MAGNOLIA, Ark. – The Southern Arkansas Men's Basketball Team looks to secure another big conference win following a massive victory over Harding at home. SAU brings a 4-3 record (1-1 GAC) into the Saturday afternoon matchup in Arkadelphia.
In the Harding matchup junior guard Gregory Hammond Jr. led the team with 23 points while four other Muleriders scored in double digits. SAU seemed to find their strongest footing thus far when shooting threes, shooting .500 from beyond the arc (14-28). Senior Kris Wyche added another four threes to his season stats (12) to join senior teammate Blake Rogers (13) as the two Muleriders to have dipped into double digit three figures. The team's season .320 three-point percentage ranks sixth in the GAC while their .480 field goal percentage ranks third. The Muleriders have recorded field goal percentages over 50% twice this season and have not dipped below 41% in any of their seven games.
Hammond Jr. (11.3), Rogers (11.3), and senior LaTreavin Black (11.0) are all averaging double digit scoring numbers while both Hammond Jr. and Rogers have surpassed the 20-point mark once each. The Muleriders rank second in GAC offensive scoring (80.7 avg/g) and fourth in defensive scoring (68.0) which combine for a conference-leading 12.7 scoring margin. Ouachita's 2.3 scoring margin ranks eighth of the 12 teams in the Great American Conference.
Ouachita is posing a 3-3 record (1-1 GAC) with two December wins. As a team, the Tigers are shooting 44% from the floor with an opponent field goal percentage of 46%. Three Ouachita Tigers are averaging double digit scoring numbers, seen in LaQuan Butler Jr. (15.7), Ma'Darius Hobson (13.0) and Tylar Haynes (12.2). Haynes impressive .691 field goal percentage stands as the best in the GAC and ranks seventh nationally. Butler Jr., a transfer from DI Texas-Rio Grande Valley, leads the team with 14 threes on an efficient 14-of-33 shooting (42%).
Ouachita's most recent victory came on December 6 over Champion Christian (88-71). The Tigers made eight of their attempted 26 threes to finish at a 30.8% success rate while shooting 37-88 from the floor (42%). Through six games, the Tiger team has dipped below a 40% shooting rate once, in their Arkansas Tech Matchup, but otherwise have consistently shot in the 42-48% range.
While the Muleriders defeated the Harding Bisons by 36 points, Ouachita only won by a three-point margin. The win over Harding stands as the Tigers' solo GAC victory, having fallen to Arkansas Tech 65-74 in overtime on December 3.
The Muleriders and Tigers split their 2021-22 matchup, with SAU taking the win in the December 2021 game (71-67) and OUA winning 82-77 in February 2022. OUA's Haynes recorded a combined 37 points between the two games while Southern Arkansas' Rogers recorded a combined 40 points. Both led team scoring in the February matchup.
The Arkansas teams will tipoff at 3 p.m. inside the Bill Vining Arena in Arkadelphia. Live coverage links are available at www.MuleriderAthletics.com.
