Stephen F. Austin
Nicholls
SFA Faces First Southland Road Test Wednesday Night at Nicholls
1/8/2019 2:56:00 PM | Men's Basketball
'Jacks have won 11-straight against the Colonels, make first trip to Thibodaux since February 2016
Game Fourteen
SFA (8-5, 1-0 Southland) at Nicholls (8-7, 1-1 Southland)
Wednesday, Jan. 9 | 7:00 p.m. | David R. Stopher Gymnasium (3,800) | Thibodaux, La.
Tickets | Live Stats | Watch (Southland Digital Network) | Listen (Q107.7/TuneIn) | SFA Game Notes | Nicholls Game Notes
THE OPENING TIP
• One of just two Southland Conference squads who have not suffered a setback in league action, the SFA men's basketball team continues its run of four consecutive matchups against Louisiana foes by heading southeast to Thibodaux, La., for a Wednesday night clash with the defending league co-champions.
• Tip-off in the 73rd all-time meeting between the 'Jacks and Colonels is set for 7:00 p.m. inside Stopher Gymnasium and the showdown will be carried live on the Southland Digital Network. Rob Meyers will also make the trip to the bayou and call the action on Q107.7 FM in Nacogdoches. Meyers' narration can also be accessed via the TuneIn app.
• Wednesday night's tilt marks the first trip to Thibodaux, La., by the 'Jacks since Feb. 20, 2016 and head coach Kyle Keller's first showdown against the Colonels at Stopher Gymnasium.
• SFA has won 11 games in a row against Nicholls dating back Feb. 3, 2010. That's the second-lengthiest current winning streak the 'Jacks possess against a Southland Conference opponent.
• Junior Kevon Harris needs just 56 more points to become the 31st player in program history to reach 1,000 points in a career. Speaking of Harris, the Ellenwood, Ga., product has been on a
tear over his last five game. He's averaging 17 points on a shooting split of .545/.483/.786 in that span while grabbing 5.2 rebounds per outing.
• Senior guard Shannon Bogues has netted at least 10 points in each of his first 13 games. Dating back to last season, the Killeen, Texas, native has put in 10 or more in 14 games in a row which is the longest stretch of double-digit scoring games in the Kyle Keller coaching era.
THREE-VON HARRIS
• One of the best long-range shooters in the conference, junior Kevon Harris nailed the 100th three-pointer of his career during the 'Jacks' 65-60 victory over Southeastern Louisiana on Wednesday, March 2.
• He's the only current 'Jack with 100 or more three-pointers and with 10 more he will jump up to 10th in program history in three-pointers made in a career.
GETTING A LITTLE MORE DEFENSIVE
• Buoyed by the return of junior guard John Comeaux, the 'Jacks' defensive numbers have slowly but surely been on the increase over the last few weeks.
• SFA currently ranks 39th nationally in turnovers forced per game (16.46) after leading all of NCAA Division I men's basketball in that statistic one season ago.
A LOOK AT THE LEADERS
• Shannon Bogues (35:43) and Kevon Harris (34:06) rank first and second respectively in minutes played per game in the Southland. That puts them 40th and 99th across all of NCAA Division I men's basketball in that category.
• Bogues leads the league in three-point field goal percentage (.412) and ranks 68th nationally in that category.
• Bogues leads SFA and ranks second in the Southland in scoring at a clip of 17.2 points per game.
• Karl Nicholas (1.33 blocks per game) and Mitchell Seraille (1.08 blocks per game) rank fifth and seventh respectively in the Southland in blocks per game. That makes SFA the only team in the league that has two of the conference's top-ten shot blockers.
THE SERIES | SFA vs. NICHOLLS
Overall vs. Nicholls | 39-23 (.629)
In Nacogdoches, Texas | 21-10 (.677)
At William R. Johnson Coliseum | 20-10 (.667)
In Thibodaux, La. | 17-12 (.586)
At Stopher Gymnasium | 17-12 (.586)
At neutral sites | 1-1 (.333)
Last meeting | SFA 78, Nicholls 66 | March 9, 2018
Last SFA win | March 9, 2018 | 78-66
Last SFA home win | Jan. 3, 2018 | 81-64
Last SFA road win | Feb. 20, 2016 | 84-46
Last Nicholls win | Jan. 16, 2010 | 70-63
Last Nicholls home win | Jan. 16, 2010 | 70-63
Last Nicholls road win | Dec. 20, 2000 | 58-55
Largest margin of victory (SFA) | 38 | 84-68 on Feb. 20, 2016
Largest margin of defeat (SFA) | 30 | 107-77 on March 1, 1995
Current Streak | SFA won 11
Last five games | 5-0 (1.000)
Last 10 games | 10-0 (1.000)
SFA points | average | 4,365 | 70.4
Nicholls points | average | 4,088 | 65.9
Average scoring margin | +4.5
Keller vs. Nicholls | 3-0 (1.000)
At William R. Johnson Coliseum | 2-0 (.000)
At Stopher Gymnasium | 0-0 (.000)
Keller vs. Claunch | 0-0 (.000)
Claunch vs. SFA | 0-0 (.000)
SFA all-time on Jan. 9 | 14-6 (.700)
SCOUTING NICHOLLS | ROSTER | SCHEDULE | STATISTICS
• Undefeated at home this season (4-0) and riding a seven-game winning streak in Stopher Gymnasium, the Colonels return to Thibodaux, La., for the first time in 2019 where they will look to snap an 11-game skid against the 'Jacks. Led by a pair of high-scoring graduate transfers in Jeremiah Jefferson (16.5 ppg) and Gavin Peppers (13.4 ppg), Nicholls loves to shoot that rock.
