NEW ORLEANS, La. - The New Orleans Privateers men's and women's basketball teams will host their first conference games in over four years when they both take on fellow Southland Conference newcomer, Abilene Christian in a doubleheader on Thursday night at the Lakefront Arena starting with the women at 5:30 p.m.
The Privateers men (3-7, 0-2 Southland) look to rebound from a tough opening weekend on the road, which concluded with an 82-69 loss to McNeese.
Matt Derenbecker was held scoreless for the first time this season after averaging 14.4 points per game in his previous five contests.
Cory Dixon achieved career highs in points (24) and rebounds (17) in the loss to McNeese, rounding off a strong opening two games of Southland play where he averaged 22.5 points per game, and 14.5 rebounds. Following his strong weekend, Dixon leads the conference in both points per game, and rebounds per game within conference
UNO got a solid weekend from freshman guard,
Christavious Gill who turned in his first two double-digit point totals of the season. He scored 11 at Nicholls on Thursday, and followed it up with a 14-point performance at McNeese. Gill also did not commit a turnover in 45 minutes of combined action opening Southland Conference play.
Abilene Christian (6-8, 0-0) will take on their first Southland opponent. The Wildcats are third in the conference in scoring defense, allowing opponents to only 68.7 points per game. The Wildcats are currently on a four-game winning streak with two wins over Open Bible College over the holiday break on Dec. 18 and Dec. 30.
The Wildcats are statistically balanced on offense. Their top five scorers range from junior guard LaDarrien Williams' 10.8 points per game to 7.2 points per game from sophomore forward Austin Cooke. Junior forward Jacob Lancaster has dominated the glass recently, pulling down 38 rebounds during the winning streak, including 15 boards against Hillsdale College.
The Privateers women (0-13, 0-2 Southland) are still in search of their first win as they start the doubleheader against the Abilene Christian women's team. UNO is coming off an 82-59 loss to McNeese, which has extended their losing streak to 17 games dating back to a Feb. 14 victory over Utah Valley last season in New Orleans.
Danielle Davis scored 21 points, which matched a season-high for the Privateer women. In her last four contests, Davis has averaged 15.3 points per game. She has also proved to be a threat from long range, knocking down 11 triples in the last five games.
The Abilene Christian women (9-6, 0-0) will also be entering their first foray into Southland competition. They are 6-0 at home, but just 2-4 on the road this season. Their most recent performance was a narrow 63-58 loss to Texas-San Antonio last Saturday. On a neutral floor however, they took two of three games in the World Vision Classic including a noteable win against the host school Texas Tech in Lubbock, Texas.
The Wildcats are the highest scoring team in the Southland at 74.2 points per game, and they've eclipsed the 90-point mark four times this season (Texas Lutheran, Northwood, Texas A&M-Commerce, and Texas Wesleyan), including a 111 point outburst to open the season against Texas Lutheran.
The Abilene Christian women have four players who are averaging double figures on the season, led by senior forward Renata Marquez who averages 13.2 points per game. Marquez has also drained 33 three-pointers, tied for second-most in the Southland. She is also hitting from three-point range at a 37.1 percent clip, which ranks 10
th among all Southland players.
Sophomore guard Whitney West (12.7), freshman forward Suzzy Dimba (11.5) and freshman guard Alexis Mason (11.3) are the other three Wildcats averaging double figures. Strong on the glass as well, the Wildcats are one of just four teams in the Southland who average at least 40 rebounds per game with Marquez leading with way at 7.1 rebounds per contest.
Both UNO squads will be playing just their fourth home game this season, and first since Dec. 14 when the men defeated Champion Baptist and the women fell to Louisiana-Lafayette. Thursday will also mark the first conference home game for both teams since February 2010 when UNO was a member of the Sun Belt.
Both games will be available to subscribers in HD video on UNO Showcase. Women's coverage will start at 5:20 p.m with
Emmanuel Pepis calling the action. The men's game will also be avaliable on WGSO 990 AM and WGSO.com, the flagship of New Orleans Privateers athletics. Pregame coverage will start roughly 15 minutes before tipoff, with "Voice of the Privateers" Jude Young calling the action.
How To Follow The Action:
