ULM Warhawks

ULM (11-15 overall, 7-6 Sun Belt Conference) at Southern Miss (22-4 overall, 11-2 Sun Belt Conference)
2:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 11 | Reed Green Coliseum | Hattiesburg, Miss.
WATCH: ESPN+ | LISTEN: 105.3 FM KLIP | LIVE STATS
GAME NOTES

MONROE, La. - ULM opens the final road swing of the regular season at 2:30 p.m. Saturday against Sun Belt Conference-leading Southern Miss at Reed Green Coliseum in Hattiesburg. Southern Miss won the first meeting between the teams, 65-60, on Jan. 7 at Fant-Ewing Coliseum in Monroe.

ULM (11-15, 7-6 SBC) lost the final game of a three-game homestand, 52-45, to App State on Thursday night at Fant-Ewing Coliseum. ULM shot a season-low 25.4% (15-of-59) from the field. Tyreke Locure led ULM with 13 points as the only Warhawk to reach double figures. Thomas Howell pulled in a career-high 16 rebounds while Victor Bafutto had 11 rebounds and seven points.

ULM is tied for fifth place in the Sun Belt Conference standings with three other teams: Old Dominion, Troy and App State. All four teams are 7-6 in SBC play. Southern Miss leads the SBC at 11-2, while the Ragin' Cajuns are second at 10-3, Marshall is third at 9-4 and James Madison is fourth at 8-5.

ULM head coach Keith Richard is tied with former Middle Tennessee coach and current Ole Miss coach Kermit Davis for the second-most career Sun Belt Conference wins with 117. He has 85 SBC victories at ULM and 32 in his first three seasons at Louisiana Tech before the Bulldogs departed the SBC for the Western Athletic Conference. He won his 300th career game on Jan. 19 with a 72-59 win at Georgia Southern.

Through 26 games, Blackmon leads the team at 14.0 points per game, which ranks 10th in the SBC. He also leads the team with 3.28 assists per game, which also is 10th in the SBC. He ranks fourth in the SBC in 3-point field-goals made per game (2.24) and sixth in 3-point field-goal percentage (.409). Locure is second on the team at 13.3 points per game (14th SBC). He leads the team and is third in the SBC at 1.88 steals per game, while he is second on the team and 13th in the SBC at 3.04 assists per game. Howell is third on the team in scoring at 9.7 points per game and leads the team at 7.7 rebounds per game (eighth SBC).

Inside SBC play, ULM leads the Sun Belt Conference in 3-point field-goal percentage (.376) and is second in 3-point field-goals made (102, 7.85 per game).

Saturday's game is the 41st meeting between ULM and Southern Miss, with the Golden Eagles leading the series, 24-16. The Warhawks are 5-17 all-time in Hattiesburg, and have not won at Reed Green Coliseum since a 79-67 win on Dec. 8, 1992, a span of six games.

SATURDAY'S GAME BASICS    
ULM and Southern Miss meet for the second time in 2022-23 at 2:30 p.m. Saturday at Reed Green Coliseum in Hattiesburg. Southern Miss rallied from a 12-point first-half deficit to pick up a 65-60 win over ULM at Fant-Ewing Coliseum on Jan. 7.

The Warhawks (11-15 overall, 7-6 SBC) are led by Jamari Blackmon's 14.0 points per game, which ranks 10th in the SBC. Tyreke Locure follows closely behind at 13.3 points per game, which is 14th in the conference. Thomas Howell is just outside of double figures at 9.7 points per game and leads the team at 7.7 rebounds per game, which is eighth in the SBC. The Warhawks are coming off a 52-45 loss to App State on Thursday in which ULM shot a season-low 25% from the floor.

Southern Miss (22-4 overall, 11-2 Sun Belt Conference) took control of the SBC with an 82-71 win over the Ragin' Cajuns in a battle of the top two teams in the conference Thursday night in Hattiesburg. The Golden Eagles have three players averaging double figures, led by Austin Crowley's 17.3 points per game (fifth SBC). Felipe Haase is second on the team at 14.9 points per game (seventh SBC). He is also second on the team in rebounding (6.5 per game, 15th SBC) and assists (2.88 per game, 15th SBC). DeAndre Pinckney is third on the team at 13.7 points per game (11th SBC) and leads the team at 6.9 rebounds per gmae (13th SBC).

