ULM Warhawks

By ULMWarhawks.com online columnist Paul Letlow

Injuries ambushed ULM basketball in a big way a year ago.

Expected to be ULM's top player, Nika Metskhvarishvili started five games before he was shut down with a knee injury. UAB transfer AD Diedhiou, a 6-11 forward, was lost with a preseason knee injury in October and never played.

Preparing for the 2023-24 season, ULM head coach Keith Richard feels optimistic as he scans the court during ongoing practice sessions and sees those same players working their way back.

"That's a nice look out there," Richard said. "It just reminds me what it was like not having them last year."

ULM finished 11-21, 7-11 in the Sun Belt with its depleted roster while falling to Georgia Southern as the 10 seed in the second round of the conference tournament.

"I think we have a chance to have a good team, Richard said. "I do. I did last year until those two went out. If you think about our season last year, we went 7-11 in conference play without them. Had we had them, I believe we could have finished in the top half of the league."

Make no mistake, losing Metskhvarishvili was a huge blow.

A 6-8 forward with long-distance shooting skills, Metskhvarishvili appeared in 28 games with five starts in his first season at ULM as a second-year sophomore, averaging 10.0 points, 4.5 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game. He totaled 12 double-figure scoring games, including four games with 20-or-more points and had a double-double with 15 points and 11 boards at Texas State.

Metskhvarishvili was a third-team preseason All-Sun Belt selection last year and averaged 9.8 points and 5.8 rebounds in his abbreviated year.

"The knock on us is that we only have one double-digit returning scorer," Richard said. "But that's misleading because Nika was a double-digit scorer the year before. And, with all these returners and possibly some new guys, I believe somebody else is going to show themselves. If we stay healthy, I think we've got a real chance."

In all, Richard returns eight players including guards Tyreke Locure, Savion Gallion, Johnnie Williams IV, Devon Hancock, Jacob Wilson and Jalen Bolden.

"It has felt good in the spring, the summer and this fall," Richard said of his returning experience. "It feels almost like the old days when you didn't have a transfer portal. You took some lumps one year, you have a bunch of guys coming back and they've improved a lot like you want them to. That's kind of where we're at. This won't happen every year because of the transfer portal."

While not all the returnees were big-time producers a year ago, Richard rightly expects more from his core.

"Our team's success this year will be because of these eight guys," Richard said. "I believe that."

Locure started all 32 games in his first season at ULM, leading the team in scoring (14.4 points per game), steals (1.8 pg.), field goals made per game (5.0) and 3-point field goals made per game (2.1) while adding 4.2 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game. A 6-0 guard who joined the program last year as a portal transfer from UAB. Locure is projected to play more at the point this season. 

"He's matured a lot," Richard said. "He knows this is his last year playing as a fifth-year guy. He's a returning double-figure scorer for us and had some good games. It's a big year for him and he's responded appropriately in the spring, summer and fall. He knows how we want to do things and he's had a good offseason."

Gallion appeared in 32 games with 12 starts, averaging 7.5 points and reaching double figures 10 times. Hancock contributed 3.7 ppg in 31 games with three starts.

"I'm banking on these guys getting better," Richard said. "I've watched them, and they have gotten better and they continue to get better. That, plus Tyreke and Nika, sprinkle in a few new guys, I think it will be enough to have a good team."

After wetting their beaks as freshmen Warhawks, Bolden and Wilson should enter the regular rotation as sophomores. 

Bolden led Zachary to back-to-back Class 5A Championships in 2021 and 2022 and averaged 20 points and 10 rebounds as a senior. The 6-4 guard was the player of the year in Class 5A and selected as the Class 5A Championship Game outstanding player.

A 6-6 guard from Liberty Magnet in Baton Rouge, Wilson was an All-State player who averaged 19.9 points, 6.4 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.5 steals per game as a high school senior.

