HAMMOND – Coming off its first win of the season, the Southeastern Louisiana University men's basketball team ventures back out on the road when it travels to face in-state rival Louisiana Tech on Wednesday at the Thomas Assembly Center.
Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. The game can be heard in the Hammond area on KSLU-FM (90.9) and on the internet at www.LionSports.net. The game in Ruston will be the first for Southeastern (1-3) since a 92-69 setback to Louisiana Tech (5-1) on Dec. 21, 1991.
Southeastern opened its season with a grueling three-game road trip in a five-day span that included games against Wisconsin, Marquette and New Mexico State. The Lions, who will play seven of its first nine games on the road, defeated Louisiana College in its home opener, 91-49, as
Antonnio Benton and
Jeremy Campbell each came off the bench to score 15 points.
Fifth-year senior
Brandon Fortenberry leads a balanced Southeastern scoring attack with 9.8 points per game followed by senior
Roosevelt Johnson at 9.3. Newcomer
Jeffery Ricard (8.8), Benton (7.5),
Dre Evans (6.8), Campbell (6.5),
Onochie Ochie (6.5) and
Todd Nelson (5.3) are next in scoring for the Lions with
Jan Petrovcic leading the team with 5.5 rebounds per contest.
After a season-opening loss at Texas A&M on Nov. 9, Louisiana Tech has won its last five games including a 68-52 decision over I-20 rival Louisiana-Monroe last Saturday. The Bulldogs used a 21-0 run in the second half and held the Warhawks scoreless for nearly seven minutes.
Cordarius Johnson tied a career-high with 23 points in the win for Louisiana Tech, going 8-for-11 from the floor with five 3-pointers. Raheem Appleby added 18 points for the Bulldogs, who won their 22nd consecutive non-conference game at home dating back to 2007.
Appleby, the 2011-12 WAC Freshman of the Year, leads Louisiana Tech in scoring at 18.3 points per game with Johnson averaging 14.7. Kenneth Smith, the Bulldogs' point guard, leads the team in rebounds (5.3), assists (5.2) and steals (2.1).
In last year's matchup – the first between the schools since the 1991-92 season – Southeastern withstood a pair of Bulldog rallies to claim a 72-69 overtime decision in the University Center. Fortenberry and Johnson combined to score 37 points for Southeastern while
DeShawn Patterson scored four of his 11 points in overtime in helping the Lions snap a 15-game losing streak in the series and secure their first win over their in-state rival since 1966.