ULM is 76th in NCAA Division I and fifth in the SBC in steals per game (7.5), while ranking second in the SBC in 3-point field-goal percentage (.357).

Southern Miss ranks near the top of the conference and nation in numerous stat categories. Defensively, USM is second in the SBC and 38th in NCAA Division I in scoring defense (64.0 points allowed per game), second in the SBC and 35th nationally in field-goal percentage defense (.405), third in the SBC and 58th nationally in 3-point field-goal percentage defense (.313), third in the SBC and 27th nationally in steals per game (8.8) and fourth in the SBC and 45th nationally in turnovers forced per game (15.08). Offensively, USM is fourth in the SBC and 83rd nationally in scoring offense (75.7 points per game), fourth in the SBC and 75th nationally in field-goal percentage (.464), third in the SBC and 60th nationally in assists per game (15.1), fifth in the SBC and 65th nationally in turnovers per game (11.5) and second in the SBC and 51st nationally in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.31). On the glass, the Golden Eagles are fifth in the SBC and 64th nationally in rebounds per game (37.31) and fourth in the SBC and 56th nationally in offensive rebounds per game (11.77).

Saturday's game will stream on ESPN+ with Lee Roberts (play-by-play) and Larry Boyd (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 SOUTHERN MISS    
The Golden Eagles are 22-4 overall and 11-2 to lead the Sun Belt Conference after Thursday's 82-72 win against the Ragin' Cajuns in Hattiesburg. The Golden Eagles are looking for their second eight-game winning streak of the season after picking up wins at Arkansas State (74-57), vs. South Alabama (76-72), vs. James Madison (83-70), vs. A-State (73-57), vs. Texas State (67-58), at Troy (74-65), at Georgia State (79-71) and vs. the Cajuns. USM opened the season with eight consecutive victories, including wins at Vanderbilt, Liberty, vs. Winthrop, vs. Purdue Fort Wayne and Montana. The Golden Eagles also swept a home-and-home from Lamar while beating McNeese in Hattiesburg.

Jay Ladner is in his fourth season leading Southern Miss. An alumnus of USM, Ladner played on the 1987 USM National Invitation Tournament Championship team. He coached Southeastern for five seasons, winning the Southland Conference regular-season championship in 2017-18. Prior to SLU, he coached Jones College for two seasons, winning the 2014 NJCAA National Championship. He was a high school head coach for 20 years.

Austin Crowley has started all 26 games and leads the team in scoring at 17.3 points per game, ranking fifth in the Sun Belt Conference. He is second in the SBC at 2.12 steals per game, while ranking fifth in 3-point field-goals made per game (2.15), eighth in free-throw percentage (.784) and 10th in minutes played per game (32.58). He is shooting 49% (162-of-332) from the field and 36% (56-of-154) from 3-point range. He has scored in double figures 22 times, topped 20 points 11 times and scored a season-high 30 points with five rebounds and four assists on Dec. 31 vs. App State. He had 21 points (8-of-11 field-goal attempts) with six rebounds and two assists in the first meeting with ULM. He has scored in double figures 12 times in SBC play and topped 20 points six times. 

Felipe Haase has started all 26 games, averaging 14.9 points (7th SBC), 6.5 rebounds (15th SBC) and 2.88 assists (15th SBC) per game, which all rank second on the team. He posted a 17-point, 12-rebound double-double against Mobile on Nov. 27 and a 28-point, 13-rebound double-double at Lamar on Dec. 13. He has scored in double figures 20 times and over 20 points five times. He has scored in double figures in each of the last five games, including a 26-point effort (8-of-11 field-goal attempts, 3-of-5 3-point field-goal attempts) at Georgia State last Saturday. He was limited to four points (1-of-12 field-goal attempts) but had eight rebounds and six assists in the first meeting with ULM.

DeAndre Pinckney also has started all 26 games, averaging 13.7 points (11th SBC) and a team-high 6.9 rebounds per game (13th SBC). He has six double-doubles, including a 24-point, 11-rebound double-double at ULM in the first meeting on Jan. 7. He had his sixth double-double last Saturday at Georgia State with 12 points and 11 rebounds. He scored a season-high 28 points (11-of-15 field-goal attempts) with four rebounds and five assists vs. James Madison on Jan. 21. He scored 22 points (6-of-9 field-goal attempts, 3-of-6 3-point field-goal attempts) on Thursday vs. the Ragin' Cajuns. He has scored in double figures 19 times, with 11 coming in SBC play.

