana Tech on Nov. 21. He picked up 14 points with two steals at No. 15/18 TCU on Nov. 17. Locure scored 13 points with four assists, three rebounds and two steals vs. Central Baptist on Nov. 14. In his home debut, he flirted with a triple-double, leading the team with 19 points while adding eight assists, seven rebounds and three steals against Dallas Christian on Nov. 10.

He spent last season at UAB but began his collegiate career at Sun Belt Conference rival South Alabama, where he started 34 of 49 games over two seasons. As a sophomore in 2020-21, Locure started 25 of 26 games and averaged 13.5 points, 5.0 rebounds and 3.1 assists.

BAFUTTO STEPS UP FOR WARHAWKS    
ULM graduate forward Victor Bafutto has scored in double figures in four of his eight starts. He has picked up eight or more rebounds in seven games this season, including three games with 10 rebounds. He is averaging 8.7 points, 6.5 rebounds and 2.36 blocks per game.

He posted his first double-double as a Warhawk and second of his career on Thursday night at Texas State. He scored 11 points and pulled in 10 rebounds, including two clutch offensive rebounds to extend ULM's possession in the final 23 seconds of the game, allowing the Warhawks to sink three free throws on the possession and push the lead to two possessions, 57-53.

Over his eight starts this season, Bafutto is averaging 10.8 points, 7.4 rebounds, 2.6 blocks, 1.5 assists and 30.9 minutes per game while shooting 57.6% (34-of-59) from the field.

He ranks second in the Sun Belt Conference and 19th in NCAA Division I with 2.36 blocks per game. He also is eighth in the SBC in field goal percentage (.576), 13th in rebounding (6.5 pg.) and offensive rebounds per game (2.57 pg.) and 15th in defensive rebounds per game (3.93 pg.).

Bafutto nearly reached a double-double on Dec. 17 against Lamar, posting eight points (4-of-5 field-goal attempts) with 10 rebounds. He had double-figure rebounds at Northwestern State on Dec. 10, pulling in 10 boards with six points and a career-high six blocks.

He notched his third consecutive double-figure scoring effort on Dec. 3 against Champion Christian, matching a career high with 20 points. He has scored in double figures five times this season. He had five double-figure games over four seasons and 80 career games at Mercer.

Bafutto scored 13 points while matching a season high with nine rebounds at Tulane on Nov. 28. He added three blocks and two assists. He set career highs in points (20), field goals made (8) and minutes (39) and matched career highs in free throws made (4) and free throws attempted (4) against Loyola Maryland on Nov. 26. He also added eight rebounds, two blocks and one assist in his first start as a Warhawk. He smashed previous career highs of 14 points, six field goals made and 25 minutes.

The 6-10 forward from Brasilia, Brazil, transferred to ULM after playing in 80 games over four seasons at Mercer. He earned both a bachelor's degree and a master's degree in civil engineering from Mercer, and is working on a master's of business administration degree at ULM.

BLACKMON BRINGS EXPERIENCE AT POINT GUARD    
ULM senior guard Jamari Blackmon has provided a steady and veteran hand on the perimeter for the Warhawks. He is second on the team at 9.8 points, 3.3 assists and 1.5 steals per game. He also averages 2.5 rebounds per game. He has scored in double figures eight times.

He had 11 points in Thursday's win at Texas State, including a 6-of-9 effort at the free-throw line. He added four rebounds and two assists in the win while playing solid defense against the Bobcats' leading scorer, Mason Harrell, limiting him to 14 points on 4-of-10 shooting.

He ranks 12th in the Sun Belt Conference in assists per game (3.31 pg.), 3-point field-goal percentage (.375) and assist-to-turnover ratio (1.54). He is 14th in the SBC with 1.46 steals per game and 15th in minutes per game at 30.77. 

He had a season-high 16 points (5-of-7 field-goal attempts, 3-of-5 3-point field-goal attempts) with four assists, three steals and one block on Dec. 17 vs. Lamar. He tallied 12 points on 7-of-9 free-throw shooting on Dec. 10 at Northwestern State. He matched a career high with nine assists vs. Dallas Chrisitan on Nov. 10 and picked up eight assists on Nov. 28 at Tulane.

