HAMMOND, La. – One of the top defensive teams in the Southland Conference will try to cool down its highest-scoring squad when Southeastern Louisiana travels to play league front-runner Nicholls Saturday at 6:30 p.m. in Stopher Gym in Thibodaux.

    The Lions (12-9, 6-2 Southland) head into the game tied with Sam Houston State for third in the conference, a game back of the Colonels (13-8, 7-1 Southland) and a half-game back of New Orleans.

    The matchup is the ESPN3 Southland Conference Game of the Week. Sean Kelley and Victor Howell will broadcast the game with Brian Watts producing. It can also be heard in the Hammond area on KSLU-FM (90.9), online at www.LionSports.net/listenlive and via the TuneIn Radio app. A link to live stats, provided by Nicholls, can be found on the Southeastern men's basketball schedule page at www.LionSports.net.

    Southeastern has been the league's stingiest defense since the start of conference play, allowing 66.5 points per game. The Lions are also third in 3-point defense (.306) and fourth in field goal percentage defense (.414). Overall, Southeastern is second in the conference in 3-point field goal percentage defense (.331), third in field goal percentage defense (.437) and fourth in scoring defense (70.5 ppg).

    Nicholls, currently riding a conference-best five-game winning streak, is averaging 85.9 points, 12th-best in the nation. The Colonels are shooting a league-best 48.3 percent and are third in 3-point shooting at 36.4 percent shooting.

    Southeastern dropped its first conference road game of the season, 75-65, at Sam Houston on Wednesday. Junior forward Moses Greenwood had his third double-double of the season with 20 points and 10 rebounds. Junior guard Marlain Veal added 10 points, nine assists and seven rebounds. Senior guards Joshua Filmore and Eddy Polanco had nine points apiece. The Lions shot 41.4 percent for the game, but just 38.7 percent in the second half.

    Nicholls is coming off a 79-74 win at Lamar on Wednesday. Senior guard Tevon Saddler had a double-double with 22 points and a career-high 16 rebounds. Senior guard Roddy Peters tossed in 28 points while senior forward Kimani Jackson contributed 10. The Colonels shot 60.4 percent to offset 27 turnovers.
   
NOTES
Southeastern
    Southeastern is averaging 72.3 points on 43.9 percent shooting, including 33.7 percent on 3-pointers.
   
    The Lions are averaging 36.2 rebounds while giving up 35.5.
 
    Southeastern is committing the fewest fouls in the conference (17.0 per game).
 
    Senior forward Jordan Capps leads the Lions and ranks 15th in the Southland with 13.1 points per game. He is also 11th in field goal percentage (.517) and blocked shots (1.1 bpg).
   
    Veal is the conference leader and ranks 28th nationally with 5.8 assists per game. His 122 assists rank 20th in the country. He is also second in the league and 24th in the country with 2.2 steals per contest with his 46 steals the 18th-most nationally. He ranks 10th in the conference in assist/turnover ratio (1.6) and 22nd in scoring (12.4 ppg). His three 10-assist games lead the Southland and he is averaging 7.0 rebounds in league play.
 
    Greenwood is 10th in rebounding (6.5 rpg), 11th in field goal percentage (.517) and 12th in blocks (1.0 bpg) while averaging 9.2 points per game. Senior guard Joshua Filmore is sixth in 3-pointers made per game (2.4) while senior guard Jabbar Singleton is ninth in 3-point field goal percentage (.389).
 
    Veal, Capps, Filmore (9.0 ppg, 34 assists), Singleton (7.1 ppg, 52 assists) and senior forward James Currington (8.1 ppg, 5.7 rpg, 30 steals, 50.7 FG%) have started every game in conference play for the Lions.
 
    This will be the 98th meeting between Southeastern and Nicholls with the Colonels being the Lions' third-most common opponent. The Lions lead 52-45 in the series that dates back to the 1959-60 season. Nicholls leads 27-21 at Stopher Gym after having won the past two meetings at home. The Lions' last win in Thibodaux was a 65-59 victory on Feb. 14, 2015. 
 
    Southeastern head coach Jay Ladner and his coaching staff are again participating in the Coaches vs. Cancer Suits and Sneakers Week. The coaches will wear sneakers with their game attire as a visible reminder about the importance of fighting cancer. There is also an online auction, hosted by eBay for Charity, featuring sneakers and ties signed by college basketball coaches.
 
Nicholls
    Nicholls is third nationally in steals (209), fourth in steals per game (10.0) and sixth in turnovers forced (18.24). The Colonels are allowing 77.8 points per game on 44.3 percent shooting, including 35.1 percent on 3s.
 
    Nicholls is pulling down 38.4 rebounds a contest while allowing 36.4, including a league-best 27.2 on the defensive end.
 
    The Colonels are second in the league with 16.0 assists per game.
 
    Peters is second in the Southland in scoring (18.7 ppg), seventh in field goal percentage (.528), eighth in assists (3.7 apg) and 15th in rebounding (5.7 rpg). Senior guard Jahvaughn Powell leads the conference and ranks 13th nationally with 2.4 steals per contest. He is also 10th in the league in assists (3.1 apg) and eighth in 3-pointers (2.0 per game). Jackson's 67.3 field goal percentage paces the Southland.
 
    Saddler is fifth in scoring (16.7 ppg), sixth in rebounding (6.9 rpg) and 10th in steals (1.8 spg). Senior guard Lafayette Rutledge ranks second in 3-pointers (3.0 per game) and fifth in 3-point field goal percentage (.409). Freshman guard Kevin Johnson is third in assist/turnover ratio (2.5).
 
    Saddler, Powell (9.3 ppg), Jackson (8.6 ppg, 5.4 rpg), Johnson (6.7 ppg, 65 assists) and freshman forward Ryghe Lyons (5.8 ppg, 30 blocks) are the projected starters for Nicholls.
 
    Richie Riley is in his second year as head coach of the Colonels.
 
QUOTES:
Southeastern head coach Jay Ladner:
On Nicholls…
    "They have a lot of weapons. Peters and Saddler are certainly two of the best players in the league but it's not just a two-man show. They have a lot of guys who are capable of scoring the ball. They have a wealth of experience on the team, a lot of seniors who are playing their last year of eligibility, so they have been through the wars. I'm not surprise at all about how well they are doing because coach Riley does a great job with them and they have great players. We have a great challenge in front of us."
 
On the importance of the game…
    "What's exciting to me is that we are in the ninth league game of the year and we are playing the Conference Game of the Week so it has a lot of meaning. We're proud of the progress of our program. We're playing one of our long-time rivals and I think it means a lot to a lot of people. There has been a great deal of interest in the game. We're excited about going down there and seeing what we can do but we certainly have great respect for them. We're going to have to play our 'A-plus' game in order to have a chance."
 
On Nicholls' ability to force turnovers…
    "They are very athletic, very long and aggressive. They are a lot like Stephen F. Austin in that they trap a lot, pressure you a lot, force you to try to play out of your comfort zone, and they do a great job with that. We're going to have to manage the ball and share the ball and be fundamentally sound and execute on offense against their pressure. If you have a lot of turnovers, you don't give yourself a chance to win. By taking care of the ball and playing together and executing on our side, it will give us a chance. We'll have to do that, otherwise they will force you to throw the ball all over the gym."
 
UP NEXT:
    Southeastern returns home to host Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Wednesday at 7 p.m. in the University Center for the Lions' 10^th annual Jam the Jungle. Jambalaya and promotional items will be served to the first 300 students in attendance.