Mo Arnold leads the team with 3.4 assists per game, which is ninth-best in the SBC. He is averaging 5.0 points per game. He had two points, two rebounds and two assists in the first meeting with ULM.

BLACKMON CONTINUES HIGH-LEVEL OF PLAY IN SUN BELT ACTION    
ULM senior guard Jamari Blackmon has provided a steady and veteran hand on the perimeter for the Warhawks. He leads the team at 14.0 points per game (10th SBC) and 3.28 assists per game (10th SBC). He is second on the team at 1.52 steals per game (ninth SBC). He also averages 3.3 rebounds per game. He has scored in double figures 17 times, including 10 of 13 games in Sun Belt Conference play.

He also ranks fourth in the SBC in 3-point field-goals made per game (2.24) and minutes played per game (34.20), sixth in 3-point field-goal percentage (.409), seventh in free-throw percentage (.788) and 10th in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.55).

Inside SBC play, Blackmon's scoring average jumps to 17.9 points per game, good for sixth in the SBC. He leads the league in minutes played per game (37.85). He has played every minute of four conference games, including all 50 minutes at Marshall on Jan. 26. He is second in the SBC in 3-point field-goals made per game (2.77), fifth in free-throw percentage (.831) and 3-point field-goal percentage (.429), seventh in steals per game (1.54), 10th in assists per game (3.15) and 12th in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.46).

Blackmon led the Sun Belt Conference in scoring over the week of Feb. 2-4 at 29.0 points per game after matching his career-high with 35 points (8-of-12 field-goal attempts, 5-of-7 3-point field-goal attempts, 14-of-15 free-throw attempts), season-high tying eight rebounds and seven assists on Feb. 2 vs. Coastal Carolina before adding 23 points (8-of-16 field-goal attempts) with four rebounds and four assists on Feb. 4 vs. South Alabama. He played all 80 minutes on the week. He is the only player in the SBC to score 35 points in a conference game this season, and has done so twice. He also finished the two-game span ranked second in the SBC in 3-point field-goals made per game (4.0), fifth in assists per game (5.5) and 12th in defensive rebounds per game (5.5). He shot 8-of-12 from 3-point range (.667, best percentage of any SBC player attempting more than 10 3-pointers) and shot 18-of-19 from the free-throw line (.947).

He scored 17 of his 23 points in the final six minutes of the Feb. 4 loss to South Alabama. He shot 3-of-5 from the 3-point line and hit all four of his free-throw attempts while adding four rebounds and four assists.

Blackmon scored a career-high 35 points for the second time in three games in last Thursday night's 83-70 win over Coastal Carolina. His 14-of-15 night from the free-throw line marked the second time in his career he has gone 14-of-15 at the charity stripe (Dec. 1, 2018, vs. Jacksonville State with North Alabama).

Blackmon scored 22 of his career-high 35 points in the final 15:38 of the Jan. 26 game at Marshall. He made his final six field-goal attempts (five 3-pointers) and five free-throw attempts, beginning with the final of three free-throw attempts at the 5:38 mark of regulation. In just the two overtimes, he had 13 points on 3-of-3 shooting (all 3-pointers) and 4-of-4 at the free-throw line. In making his final five 3-point field-goal attempts of the night, four either tied the game or gave ULM the lead. His final 3-pointer gave ULM a five-point lead, 84-79, with 26 seconds left in the second overtime.

He played all 50 minutes in the victory, going 10-of-20 from the field and 8-of-15 from 3-point range, all career highs. He also tracked down a season-high eight rebounds.

He added 15 points (3-of-4 3-point field-goal attempts), six rebounds and five assists in the 72-59 win at Georgia Southern on Jan. 19. He led the way for ULM as the Warhawks finished a season sweep of Texas State on Jan. 14, scoring a game-high 24 points (7-of-13 field-goal attempts, 8-of-10 free-throw attempts) with three rebounds, three assists and one steal. Against Southern Miss on Jan. 7, Blackmon added 17 points and five assists as the Warhawks fell short to the Golden Eagles, 65-60.

