HOUSTON – The ULM men's basketball team (1-3) fell in a close contest on the road to HCU (2-1) on Thursday night (Nov. 13). After ULM found a double-digit lead in the first half, the Huskies were able to orchestrate the comeback for the 72-61 victory.
ULM came out swinging in the first half, shooting 50% from beyond the arc (6-12) and 60% from the field (18-30). In the second half, however, ULM shot 22.2% (6-27) from the field, while the Huskies remained steady throughout the full 40 minutes.
Three Warhawks scored in double figures in the contest,
MJ Russell and
Renars Sondors both reaching double-digits for the third-straight game. Russell tallied 15 points to lead the team, also collecting two rebounds, two assists and a steal. Sondors shot 6-of-11 from the field for 12 points, snagging six boards, two assists, a block and a steal.
Dylan Diaz rounded out the double-digit scorers with 10 points, including three triples.
Krystian Lewis led the team with eight rebounds on the evening, also posting six points.
Lavell Brodnex saw his first action on the court as a Warhawk, posting four points, two rebounds, an assist and a block.
The first half opened with the Huskies taking a 4-0 lead in the opening minute of the contest. The lead wouldn't last long, however, as the road team found their groove quickly. Russell found the lead with the team's first three-pointer of the evening.
Dylan Diaz then added to the tally, hitting a triple then drawing the foul for the four-point play. A few baskets for HCU and back-to-back turnovers for the Warhawks had the Huskies tying the score at nine with 16:45 left in the half. Diaz hit a transition three to bring the Warhawks back from the brink, getting ULM back on top. Coming out of the first timeout, ULM went on a 12-2 scoring run to find the double-digit lead, shooting six-of-six from the field.
A four-minute drought for the home team from the field gave the Warhawks the opportunity to extend the lead, but both teams ended up finding themselves in droughts. HCU's Mambourou Mara broke their drought, allowing for the Huskies to go on a 7-0 run with five minutes left in the half. Chipping away at the lead, ULM had to step up to stay ahead, as freshman
Alex Molofeev dropped a three-pointer to get the lead back in double figures. The score stayed 43-31 as the clock ran down, both teams unable to score from the field in the final two minutes of the half.
Krystian Lewis opened the scoring in the second half for the Warhawks, but the momentum was short-lived. The Huskies went on a 10-0 scoring run to tie the game and forced a ULM scoring drought to swing the pendulum in their favor. Over the course of seven minutes, HCU would go on a 17-3 run to find the lead and pull away from the Warhawks. Diaz was able to break the drought for ULM, but the shots were not dropping. With less than 10 minutes left in the contest, the host team had the lead and the momentum.
The Warhawks did not quit fighting, fouls and free throws getting them within one. But a steady stream of baskets from the Huskies had the lead stretching out yet again. Another scoring run for the home team brought the advantage to double figures for HCU. While ULM found a few three-point plays with time running out, the lead was too large to bounce back from.
ULM drops to 1-4 to open the season, 0-4 when on the road. The men's basketball team returns to Fant-Ewing Coliseum to open the week, facing Lamar on Monday night (Nov. 17). Tipoff against the Cardinals is scheduled for 6:30 p.m.