"Those two guys were Louisiana high school all-stars and known within the state," Richard said. "What happened to them is exactly what happened to me when I came to college. You get smacked in the mouth. College is just different. We're extremely happy with those two and we're going to reward them by playing them. They're a little more ready now. They look like they belong."

Lengthening ULM's depth after Metskhvarishvili and Diedhiou, the Warhawks added transfers Jerry Ngopot, a 6-11 center from St. Peter's in Jersey City, N.J., and 6-9 forward Makai Willis from Fairfield. (Conn.)   

"They're good-looking kids," Richard said. "All four of them together give us enough in my opinion to really go to battle. We've got guards everywhere after that and some experience."

Ngopot spent the last two seasons at St. Peter's and redshirted on the Peacocks' 2021-22 Elite Eight team. In 2022-23, he played in 24 games for St. Peter's and played double-figure minutes eight times as a reserve. The Bangui, Central African Republic, native has a 7-1 wingspan.

Willis was a promising prospect coming out of the Florida prep ranks, where he was a state champion in one of the top classifications. He played for former NBA veteran, Heisman Trophy winner and Florida State legend Charlie Ward.

"These guys are more traditional fours and fives," Richard said. "AD and Jerry are both 6-10 and about 250 – traditional centers. We can post them up, and they don't need to be doing a lot of dribble handoffs on the perimeter like we've been doing the last couple of years because we didn't really know what to do with those guys.

"Willis is a lot like Nika. He's got a lot of skill but he can also bang. We're looking at more high-low stuff, more screening action with two options – one for the big and one for the guard – as opposed to being so guard-oriented as we were over the last couple of years."

ULM's other newcomers include guard Patrick "P.D." McCraney, Tyrese Watson and Kelton Williams.

"We added a few new guys that we like who are going to need some seasoning," Richard said. "I would be shocked, if we stay healthy, if we don't have a good team this year."

The 6-1 McCraney, the all-time leading scorer in Monroe (La.) Neville High School history with 2,166 points, comes to ULM with three years of eligibility remaining.

The local product played the 2022-23 season at Hinds Community College in Utica, Miss. He was a Second-Team All-MACCC selection as a freshman for the Bulldogs after averaging 21.1 points, 6.1 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game.

"I think he'll be a nice role player for us this year," Richard said. "He was a big scorer in high school and he'll play a role here at the one and the two. What he's shown so far is, he's a really safe guy for us and picks up stuff quickly."

Watson is a 6-4 guard from Philadelphia who played the last two seasons at Cochise College in Sierra Vista, Ariz. He led the team in scoring with 19.6 points per game and increased his scoring average to 20.6 points per game in conference play. He totaled 20 or more points 18 times and posted a season-high of 36 points. Watson scored 1,077 points over his two seasons at Cochise.

"He wasn't with us this summer so he's getting started late," Richard said. "But he's a proven scorer in junior college. We need to put some weight and strength on him, but he's showing some signs out here that he can score."

Williams, a 6-1 freshman from Midlothian, Texas, scored more than 1,500 points in his high school career. As a senior, he averaged 18.6 points, 3.8 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 2.1 steals per game.

"He's a combo guard and very talented," Richard said. "He's kind of raw but he was the all-time leading scorer at his school. He's quick and athletic and learning how to play. But he can really shoot it. He needs a little seasoning as a freshman, but he can really shoot it and he's quick as a cat."

ULM opens the season on Monday, Nov. 6, with a trip to Houston to face the Cougars in their first game as a member of the Big 12 Conference. ULM plays 14 home games, including the home opener with Louisiana Tech on Nov. 16.

Sun Belt Conference play begins with a road trip to App State to face the Mountaineers on Dec. 30. Marshall starts a four-game home stand for ULM on Jan. 3.

ULM's outlook is optimistic within the context of the Sun Belt Conference, too.

"The league lost a lot of good players, through graduation and the portal," Richard said. "We have just as good a chance to be a good team in this league as a lot of teams."