TIP-OFF
The ULM men's basketball team (4-14, 0-5) returns to Monroe on Wednesday (Jan. 15) night after a four-game road trip to host Troy (10-6, 3-2) inside Fant-Ewing Coliseum at 6:30 p.m. on ESPN+.
Last week, ULM led both of its games for more than 15 minutes of game time, but ultimately fell in both contests. On Thursday, ULM pushed the lead to 10 points within the first 12 minutes of the game before Southern Miss rallied in the final 28 minutes to win 84-67 in Reed-Green Coliseum. Jalen Bolden led the way with 17 points and a season-high six steals for ULM. On Saturday night, ULM held the lead for over 34 minutes and the Cajuns led by no more than four points the entire night, but the home team escaped with a three-point victory in the first meeting of the season. Makai Willis turned in his 10th double-figure scoring game and paced all Warhawks with 17 points, one point shy of a season-high.
SERIES HISTORY –
Wednesday's matchup is the 28th meeting between the Warhawks and Trojans in men's basketball, with Troy leading the all-time series, 16-11. Troy has won each of the previous five games versus the Warhawks, but the last three games inside Fant-Ewing Coliseum have been decided by less than 10 points. ULM's last victory versus Troy was in 2020 when the Warhawks bested the Trojans by three points in Alabama.
SCOUTING THE TROJANS –
Troy began its conference slate with a 3-0 start with a home win over Georgia State before road wins at App State and Marshall. Last week, the Trojans fell by one point to Texas State and six points to Arkansas State. It marked the first time since 2019 Troy was defeated in consecutive home contests.
The Trojans rank second in the SBC in a plethora of statistical categories including bench points per game (27.6), free throw percentage (72.7), rebound margin (5.4), steals per game (9.6) and turnovers forced per game (14.25). Leading Troy's scoring effort is Tayton Conerway and Myles Rigsby.Conerway was last season's Sun Belt Sixth Man of the Year after ranking second on the team in scoring at 11.8 points per game. Rigsby, the 23-24 Sun Belt Freshman of the Year, matched his career-high with 22 points in the team's conference opener versus Georgia State.
Scott Cross is in year six at the helm of Troy hoops. Cross previously led his alma mater, UT Arlington, for 12 seasons before arriving at Troy.
RICHARD ANNOUNCES RETIREMENT AT CONCLUSION OF SEASON–
ULM men's basketball coach Keith Richard announced on Friday (Dec. 20) his intention to retire at the conclusion of the 2024-25 season. Richard will complete his 15th season as the head coach of ULM men's basketball. Richard inherited a program saddled with APR sanctions and guided the Warhawks to four postseason appearances in five years. Richard previously served as the head coach of Louisiana Tech from 1998-2007 and was an assistant at LSU from 2008-10 before being named ULM's head coach and has accumulated over 300 victories as a head coach.
FAMILIAR FACES –
The Warhawks welcome back 10 players from the 2023-24 roster including starters Tyreese Watson, Jalen Bolden and Jerry Ngopot. Key role players including Jacob Wilson, Makai Willis and AD Diedhiou are also back after playing in more than 10 games last season.
KEY ADDITIONS –
The 2024 ULM men's basketball signing class featured four new Warhawks to the 2024-25 roster. ULM signed two high school prospects (Micah Caster & Renars Sondors), one four-year transfer (Coltie Young) and one junior college transfer (Ta'Zir Smith) in the 2024 class. Additionaly, Phil Cunningham was introduced as an assistant head coach during the offseason. Cunningham brings over 25 years of collegiate coaching experience at the Division I level.
LOOKING AHEAD –
The Warhawks wrap up the regular season series versus the Ragin' Cajuns on Saturday (Jan. 18) in Monroe with tip-off set for 2 p.m.
