Nicholls men’s basketball team on quest to avenge only two SLC losses of the season

The Nicholls men’s basketball might seem more like Avengers than Colonels this week.

Nicholls is 7-2 in the Southland Conference and has a chance to avenge its only two losses by taking on Lamar and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.

The Colonels play at Lamar at p.m. Saturday in Beaumont and host Corpus Christi at 6:30 p.m. Monday at Stopher Gym.

Nicholls suffered its only home defeat this season in a 78-76 loss Lamar in overtime on January 13. A week later, the Colonels managed less than 60 points in a 69-59 loss to the Islanders in Corpus Christi.

In the loss to Lamar, Jalen White hit a 3-pointer to put Nicholls on top 72-71 at the 4:20 mark of overtime. It was his first 3-pointer after knocking down four in the first half.

White’s long-distance shooting ultimately would not save the day for the Colonels. After White’s 3-pointer in overtime, Lamar’s Terry Anderson answered with a 3-pointer of his own to give the Cardinals a two-point edge they would never relinquish the rest of the way in handing Nicholls a 78-76 home loss.

In that game, Anderson and Ron Brown of Nicholls tied for game-high honors with 25 points each.

Along with being 7-2 in Southland play, Nicholls is 12-10 overall. Lamar is also 12-10 overall and 6-3 in the SLC.

Lamar goes into the game second in the SLC in scoring, averaging 78.7 points per game. The Cardinals are fourth Iin the league in both scoring defense (72.4 points allowed per game) and field goal percentage (47.1 percent). Lamar is fifth in 3-point percentage (35.6 percent), and third in rebounding, pulling down 36.1 rebounds per outing.

Individually, Lamar has only two players ranked in the top 10 in any category in the SLC. Adam Hamilton is seventh in the conference in rebounding, averaging 6.9 per contest, while Anderson is ninth at 6.7.

Chris Pryor leads the Cardinals in scoring, averaging 14.2 points per game in conference play. Anderson is second on the team at 12.9 points, while B.B. Knight is averaging 12.7 points, and Hamilton 11.2.

Nicholls is third in the league in scoring, averaging 78.6 points per game.

The Colonels boasts three of the top 10 scorers in the league. Diante Smith is second in the SLC, averaging 16.9 points per outing. Brown is sixth at 16.3, and Jamal West is eighth at 15.6.

Nicholls is second in the SLC in field goal percentage, connecting on 47.2 percent of its shots.

West is second in the conference at 56.2 percent, while Brown is fourth at 46.5 percent, and Smith ninth at 41.8 percent.

Smith also ranks third in 3-point percentage, knocking down 52.6 percent from distance, and is sixth in rebounding, averaging 6.9 rebounds per outing.

Like Nicholls, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi is 7-2 in the Southland, trailing one-loss McNeese in the conference standings. The Islanders are 14-8 overall.

In Nicholls’ 69-59 loss at Corpus Christi, the Colonels had a roller coaster outing against the Islanders.

An eight-point halftime deficit for Nicholls quickly reached nine points early in the second half before the Colonels went on a 10-0 run to take a 37-36 lead less than five minutes into the period.

After Nicholls took a 40-38 lead on a 3-pointer by Smith, the Islanders went on a 16-2 run for a 54-42 advantage to effectively put the game away for Corpus Christi.

Corpus Christi goes into the week second in the Southland in scoring defense, allowing 65.4 points per game. The Islanders are fifth in the league in scoring, averaging 74 points per contest.

The Islanders rank first in rebounding, averaging 39.6 boards per game.

Corpus Christi is struggling with its shooting, ranked ninth in both field goal percentage and 3-point shooting.

The Islanders are hitting 42.1 percent of their shots from the field, including 32 percent from 3-point range.

Gary Clark, who leads the Islanders in scoring at 13 points per game, is third in the Southland in field goal percentage, connecting on 51.1 percent of his shots, and is fourth in rebounding, hauling down 8.6 rebounds per contest.

The only other double-figure scorer for Corpus Christi is Dayne Prim, who is averaging 10.1 points per game.