Box Score
THIBODAUX, La.- The New Orleans Privateers men's basketball team (3-6, 0-1) visited the free throw line 61 times, but also committed 22 turnovers as they lost 88-83 to the Nicholls State Colonels (4-6, 1-0) at Stopher Gym.
"We've got to be better at executing and making shots. We had some uncharacteristic turnovers in our transition game, which I felt really came back to hurt us," said head coach,
Mark Slessinger. "Sporadically, we played well and with a sense of urgency, but we didn't have that same sense of urgency on every possession."
The Privateers got as close as one-point down when a pair of
Matt Derenbecker free throws cut the Nicholls lead to 52-51 with 12:59 remaining. However, Nicholls went on an 11-0 run in the next two minutes to build a 12-point advantage. The Privateers never got closer than five after two
Cory Dixon free throws with 16.9 to go.
It was a game where the fouls piled up and affected both teams. Privateers leading scorer,
Cory Dixon picked up three fouls in the first half, and picked up a fourth with 11:41 left. Colonels leading scorer, Dantrell Thomas picked up his fourth foul early in the second half. In all, there were 72 fouls called on both sides. In the second half, both teams were in the bonus by the 14:51 mark.
The Privateers also broke the record for most combined free throw attempts in a game. Both teams combined to shoot 104 free throws. The previous record was 90 in a game against Georgia Southern in 1972. UNO also made 42 free throws, and tied a record that has stood since 1969.
New Orleans put forth a balanced scoring effort with five Privateers reaching double figures. Dixon wound up with a team-high 21 points and Tradarrius McPherson put in 14 points.
Matt Derenbecker chipped in 9 of his 13 points at the free throw line.
Christavious Gill contributed 11 and
Isaac Mack added 10 on 5-of-8 shooting.
The Privateers got out to an early 6-3 lead, but Nicholls used good ball movement as they went on a 12-1 run over a 4:30 stretch. UNO turned it over five times in that stretch.
Kevin Hill broke the run with a jumper at the 12:08 mark of the half, but the Colonels were doubling up on the scoreboard at 18-9.
UNO clawed back to within four points after a pair of
Matt Derenbecker free throws cut the deficit to 23-19. However, the Colonels used another 7-1 spurt to grow their lead to ten. The Privateers had trouble avoiding turnovers throughout the opening half as they had 11 miscues in the first 20 minutes of play. They finished with turnovers in all. The Privateers trailed 40-33 at halftime despite winning the battle on the boards 17-11, and having attempted eight more free throws than the Colonels. UNO also shot 45 percent from the field in the opening half, but attempted ten less shots than Nicholls who shot 43.3 percent.
Nicholls was led offensively by Jeremy Smith, who poured in 17 points. Dantrell Thomas reached 16 points despite only playing 17 minutes. T.J. Carpenter, Amin Torres, and J'Dante Frye each contributed 10.
UNO's next contest will be on Saturday when they continue Southland play as they take on the McNeese State Cowboys. Tip is slated for 3 p.m. and the game can be heard on WGSO 990 AM and www.wgso.com with Jude Young.
