ULM Warhawks

Game 14: Southern Miss (8-7 overall, 2-1 Sun Belt Conference) at ULM (4-9 overall, 0-3 Sun Belt Conference)
7:30 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 11, 2024 | Fant-Ewing Coliseum | Monroe, Louisiana
WATCH: ESPN+ | LISTEN: 105.3 FM KLIP | LIVE STATS

GAME NOTES

MONROE, La. - The ULM men's basketball plays the third game of a four game home stand at 7:30 p.m. Thursday when they entertain Southern Miss at Fant-Ewing Coliseum.

ULM is searching for its first Sun Belt Conference win of the season on Thursday after last Saturday's 76-68 loss to Georgia Southern, moving the Warhawks to 4-9 overall and 0-3 in SBC play. The Eagles opened a 12-point first half lead before leading by nine at the break, 38-29. ULM steadily fought back in the second half, taking a 47-45 lead on a 3-pointer by Tyreke Locure with 11:52 to play. The lead changed hands five more times until Georgia Southern took the lead for good, 59-57, on a 3-pointer by Eugene Brown III. The Eagles used a 9-0 run to build a lead and went on to the win. Locure scored a season-high 24 points, while Savion Gallion added a career high 18 points for ULM. Brown had 20 points to lead the Eagles.

Locure's 24 points last Saturday vs. Georgia Southern marked the highest individual point total of the season for ULM. It was the first time any Warhawk surpassed 20 points in a game this season. It pushed him into the team lead for the season, averaging 10.3 points per game. It was his fifth double-figure effort of the season and first since scoring 17 points vs. Northwestern State on Nov. 28.

Nika Metskhvarishvili is second on the team at 10.2 points per game and leads the team at 6.0 rebounds per game. Over the last five games, Metskhvarishvili has scored in double figures three times and posted two double-doubles, averaging 10.6 points and 9.0 rebounds per game.

Two other Warhawks are averaging over 8.0 points per game: Savion Gallion at 8.7 points per game and Jalen Bolden at 8.3 points per game.

ULM continues to excel on the offensive glass, averaging 14.31 offensive rebounds per game to rank second in the SBC and 13th in NCAA Division I. The Warhawks are sixth in the SBC and 63rd in the SBC at 39.46 rebounds per game. The Warhawks also excel in bench scoring, ranking third in the SBC and 36th nationally at 28.85 points per game.

THURSDAY'S GAME BASICS    
ULM enters the second week of a four-game home stand when the Warhawks battle Southern Miss at 7:30 p.m. Thursday at Fant-Ewing Coliseum. ULM has lost six-straight games to fall to 4-9 overall and 0-3 in Sun Belt Conference action. Southern Miss has won its last two games and sits at 8-7 overall and 2-1 in SBC play. Thursday's game is the second game of a doubleheader, following the ULM women's basketball game vs. South Alabama at 5 p.m. at Fant-Ewing Coliseum.

ULM is searching for its first win since Dec. 5 vs. Champion Christian. The Warhawks are 3-3 at home this season with wins against Champion Christian (110-63), Northwestern State (74-70) and Ecclesia (103-74) with losses to Louisiana Tech (73-63), Marshall (68-57) and Georgia Southern (76-68). The Warhawks' other victory this season came at Central Michigan (74-64) in the MAC-Sun Belt Challenge.

Southern Miss has won its last two games, defeating No. 19/20 James Madison, 81-71, last Saturday and Georgia State, 79-73, last Thursday, both at Reed Green Coliseum in Hattiesburg. The Golden Eagles are 3-3 in true road games this season, earning wins against Lamar (82-79), UAB (85-82) and Milwaukee (90-84) and lost to Georgia Southern (88-67), McNeese (67-48) and at Akron (72-54).

ULM and Southern Miss have three common opponents in Northwestern State, Lamar and Georgia Southern. ULM and Southern Miss each defeated Northwestern State, with ULM winning 74-70 and Southern Miss earning an 83-74 victory. ULM lost at Lamar, 97-73, and Southern Miss defeated the Cardinals in Beaumont, 82-79. Both teams fell to Georgia Southern, with ULM dropping a 76-68 decision in Monroe last Saturday and USM losing in Statesboro, 88-67, on Dec. 30.

