MONROE, La. – The ULM men's basketball team (2-4) trailed by as many as 12 points in the second half to Southeastern Louisiana (2-2) and rallied to take the lead with less than four minutes to go before ultimately falling 70-67 at home on Monday (Nov. 18) night at Fant-Ewing Coliseum in Monroe, La.
 
"It was a really competitive game," said ULM men's basketball head coach Keith Richard. "They [Southeastern] have a really strong team, and we knew that coming in. They added a lot of transfers and are physical. We had our chances. It is hard to win close games when you miss 11 free throws. We gave up a layup and had a turnover in the final two possessions. Those things always come back to haunt you. You have to execute and make some plays in close games."
 
The Warhawks converted 9-of-20 attempts at the free throw line while Southeastern Louisiana made 8-of-9 shots at the line. ULM forced 17 turnovers and came away with 11 steals defensively that turned into 20 points. The Lions outscored ULM 42-22 in the paint and 12-8 on second-chance points.
 
After shooting 34.6% from the field in the first half, ULM shot 16-of-27 on field goals in the second half, including 5-of-11 from beyond the arc, and averaged 47.2% on the night. Southeastern finished the game shooting 54.7% from the field but 28.6% from 3-point range.
 
Jackson State transfer Coltie Young finished with 19 points, which was the highest scoring total wearing a ULM uniform, on 7-for-11 shooting. Young added three rebounds to go along with a steal and an assist. Jacob Wilson and Jalen Bolden also finished in double figures for ULM and scored 14 points each. Makai Willis pulled down a team-high six rebounds while Tyreese Watson and Bolden both passed four assists. Wilson led the team with three steals and AD Diedhiou had ULM's lone block of the night.
 
For Southeastern, Jakevion Buckley registered a team-high 16 points. Sam Hines Jr. recorded a double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds. Thomas Tut and Brody Rowbury both finished in double figures for the Lions.
 
After Bolden connected on his first jumper from the field, the Lions scored 10 unanswered points and led 10-2 early. Jerry Ngopot drilled a 3-pointer from the wing after receiving an underhanded pass from Watson that ended the Southeastern scoring spree. Bolden drew a foul on a drive in the lane and trimmed the deficit to three points at the 14-minute mark.
 
Young countered a Southeastern three with his first triple of the night at the top of the key to keep ULM within one possession. Willis cleaned up the glass and stuck back a layup and Young swished his second 3-pointer of the first half that gave the Warhawks their first lead of the night, 15-13. ULM pushed the lead to five after a Bolden deuce and a free throw by Diedhiou to complete a 16-3 scoring run.
 
The Lions roared back and reclaimed the lead after generating a 15-0 run that elapsed nearly four minutes. Devon Hancock made his first bucket of the night that stopped the SLU run. Southeastern went ahead by double digits at the 1:45 mark following free throws by Carlos Paez. The Lions maintained a 10-point cushion at the halfway mark.
 
Ngopot converted jumpers on consecutive ULM possessions to pull the Warhawks within six in the opening three minutes, forcing a Southeastern timeout. The Lions answered with a 7-1 run and went back ahead by double digits. Young sank his third 3-pointer of the night to make the score 45-36 with 15 minutes to go. The Lions' lead crept back to double digits with 11:09 to go on Buckley's 10^th point of the night. Young cashed in another triple that brought his scoring total to 16 and cut Southeastern's lead to six with just over 10 minutes remaining.
 
Southeastern increased its lead once more to double figures when Tut hammered home a dunk off a ULM turnover at the 7:51 mark. The Warhawks began to chip away and rallied with an 11-0 scoring run to jump back in front. Bolden started the run with a jumper and Wilson knocked down a long 3-pointer to make the score 60-55 Lions. After a free throw by Willis, Wilson caught a pass from Watson and buried a 3-pointer to bring ULM within one. After a stop by ULM on defense, Willis made a layup that gave ULM its first lead since the 8-minute mark of the first half. Southeastern went back ahead when Hines Jr. made a layup off a miss with less than four minutes left.
 
Wilson evened the score at 62-62 with a free throw before SLU regained the lead on a Buckley layup. The Lions pushed the lead to 68-64 with less than a minute remaining after Buckley drove the lane and powered home a layup. After the Warhawks missed a 3-pointer and SLU secured the rebound, Young poked loose the basketball for a steal and received a pass from Bolden on the wing for a 3-pointer to bring the Warhawks within one with 20 seconds left. On the next play, Wilson tied up the Lions' point guard for a jump ball in the backcourt and the arrow favored the Warhawks, giving ULM a golden opportunity. Rowbury created a huge steal and forced ULM into committing a turnover with just six seconds on the clock. After sinking both free throws, ULM had one last heave toward the basket that did not fall, and Southeastern was victorious after a physical battle.
 
The Warhawks will open the Northwestern State MTE on Friday (Nov. 22) night versus the Demons at 6:30 p.m. in Natchitoches, La.
 
"We have some things we have to correct," said Richard. "Although we have a lot of returners, we are still juggling a little bit and still trying to figure ourselves out. We need to have some good practices in the next few days and get better from this. This was great competition tonight and is what we will be facing in the Sun Belt every night."