He surpassed 1,500 points in his career on a 3-pointer with 18:08 to play in the first half vs. Georgia State on Jan. 5, finishing with 14 points in the game, with four assists and four steals. He continued his stellar defensive play, limiting GSU's Dwon Odom to six points. Odom entered the game averaging nearly 16 points per game.

Blackmon played a huge role in ULM's two road wins to open SBC play. He scored a season-high 25 points on 9-of-12 field-goal shooting and 6-of-8 3-point field-goal shooting while adding three rebounds with three assists and two steals at Arkansas State on Dec. 31. It marked the third time in his career to knock down six 3-pointers. Defensively, he was assigned to A-State's leading scorer, Caleb Fields, limiting him to 11 points on 2-of-7 field-goal shooting, two points under his season average. He had 11 points in the Dec. 29 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 had 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 Nov. 25. He closed out the tournament with 10 points, hitting 2-of-3 from deep, and five assists on Nov. 26 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. 

LOCURE PACES WARHAWKS IN SCORING COLUMN    
ULM junior guard Tyreke Locure led ULM with 13 points, three assists and two steals while playing 39 minutes on Thursday vs. App State. He added 15 points with four rebounds and three steals in his first game against his former team, South Alabama, on Saturday. He played all 40 minutes against the Jaguars.

He is second on the team in scoring at 13.3 points per game, which ranks 14th in the Sun Belt Conference. He leads the team, is third in the SBC and 65th in NCAA Division I with 1.88 steals per game. He is second on the team and 12th in the SBC at 3.04 assists per game. He is 11th in the SBC in 3-point field-goals made per game (1.88), 13th in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.32) and 15th in minutes played per game (31.50).

Inside of Sun Belt Conference play, Locure is averaging 13.2 points per game, good for 15th in the SBC. He is second in the SBC in steals per game (1.69), seventh in minutes played per game (34.54), eighth in 3-point field-goals made per game (2.00) and 13th in free-throw percentage (.769).

He has scored in double figures in 20 of 26 games this season. Locure played a career-high 43 minutes on Jan. 26 at Marshall, picking up 18 points (5-of-11 3-point field-goal attempts), seven rebounds, three steals and two assists. He hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with 3:26 left in regulation, putting ULM up 59-58. He also had the steal on Marshall's inbounds play with 14.4 seconds left in overtime, which led to Thomas Howell's game-tying dunk to force the second overtime.

He led ULM with 19 points (5-of-10 3-point field-goal attempts), six rebounds and six assists in the Jan. 19 72-59 win at Georgia Southern. Locure posted his first two 20-point games as a Warhawk against Georgia State and Southern Miss. Locure had a career-high 25 points (4-of-8 3-point field-goal shooting) while adding six rebounds, four assists and one steal on Jan. 5 in a 66-58 win over GSU. He backed it up on on Jan. 7, going for 21 points (4-of-10 3-point field-goal shooting) with four rebounds, three assists and five steals against Southern Miss. For the week, he averaged 23.0 points (third in Sun Belt Conference), 5.0 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 3.0 steals (tied for first in SBC). He opened the second week of the four-game homestand with 12 points, all in the second half, with two rebounds and four assists on Jan. 12 vs. the Ragin' Cajuns.

Locure scored 15 points while shooting 6-of-6 from the free-throw line, adding five rebounds, four assists and one steal at Arkansas State on Dec. 31. He led the team with 12 points and added a season-high eight rebounds with four assists in the Dec. 29 57-53 win at Texas State. 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.

POWELL GIVES WARHAWKS LIFT IN SUN BELT PLAY    
ULM senior guard Langston Powell has made 13 consecutive starts to begin Sun Belt Conference play, first joining the starting lineup on Dec. 29 at Texas State and has started every game since. He led the team in scoring for the first time in 2022-23 on Jan. 12 with a career-high 19 points (7-of-10 field-goal attempts) against the Cajuns.

He played all 40 minutes in two of the last three games, scoring six points with three rebounds and three assists vs. Coastal Carolina on Feb. 2 and eight points, four rebounds, one assist and one steal vs. South Alabama on Feb. 4. He played 37 minutes with eight points, four rebounds and two assists while guarding App State's leading scorer, Donovan Gregory, and limiting him to four points and six assists on Thursday.

Since the start of SBC play, Powell is averaging 7.2 points and 3.3 rebounds per game. He is fourth in the Sun Belt in 3-point field-goal percentage in conference play (.432, 16-of-37) and is 17th in minutes played per game (33.23).