Blackmon was named to the Emerald Coast Classic All-Tournament Team, as announced on Nov. 27.

Blackmon tied for the team lead with Tyreke Locure with 11.3 points per game over the three-game classic against No. 15/18 TCU, Omaha and Loyola Maryland. Blackmon shot 54.2% from the field (13-of-24) and 53.8% from 3-point range (7-for-13).

Blackmon added seven assists and six rebounds over the two games.

He started his Emerald Coast Classic run with nine points and one assist at TCU on Nov. 17. He then scored a season-high 15 points on 3-of-6 3-point shooting while adding three rebounds and two steals against Omaha on Friday. He closed out the tournament with 10 points, hitting 2-of-3 from deep, and five assists on Saturday against Loyola Maryland.

Blackmon played four seasons at North Alabama, ranking as the sixth all-time leading scorer in UNA history with 1,346 points after starting 111 of 113 career games from 2018-22. 

HOWELL ANCHORS THE POST    
ULM sophomore forward Thomas Howell is one of just two post players remaining on the 2022-23 roster. The third-year player from Natchitoches, Louisiana, is averaging 8.6 points, a team-best 7.7 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.1 steals per game. He had eight points and a game-high 13 rebounds on Thursday at Texas State. 

He ranks eighth in the Sun Belt Conference in rebounding, eighth in defensive rebounds per game (5.21 pg.), 14th in offensive rebounds per game (2.50 pg.) and 15th in field-goal percentage (.531). He is 20th in the SBC in minutes played per game (29.64 pg.).

He led ULM with 12 points while adding five rebounds, two assists, one block and one steal vs. Jacksonville on Dec. 20.

He put together a big game against Northwestern State on Dec. 10 in his hometown of Natchitoches. Howell led ULM with 16 points and nine rebounds. It was his fourth career game against his hometown university. 

He just missed his second double-double of the season on Dec. 3, finishing with nine points and a career-high 15 rebounds against Champion Christian. The 6-8 sophomore forward had a strong three-game road swing to the Emerald Coast Classic and Tulane. He averaged 10.3 points and 9.0 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game against Omaha, Loyola Maryland and Tulane. Howell picked up a 13-point, 10-rebound double-double against Omaha on Nov. 25, the second double-double of his ULM career. He added 12 points and six rebounds vs. Loyola Maryland on Nov. 26. He closed out the three-game road swing at Tulane on Nov. 28 by matching his career high with 11 rebounds and added six points.

After struggling to two points and five rebounds in the season opener Nov. 7 at Texas A&M, Howell bounced back. He scored 14 points (7-of-10 field-goal attempts) with six rebounds against Dallas Christian on Nov. 10. He followed it up with 12 points, six rebounds and four assists against Central Baptist on Nov. 14. He tallied six points and led the team with six rebounds at No. 15/18 TCU on Nov. 17. He had seven rebounds at Louisiana Tech on Nov. 21.

Howell is back for his third season with the Warhawks in 2022-23. He is the only returning starter from the 2021-22 team. He came into the program as a freshman and has steadily evolved his game. He started 30 of 31 games as a second-year freshman in 2021-22, averaging 8.1 points, 3.9 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game while shooting 59.4 percent (107-of-180) from the field, ranking as the sixth-best field-goal percentage in a single season in program history. Howell led the Warhawks with 44 offensive rebounds and scored in double figures 10 times.

GALLION FINDING CONSISTENCY    
ULM junior guard Savion Gallion is averaging 9.0 points, 2.1 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game. He had a string of seven consecutive starts snapped on Thursday at Texas State, but managed to record his eighth-straight game of eight points or better with nine off the bench, including a 4-of-6 effort from the free-throw line. He has scored in double figures four times in the stretch, including 11 points and four rebounds on Dec. 20 vs. Jacksonville. 