Thursday's game is the 41st meeting between ULM and Southern Miss, with USM leading the series, 24-16. The Golden Eagles won both meetings last year, taking a 65-60 win in Monroe on Jan. 7 and a 76-67 victory in Hattiesburg on Feb. 11. They were the first two meetings as conference opponents in series history after USM joined the SBC prior to the 2022-23 season.

ULM head coach Keith Richard is 1-4 all-time against Southern Miss including a 1-3 mark while head coach of the Warhawks. Southern Miss head coach Jay Ladner is 3-2 all-time against ULM, including a 2-1 record as head coach of the Golden Eagles.

Thursday's game will stream on ESPN+ with Chris Harris (play-by-play) and Mike Vining (analyst) on the call. The game also will 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    
Southern Miss enters Thursday's game as one of the top teams at getting to the free throw line in the Sun Belt Conference. USM ranks second in the SBC and 58th in NCAA Division I with 22.3 free throw attempts per game and second in the SBC and 97th nationally with 15.3 free throws made per game. The Golden Eagles also excel in turnover margin, ranking third in the SBC at +1.7 turnovers per game and are fourth in the league with 13.73 turnovers forced per game.

Austin Crowley leads the Golden Eagles with 15.4 points per game, which ranks eighth in the SBC. He has reached double figure scoring 13 times and has topped 20 points three times. He scored a season-high 25 points (10-of-16 field goal attempts, 3-of-4 3-point field goal attempts) for the second time last Thursday vs. Georgia State. He also tallied 25 points at Milwaukee on Nov. 25 and 22 points at Lamar on Dec. 18. He posted a double-double with 19 points and 10 rebounds in the season opener against William Carey on Nov. 6. Crowley also leads the SBC in field goal attempts (198), ranks second in free throws made (59), third in free throw attempts (78) and sixth in 3-point field goal attempts (86).

Andre Curbelo has played in just five games after the NCAA approved all pending transfer waivers in December. The St. John's transfer is second on the team at 14.4 points per game and has scored in double figures in all five games in which he has played. He posted a triple-double with 13 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists last Thursday vs. Georgia State. He dished out nine assists to go with 15 points last Saturday vs. James Madison. He is averaging 6.0 assists per game.

Victor Hart is third on the team at 13.5 points per game while leading the team at 5.8 rebounds per game. He also ranks third in the SBC at 1.73 steals per game. He has scored in double figures in 12 games and has three double-doubles. He has topped 20 points twice, including a season-high 26 points (10-of-14 field goal attempts) at UAB on Dec. 1. He picked up 23 points (9-of-13 field goals) vs. Cal State Fullerton on Nov. 20. He posted double-doubles with 13 points and 11 rebounds vs. Ole Miss on Dec. 23, 17 points and 12 rebounds vs. Northwestern State on Dec. 9 and 16 points and 10 rebounds vs. South Dakota State on Nov. 22.

Donovan Ivory is the fourth Golden Eagle averaging double figures at 11.8 points per game while adding 4.4 rebounds per game. He has scored in double figures eight times, including a season high 32 points (6-of-10 3-point field goal attempts) with five rebounds and four steals at Milwaukee (Nov. 25). Ivory has scored in double figures just once in the last four games, with 10 points at Georgia Southern on Dec. 30.

Victor Iwuakor has made 10 starts and is averaging 7.1 points and 4.5 rebounds per game with four double-figure scoring efforts. He had a season-high 18 points (8-of-12 field goal attempts) vs. Northwestern State (Dec. 9). He posted 11 rebounds to go with seven points at UAB (Dec. 1). He ranks third in the Sun Belt Conference with 1.67 blocks per game.

LOCURE HAS BREAK OUT GAME AGAINST GEORGIA SOUTHERN    
ULM senior guard Tyreke Locure posted the team's first individual 20-point outing last Saturday against Georgia Southern, scoring a game-high 24 points (8-of-16 field-goal attempts) while adding four rebounds. It was the sixth 20-point game of his ULM career after topping 20 points five times last season. It was his first double-figure effort since Nov. 28 vs. Northwestern State, a stretch of six games.

Locure was named Preseason Second-Team All-Sun Belt Conference following a vote of the league's head coaches, the conference announced Oct. 16. He leads the team in scoring at 10.3 points per game while adding 3.7 rebounds and a team-high 2.8 assists per game. He has tallied double figure scoring in five games. He totaled 17 points with a career-high matching nine rebounds (four offensive) and two assists on Nov. 28 vs. Northwestern State. He picked up 11 points with five rebounds and two steals vs. Ecclesia on Nov. 20, scored 15 points with five rebounds, four assists and three steals on Nov. 16 vs. Louisiana Tech and had 13 points and added team highs with six rebounds, six assists and three steals on Nov. 11 at Central Michigan. He had just nine points, three rebounds and four assists in nearly 11 minutes of playing time on Dec. 5 vs. Champion Christian.
 
