HAMMOND, La. –   The Southeastern Louisiana men's basketball team used a 21-6 second half run and had four players score in double figures as they defeated the University of New Orleans, 79-73, Saturday afternoon at the University Center.
 
The Lions (6-11, 4-4 Southland) were led by Keon Clergeot with 24 points. The senior guard finished 7-for-14 from the field and 10-for-14 from the free throw line. The UMass transfer added to his Southland lead in free throws made with 104 for the season.
 
"He makes me look good as a coach," said second-year SLU head coach David Kiefer. "When it's crunch time, he's been a consistent closer for us down the stretch and a huge addition to the program."
 
Nick Caldwell, a sophomore, added 17 points and 10 rebounds for SLU for his second career double-double. The Geismar, Louisiana product finished 8-for-13 from the field and had a steal.
 
"He gets better every single day," said Kiefer. "His confidence and understanding of the game are growing better every game. I knew with UNO's aggressiveness that Nick would be up for the challenge and he responded great tonight."
 
SLU also got 20 points and nine rebounds from junior Gus Okafor. Out of Baltimore, Maryland, Okafor is averaging 19.0 points and 6.3 rebounds over his last four games. Junior Joe Kasperzyk chipped in with 12 points, six rebounds, four assists and two steals to aid the Lions.
 
The Privateers (4-12, 3-5 Southland) got 22 points from junior guard Damion Rosser on 6-for-8 shooting and 9-for-12 from the field. Derek St. Hilaire added 18 points on 7-for-15 for UNO.
 
The Lions and Privateers went toe-to-toe in the first half as neither team led by more than six points in the first 20 minutes. When the dust settled on the physical first half, UNO had a 36-34 lead at halftime.
 
UNO possessed a 51-46 lead with 13:36 to play when SLU used a 21-6 run to take their largest lead of the game, 67-57, with 5:13 remaining. The Privateers cut the Lions' lead to four three different times in the final four minutes but SLU made seven of nine free throws down the stretch to seal the win.
 
Southeastern finished the game 27-for-62 (43.5 percent) from the field and 21-for-29 (72 percent) from the free throw line. UNO was 23-for-58 (39 percent) and 21-for-26 from the free throw line. The game was decided under the rim as SLU outscored UNO 44-26 in the paint.
 
"We emphasis that (points in the paint) every game," said Kiefer. "We knew tonight we were going to have be even better than usual in the paint because UNO is extra physical and aggressive."
 
Southeastern will have an 11-day lay-off before returning to action Wednesday, Feb. 10 on the road against league leader Sam Houston State (13-5, 7-0 Southland) at 6:30 p.m.
 
HARDWOOD CLUB/S CLUB
Fans interested in becoming active supporters of the basketball program are encouraged to join the Hardwood Club.  Lion alums are encouraged to join the exclusive S Club, which is restricted to Southeastern athletic letterwinners.  All membership fees and donations to Hardwood Club are available for the exclusive use of the Southeastern basketball program. Membership information is available by contacting the Lion Athletics Association at laa@southeastern.edu or (985) 549-5091 or visiting www.LionUp.com.
 
SOCIAL MEDIA
For more information on Southeastern Basketball, follow @LionUpMBB and @DavidKieferSLU on Twitter, like /SLUathletics on Facebook and subscribe to the SLUathletics YouTube channel.
 
TICKETS
For ticket information, please contact the Southeastern Athletics Ticket Office at (985) 549-5466 or visit www.LionSports.net/tickets. Southeastern is implementing mobile ticketing as the primary source for securing tickets for the 2020-21 season. All tickets will be available via e-mail in a PDF format for fans to download on their phone or print at home. Tickets can also be downloaded to Apple Wallet.