He matched a career high with seven rebounds and tied a season high with four assists on Jan. 26 at Marshall, playing in a career-high 48 minutes. He added 10 points (4-of-5 field-goal attempts, 2-of-3 3-point field-goal attempts) at Georgia Southern on Jan. 19, marking his fifth double-figure game of the season. He also pulled in five rebounds with two steals.

On Jan. 7 vs. Southern Miss, he added nine points and a season-high six rebounds. On Dec. 31 at Arkansas State, Powell scored eight consecutive points early in the game and finished with 15 points on 4-of-5 3-point field-goal shooting. He added four rebounds and two steals while playing 30 minutes. He had four points with one steal in 25 minutes at Texas State on Dec. 29.

Powell has reached double figures two other times in 2022-23, picking up 10 points vs. Sam Houston on Dec. 14 and 12 points vs. Central Baptist on Nov. 14.

He had a seven-point possession against Jacksonville on Dec. 20, as he drew a foul on a dunk. The foul was upgraded to a flagrant foul after review, and Powell knocked down two free throws. On the inbounds play, Powell came free in the right corner and knocked down a 3-pointer to cap the possession, which cut ULM's deficit from 13 points to six.

He has played in 80 games with 35 starts over four seasons at ULM. He averaged 4.1 points and 1.3 rebounds per game over 27 games with nine starts in 2021-22. He graduated with a bachelor's degree in December 2022.

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 third on the team at 9.7 points per game while adding a team-best 7.7 rebounds along with 2.0 assists and 0.8 steals per game. He pulled in a career-high 16 rebounds  while adding four points on Thursday against App State.

He ranks seventh in the Sun Belt Conference in defensive rebounds per game (5.46), eighth in rebounding and ninth in minutes played per game (33.19). Inside SBC action, he is fifth in minutes played per game (37.38), seventh in rebounds per game (8.2) and defensive rebounds per game (5.92) and 12th in offensive rebounds per game (2.23).

He scored in double-figures in six out of seven games from Jan. 12 to Feb. 2. He had 10 points, seven rebounds and four assists on Feb. 2 vs. Coastal Carolina. In a career-best five-game double-figure scoring streak, he had a career-high 21 points and 15 rebounds for his second double-double of the season while playing all 50 minutes at Marshall (Jan. 26), a team-high 14 points at Troy (Jan. 21) and 13 points in each of the three prior games, adding six rebounds against both the Ragin' Cajuns (Jan. 12) and Texas State (Jan. 14). He had three rebounds and a block at Georgia Southern (Jan. 19).

He played a crucial role in ULM's 86-82 double-overtime win against Marshall on Jan. 26. Howell had the game-tying dunk in the first overtime with nine seconds remaining, following a steal by Tyreke Locure. In the second overtime, Howell scored consecutive layups to tie the game and give ULM its final lead, 81-79, with 1:02 left.

Against Troy on Jan. 21, Howell shot 5-of-7 from the field and 3-of-3 from 3-point range, marking the first time in his career he hit multiple 3-pointers in a game. He has now made 15 3-pointers in his career, with 14 coming this season. He has made at least one trey in 11 of the last 13 games. Since the start of SBC play, Howell is ninth in the SBC in 3-point field-goal percentage (.429, 12-of-28).

He tallied nine points with 10 rebounds on Jan. 7 vs. Southern Miss for his fifth game with double-digit rebounds on the season. He added 13 points (6-of-11 field-goal attempts) with eight rebounds in ULM's 66-58 win over Georgia State on Jan. 5.

On the Sun Belt Conference-opening road trip, he had eight points and four rebounds to go with four assists at Arkansas State on Dec. 31. He totaled eight points and a game-high 13 rebounds on Dec. 29 at Texas State. 

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 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.

BAFUTTO BREAKS OUT INSIDE FOR ULM    
ULM graduate forward Victor Bafutto has started 20 consecutive games for the Warhawks. He has picked up eight or more rebounds in 13 games this season, including six games with 10-or-more rebounds. He is averaging 7.6 points, 7.0 rebounds and 2.19 blocks per game. He led the team with 10 points (5-of-7 field-goal attempts) with seven rebounds and two blocks at James Madison on Jan. 28 and added eight points with eight rebounds on Feb. 2 against Coastal Carolina. He had 11 rebounds on Thursday vs. App State.