He has scored in double figures six times on the season. He picked up 11 points with a career-high four assists vs. Lamar on Dec. 17. He matched his career high with 13 points while adding two rebounds and two assists at Northwestern State on Dec. 10. He had 11 points, four rebounds, two assists and one steal against Loyola Maryland on Nov. 26. He posted 13 points with three rebounds and one assist vs. Central Baptist on Nov. 14. In the home opener, he notched 12 points with two assists and one rebound against Dallas Christian on Nov. 10.

He is one of six incoming transfers on the 2022-23 Warhawk roster. Gallion spent the 2021-22 season at South Plains Junior College, where he averaged 9.9 points and 2.8 rebounds per game in 32 games with 12 starts. He played his first two collegiate seasons at Buffalo, where he earned two letters after playing in 29 games over two seasons.

METSKHVARISHVILI TO MISS REMAINDER OF THE 2022-23 SEASON    
ULM junior forward Nika Metskhvarishvili will miss the remainder of the 2022-23 season due to an injured knee that requires surgery.

The Third-Team Preseason All-Sun Belt Conference selection played in five games before his injury forced him to the sideline. He averaged 9.8 points and 5.8 rebounds per game, scoring a season-high 15 points against Central Baptist on Nov. 14 and earning a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds against Dallas Christian on Nov. 10.

He is the second post player to suffer a season-ending injury for ULM, following AD Diedhiou's ACL injury in October.

"It's a tough blow for Nika and our team," ULM head coach Keith Richard said. "We were already shorthanded in the post after losing AD in October. We will find a way to make it work with the post players that we have remaining in Thomas Howell and Victor Bafutto. We wish Nika a speedy recovery from his surgery."

DOUBLE VISION    
Through the first 14 games of the season, three different Warhawks have posted double-doubles.

Junior forward Nika Metskhvarishvili posted a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds vs. Dallas Christian on Nov. 10. It was the second double-double of his ULM career, joining a 15-point, 11-rebound effort at Texas State on Jan. 13, 2022.

Sophomore forward Thomas Howell joined the double-double club on Nov. 25 against Omaha, posting season highs with 13 points and 10 rebounds against the Mavericks at the Emerald Coast Classic in Niceville, Florida. It was Howell's second career double-double after picking up 13 points and 11 rebounds against his hometown team, Northwestern State, on Nov. 22, 2021, in a neutral-site game in Ruston, Louisiana.

Graduate forward Victor Bafutto earned his first double-double as a Warhawk on Dec. 29 at Texas State, picking up 11 points and 10 rebounds. His final two rebounds were offensive rebounds in the final 23 seconds of the game to extend ULM's possession, allowing the Warhawks to hit three free throws on the possession to take a one-point lead to a four-point lead, 57-53.
 
SEVEN WARHAWKS IN DOUBLE FIGURES IN CONSECUTIVE GAMES    
ULM put seven players in double figures in back-to-back games against Central Baptist on Nov. 14 and Dallas Baptist on Nov. 10. 

Nika Metskhvarishvili led the Warhawks against Central Baptist with 15 points. Victor Bafutto came off the bench to match a career-high with 14 points (6-of-6 field-goal attempts). Tyreke Locure and Savion Gallion added 13 points apiece. Thomas Howell and Langston Powell posted 12 points each. Devon Hancock picked up 11 points (4-of-5 field-goal attempts).

In the previous game against Dallas Christian, Locure (19 points), Howell (14 points), Gallion (12 points), Bafutto (11 points) and Metskhvarishvili (10 points) were all part of another effort with seven players in double figures. Jalen Bolden scored 13 points and Jamari Blackmon, who missed the Central Baptist game with an injury, had 10 points.

WARHAWKS ACHIEVE BIG NUMBERS AGAINST DALLAS CHRISTIAN    
In the home opener against Dallas Chrisitan on Nov. 10, 2022, ULM put up big numbers in several stat categories. The Warhawks put seven players in double figures in the win, marking the first time ULM had put at least six players in double figures since Nov. 16, 2021. ULM also tallied 32 assists in the victory, marking the most assists for the Warhawks since tallying a school-record 34 assists against Arkansas-Monticello on Dec. 3, 1996. ULM also pulled down 27 offensive rebounds in the win, which marks the most since at least the 2009-10 season.