Locure returns for his second season at ULM after leading the team in scoring (14.4 points per game), steals (1.8 pg.), field goals made per game (5.0 pg.) and 3-point field goals made per game (2.1 pg.) in 2022-23. He added 4.2 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game. He ranked fourth in the SBC in steals per game, sixth in 3-point field goals made per game, eighth in scoring, 14th in free-throw percentage (.762) and minutes per game (31.9) and 15th in assists per game and 3-point field goal percentage (.370). He scored in double figures 26 times and topped 20 points five times. He scored a career high 33 points vs. Troy on Feb. 22. His numbers improved inside of SBC play to 15.4 points and 4.6 rebounds per game while adding 2.4 assists and 1.7 steals per game. He shot 41% (43-of-104) from the 3-point line and 83% (53-of-64) from the free throw line in SBC action.

METSKHVARISHVILI ROUNDING INTO FORM    
Senior forward Nika Metskhvarishvili has started the first 13 games of 2023-24, and has led ULM in scoring five times and posted two double-doubles. He leads the team in rebounding at 6.0 boards per game while ranking second on the team in scoring at 10.2 points per game. He has two double-doubles in the last five games and has posted at least nine rebounds in four of the last five games. He led ULM in scoring and rebounding for the second-straight game with 16 points and nine rebounds at App State on Dec. 30. He posted his second double-double of the season and fourth of his career on Dec. 18 at Jacksonville with 17 points and 11 rebounds. He totaled 10 points and 11 rebounds for his first double-double of the year at Lamar on Dec. 14. Over the last five games, he is tied for the team lead with Tyreke Locure and Savion Gallion at 10.6 points per game each while adding a team-best 9.0 rebounds per game.

Metskhvarishvili scored a season-high 19 points, pulled in eight rebounds and added a career-high five blocks on Nov. 28 vs. Northwestern State. He played a key role in ULM's second-half rally, scoring 12 of his 19 points while adding seven of his eight rebounds and four of his five blocks. He had six of his eight rebounds on the offensive end.

Metskhvarishvili tallied 15 points with six rebounds, three assists and three steals on Nov. 16 vs. Louisiana Tech. He had 16 points (7-of-11 field-goal attempts) while adding three rebounds, three assists and one steal on Nov. 11 at Central Michigan. He dished out a team-best five assists on Nov. 20 vs. Ecclesia.

Metskhvarishvili was cleared to return to action just before the start of official practice in late September, and returns to the Warhawk lineup after missing all but five games in the 2022-23 season due to a knee injury.

When he left the lineup after five games last season, Metskhvarishvili was second on the team in scoring at 9.8 points per game and rebounding at 5.8 boards per game. The Tbilisi, Georgia, native was named a Preseason Third-Team All-Sun Belt Conference selection prior to the 2022-23 season.

Metskhvarishvili appeared in 28 games with five starts in his first season at ULM as a second-year sophomore in 2021-22, 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. He scored a career-high 23 points while playing 40 minutes at UT Arlington on Jan. 15. He scored in double figures in five consecutive games from Jan. 8-22, and improved inside SBC action, averaging 11.9 points and 5.4 rebounds per game.

GALLION CONTINUES CONTRIBUTING ROLE    
ULM senior guard Savion Gallion has started 11 of the first 13 games of the 2023-24 season and ranks third on the team at 8.7 points per game. He posted a career-high 18 points (6-of-10 field goal attempts) with three assists vs. Georgia Southern last Saturday. He has led ULM in scoring twice, posting 17 points (5-of-7 field-goal attempts) at Lamar on Dec. 14 and with eight points in the season opener at No. 7/6 Houston on Nov. 6. He reached double figures for the first time this season with 14 points (5-of-8 field-goal attempts) while adding five rebounds and four assists on Nov. 20 vs. Ecclesia. He had his second double figure game with 10 points and three rebounds at Sam Houston on Dec. 12. He scored in double figures for the third-straight game with 12 points at Jacksonville on Dec. 18. He added eight points with a career-high six rebounds on Nov. 26 at SMU. Over the last five games, Gallion has scored in double figures three times and is tied for the team lead in scoring at 10.6 points per game.