• The Colonels lead the Southland in three-point field goal attempts (424), three-pointers made (139) and three-pointers per game (9.3). All three of those figures are among the top 55 in the national statistic rankings.
• Jefferson leads the Colonels' long-range charge with a league-leading 3.07 three-pointers per game. The graduate student is also tops in the conference in terms of three-pointers attempted (114), field goals attempted (202) and three-pointers made (46).
• In Southland Conference action, Brandon Moore, Jr., has become more of a focal point for the Colonels. He averages a double-double of 15.5 points and 10.5 rebounds per game. Peppers has gotten off to a hot start in league tilts, too, as he is averaging 17 points per game on a shooting split of .462/.467/1.000.
• Another area where the Colonels excel is on the defensive end. Nicholls leads the Southland and ranks 47th nationally with 4.7 blocked shots per game and foremost on the Colonels' list of shot-blockers is Daniel Regis who averages 2.1 swats per outing. That's the highest average in the Southland.
• Running the Colonels' offense is sophomore Kevin Johnson who possesses a league-best assist-to-turnover ration of 2.83. Johnson's 4.3 assists per outing lead the team and rank third among all Southland Conference players.
• Nicholls ranks second in the Southland and eighth nationally with a team free throw percentage of .778.
LAST TIME OUT
• Down by as many as nine points in the first half and facing a five-point deficit after the first half of action, the 'Jacks watched the trio of Shannon Bogues, Davonte Fitzgerald and Kevon Harris combine for 35 of the team's 44 second-half points in a 65-60 comeback victory over Southeastern Louisiana to begin Southland Conference play.
• Fitzgerald registered 15 points in all and completed his first collegiate double-double by grabbing a career-high 12 rebounds. The Atlanta, Ga., product's 12 rebounds also tied the mark for the most by an SFA player in a single game this season.
• Harris also finished with 15 points in the 'Jacks' second-straight win over Southeastern Louisiana. Bogues turned in a game-high 18 points as SFA won its Southland Conference opener for the seventh time in the past eight seasons.
• Again the trio of Bogues, FItzgerald and Harris loomed large for the 'Jacks. That threesome amassed 73.8-percent of SFA's point total and in all they have been responsible for 62.7-percent of the 'Jacks 911 points in 2018-19.
• In his second game back from injury, junior guard John Comeaux finished with nine points and tied a career-high by totaling four of the 'Jacks' 12 steals. The Beaumont, Texas, product also reset his career highs in both free throws made and free throws attempted by going 4-of-8 at the stripe.
• Coming off of the bench, freshman Mitchell Seraille was a defensive force for the 'Jacks down low. The first-year man racked up a season-high three blocked shots and tied his career-best by grabbing eight rebounds.
• Junior Nathan Bain saw his streak of six consecutive field goals made come to and with a misfire in the first half but the Freeport, Bahamas, native made his presence felt on the defensive end more than anything. Bain totaled a career-best four steals in the win.
• SFA got off to a bit of a sluggish start, going just 6-of-24 from the field in the opening half. In the frame, the 'Jacks put up a shooting split of .240/.222/.636 and netted only 21 points. Those 21 points are tied for the fewest in the first half in Kyle Keller's tenure as SFA's head coach and represent the 'Jacks' lowest first-half point total since totaling the same amoung in the first half of a Southland Conference loss at New Orleans on Feb. 23, 2017.
• The 'Jacks' decisive run to take control of the game happened right from the start of the second half. Over the first 6:16 of the frame, SFA accounted for 13 of the 15 total points scored and took the lead for good when Seraille dropped in a put-back layup with 15:24 left.
• SFA's defense stole the show in the five-point win by forcing a season-high 23 turnovers. Those 23 turnovers were the most forced by the 'Jacks in a single game since Feb. 28, 2018 in 20-point home win over Abilene Christian.
COMING UP NEXT
• The latest installment of the 93-year-old basketball rivalry between SFA and Northwestern State is on top for Saturday at 4:30 p.m. ESPN3 and the ESPN app will carry each and every second of the action in the 130th all-time clash between the 'Jacks and Demons from William R. Johnson Coliseum.
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