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GAME NOTES | SAU | OUA

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Tipping Off
The Southern Arkansas men's basketball team is set to put their five-game winning streak on the line this Saturday as they travel to Arkadelphia to take on Ouachita, who is also on a current five-game winning streak.

This game will have a slightly different feel to it because both the Muleriders and Tigers were scheduled to play conference games this Thursday, but due to potentially
hazardous road conditions within the state of Arkansas, both teams postponed their Thursday games to Monday.

So, each team had to reset their game plans to focus on each other right away rather than doing so after a typical Thursday night game.
 

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MULERIDER NEWS & NOTES
The Southern Arkansas men's basketball team enters play this Thursday with a 9-6 overall record and a 6-3 mark in the Great American Conference. The Muleriders are riding a season-long five-game winning streak that started back on January 7 at Oklahoma Baptist. Prior to that, the Muleriders were mired in a season-long four-game skid. With their recent run of success, the Muleriders have climbed in the GAC standings and enter the weekend tied for second-place On the season, the Muleriders are averaging 78.5 points per game, which ranks fourth in the GAC. Defensively, the Muleriders rank seventh in scoring defense in the GAC at 74.7 points per game, and their +3.7 scoring margin ranks third in the league.

As a team, the Muleriders are shooting .466 (435-of-886) overall from the floor which includes a shooting mark of .354 (108-of-305) from long range. From the free throw line, the Muleriders are shooting .634 (199-of-314). Their overall field goal percentage ranks third in the GAC while their 3-point field goal percentage ranks seventh. At the charity stripe the Muleriders' percentage ranks 11th.

Individually, the Muleriders have four players who are averaging double figures in scoring with Jaron Davis leading the team at 16.3 points per game. Davis's scoring average ranks in a tie for eighth in the GAC. Deon Andrews is next on the team at 12.8 ppg and just behind Andrews is Denarious Lockhart with 12.1 ppg . Rounding out double-figure scoring on the season is CJ Elkins at 11.7 ppg.

The leading rebounder on the team in terms of rebounding average in Lockhart with 7.1 rpg through seven games played. Alvin Braddock, however, leads the team in total rebounds with 95. Davis is the top assist man on the team with an average of 4.6 assists per game.

COACH
The Muleriders are coached by Andy Sharpe, who is in his fourth season at Southern Arkansas. In his time at SAU, Sharpe has amassed a 41-51 overall record. Last season Sharpe led SAU to a 15-12 overall record and finished tied for third in the GAC with an 11-9 mark in the league. The above .500 season was the program's first winning campaign since the 2001-02 season, while the 15 wins overall tied for the second-most wins in a season since SAU joined NCAA Division II prior to the 1995-96 season. Additionally, the 11 conference wins were the most in the DII era.
 

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SCOUTING OUACHITA
The Ouachita men's basketball team enters play this Saturday with a 7-8 overall record and a 7-2 mark in the Great American Conference. The Tigers are one of three teams in the GAC that are on current five-game winning streaks, joining the likes of East Central and Southern Arkansas. The Tigers' streak began on January 7 against Northwestern Oklahoma.

On the season, the Tigers are averaging 78.7 points per game, which ranks fourth in the GAC. Defensively, the Tigers rank seventh in scoring defense in the GAC at 75.7 points per game, and their +3.0 scoring margin ranks fourth in the league.

As a team, the Tigers are shooting .451 (396-of-879) overall from the floor which includes a shooting mark of .411 (134-of-326) from long range. From the free throw line, the Tigers are shooting .762 (234-of-307). Their overall field goal percentage ranks fourth in the GAC while their 3-point field goal percentage ranks second. At the charity stripe
the Tigers' percentage ranks first.

Individually, the Tigers have three players who are averaging double figures in scoring with Lakee Westbrook leading the team at 16.6 points per game. Westbrook's scoring average ranks fifth in the GAC. Justin McCleary is next in double figures on the team at 14.6 ppg. while Tirell Brown rounds out double-digit scoring at 13.9 ppg. Brown is the leading rebounder on the team at 6.9 rebounds per game. Jordan Corbitt is the top assist man on the team with an average of 2.7 assists per game.

COACH
The Tigers are coached by Dennis Nutt, who is in his fifth year at Ouachita. In his previous four seasons, Nutt has compiled a 62-47 overall record. Prior to his time at Ouachita, Nutt was the head coach at Texas State for six years where he went 72-96 overall with the Bobcats.
 

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THE SERIES
This will be the 33rd meeting since the beginning of the 1999-2000 season between the Muleriders and the Tigers. In that time, the Tigers have a 19-13 advantage over the Muleriders which includes an 11-4 record in games played at the Bill Vining Arena in Arkadelphia. 

ON TAP
The Muleriders are back at home to kick-off a three-game home stand over the next week as they will first make-up their game against Harding on Monday evening starting at 7:30 p.m. Following that game against the Bisons, the Muleriders will play host to East Central on Thursday and Southeastern Oklahoma on Saturday.