Gallion returns after playing a pivotal role off the bench and as a spot starter in 2022-23. He played in all 32 games with 12 starts in his first season at ULM and averaged a career-best 7.5 points and 2.5 rebounds per game while adding 32 assists and 19 steals. He shot 38% (78-of-204) from the field and 26% (20-of-73) from 3-point range while knocking down 72% (65-of-90) from the free-throw line. He reached double figures 10 times.

BOLDEN STEPS UP AS SOPHOMORE    
Sophomore guard Jalen Bolden has broken through in the first 13 games of the 2023-24 season. He is fourth on the team in scoring at 8.3 points per game and is second in rebounding at 5.8 rebounds per game. He reached double figures for the fifth time on the season and fourth-straight game with 11 points at Lamar on Dec. 14. He had his double-figure streak snapped with six points at Jacksonville on Dec. 18. He stuffed the stat sheet with seven points (7-of-12 free throw attempts), eight rebounds, four assists and two steals last Saturday vs. Georgia Southern.

He picked up his second double-double by leading the team in scoring with 14 points and rebounding with 12 boards on Dec. 12 at Sam Houston. He made his first career start on Dec. 5 against Champion Christian and posted his third double-figure scoring game of the season with 10 points (4-of-6 field-goal attempts, 2-of-2 3-point field-goal attempts) and three rebounds.

He had his first career double-double with 12 points and 14 rebounds on Nov. 28 against Northwestern State. He scored 10 of his 12 points and pulled in nine of his 14 rebounds in the second half as ULM rallied from an 18-point first-half deficit for the 74-70 win. His 14 rebounds set a new career high.

He had his first double figure effort of the season with a career-high 15 points (6-of-7 field-goal attempts) against Ecclesia on Nov. 20. He has scored at least six points in each of the last six games while adding at least five rebounds three times.

As a freshman in 2022-23, Bolden played in 16 games, averaging 3.8 points and 2.9 rebounds per game. He scored in double figures twice, doing so with 13 points and four rebounds against Dallas Christian on Nov. 10 and with 11 points and three rebounds at the Ragin' Cajuns on Feb. 16.

WILSON MAKES FIRST CAREER START    
ULM sophomore guard Jacob Wilson made his first career start on Dec. 30 at App State, posting his third double-figure game of the season and fifth of his career with 10 points, two rebounds and three assists against the Mountaineers. He played 25 minutes. He made his second-straight start on Jan. 3 vs. Marshall, scoring three points with one rebound in 11 minutes of playing time.

Wilson has played in all 12 games, averaging 5.2 points and 2.1 assists per game while shooting 50% (26-of-52) from the field. He tallied 11 points at Lamar on Dec. 14 and led the team with 16 points while adding a career-high seven assists vs. Champion Chrisitan on Dec. 5. He has multiple assists in seven games.

The Baton Rouge, Louisiana, native played in 14 games last year, averaging 4.4 points and 1.6 rebounds per game.

WATSON LEADS NEWCOMER IMPACT ON 2023-24 TEAM    
ULM junior guard Tyreese Watson picked up his first career start on Dec. 30 at App State, scoring eight points. He added season highs with five rebounds and four assists. He has scored in double figures four times, all while coming off the bench. He is averaging 7.4 points and 1.9 rebounds per game.

Watson had his first double-figure game with 13 points (3-of-4 3-point field goal attempts) at Central Michigan on Nov. 11. He reached double figures in back-to-back games with 13 points vs. Ecclesia on Nov. 20 and a season-high 14 points (6-of-10 field goal attempts) at SMU on Nov. 26. He posted 10 points with one rebound at Sam Houston on Dec. 12.

The Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, native is a transfer from Cochise College in Sierra Vista, Arizona. Cochise finished the 2022-23 season with a 29-3 record, which included a 27-game winning streak, and finished ranked No. 11 in the NJCAA poll. The Apaches compiled a 58-7 record over Watson's two seasons.
 
Watson 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 added 3.7 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game while shooting 37% from the 3-point line. He shot 42% from deep inside conference play.
 
Watson is the brother of former Creighton standout and current professional player Maurice Watson, Jr. He played high school basketball at Monsignor Bonner High School.

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, 2023.

Richard is in his 14th 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 741 of the 2,027 games (37%) in ULM program history either as a player, graduate assistant, assistant coach or head coach.