He ranks fourth in the Sun Belt Conference and 22nd in NCAA Division I with 2.19 blocks per game. According to KenPom.com, Bafutto ranks 20th in the nation in block percentage (.094). Block percentage is the percentage of opponents' two-point shots that are blocked by the player while he is on the court.

He also is third in the SBC and 52nd in NCAA Division I in offensive rebounds per game (2.96), 12th in rebounding and 13th in field-goal percentage (.506). Inside SBC play, he leads the conference in offensive rebounds per game (3.54) while ranking third in blocked shots per game (2.15) and eighth in rebounds per game (7.8).

Bafutto pulled in 11 rebounds with six points in a career-high 41 minutes at Marshall on Jan. 26. He set the program's single-game offensive rebounding record on Jan. 19 at Georgia Southern, pulling down 10 offensive boards against the Eagles. He finished with 15 rebounds to go with his nine points and two blocks. He added eight rebounds on Jan. 21 at Troy.

Bafutto had a big opening weekend in Sun Belt Conference play. He followed up his double-double at Texas State with 13 points (6-of-9 field-goal attempts), all in the second half, and nine rebounds on Dec. 31 at Arkansas State. He posted his first double-double as a Warhawk and second of his career on Dec. 29 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.

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.

GALLION PROVIDES BOOST OFF BENCH    
ULM junior guard Savion Gallion is averaging 7.9 points, 2.5 rebounds and 1.0 assists per game. He matched his career high with 13 points, knocking down three 3-point field-goal attempts and adding four rebounds on Feb. 2 vs. Coastal Carolina. He added eight points and five rebounds last Saturday vs. South Alabama.

He had back-to-back double figure efforts off the bench, scoring 13 points (5-of-8 field-goal attempts) vs. the Ragin' Cajuns on Jan. 12 and added 11 points in a career-high 34 minutes vs. Texas State on Jan. 14.

He had a string of seven consecutive starts snapped on Dec. 29 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 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 nine times on the season. He once again matched his career high with 13 points vs. the Ragin' Cajuns on Jan. 12. 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.

RICHARD EARNS 300TH CAREER WIN, TIED FOR SECOND IN SBC CAREER WINS    
ULM head coach Keith Richard earned his 300th career win in the 72-59 victory for the Warhawks at Georgia Southern on Jan. 19.

Richard is in his 13th season as the head coach at his alma mater. The win against Georgia Southern also marked his 150th victory as the head coach at ULM, making it an even split in career victories with another 150 wins over nine seasons at Louisiana Tech from 1998-99 to 2007-08. 

He has won 117 Sun Belt Conference games as a head coach, with 85 at ULM and 32 over his first three seasons at LA Tech before the Bulldogs joined the Western Athletic Conference in 2001-02. He is tied with former Middle Tennesse coach and current Ole Miss coach Kermit Davis for the second-most SBC wins by a head coach.

He has been involved in 722of the 2,008 games in ULM program history either as a player, graduate assistant, assistant coach or head coach.

WARHAWKS SPRING UPSET IN RICHARD'S HUNTINGTON "HOMECOMING"    
ULM's 86-82 double-overtime win over Marshall on Jan. 26 marked a significant upset, according to the metrics of the NCAA's NET rankings. ULM entered the game ranked 291 in the latest NET, while Marshall was No. 66, marking a spread of 225 spots. After the win, ULM jumped to No. 266 in the Jan. 27 NET. The game also ranked as the No. 10 most "exciting" game of the season in college basketball according to KenPom.com.
It was the first game for ULM head coach Keith Richard against Marshall in Huntington since he served as an assistant coach with the Thundering Herd from 1986-89, under head coach Rick Huckabay. Richard helped coach Marshall to an NCAA Tournament appearance in 1987, the program's previous appearance prior to 2018, and the 1988 National Invitation Tournament. It is the only college coaching job Richard has held outside of the state of Louisiana, spending time as an assistant coach at ULM, Louisiana Tech and LSU and as head coach at LA Tech and ULM.

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 26 games of the season, three different Warhawks have posted four total 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.

Howell added his second double-double of the season and third of his career at Marshall, scoring a career-high 21 points while adding a career-high matching 15 rebounds while playing all 50 minutes in the 86-82 double overtime victory on Jan. 26.

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.