New Orleans- The University of New Orleans (8-12, 4-7 Southland) will celebrate homecoming by entertaining the defending Southland Conference champions, Nicholls (12-9, 6-3 Southland), Saturday Feb. 9, at Lakefront Arena. Tipoff is 2 p. m.
It's a homecoming doubleheader as the New Orleans and Nicholls men will tangle approximately 30 minutes after the conclusion of the women's game.
Homecoming festivities are presented by the Allstate Sugar Bowl.
UNO picked up their third straight Southland Conference win earlier this week with a victory at home over Northwestern State, 84-73. A win over the Colonels will extend the streak to 4, the longest winning streak since a 5 game stretch of success last season.
Perhaps the primary reason for the streak is defense.
"We've always tried to get them to understand when we play the proper defense the result we can have from it," said head coach
Keeshawn Davenport. "After you lose a lot of experience you got to get the chemistry right, the new players have to understand the system and I think we've been able to do that.
New Orleans held Northwestern State to 27-of-72 from the field---37.5%.
Shania Woods is coming off a big night with a season-high 29 points and 13 rebounds against the Lady Demons. It was her 9
th double-double of the season.
The senior center continues to move up the all-time statistical charts in Privateer basketball history. She is in 10
th place among New Orleans scorers with 1,140 points. Woods now ranks 4
th among all-time rebounders at UNO with 791.
The Houston, Texas native ranks 7
th in the Southland in scoring (15.1), 2
nd in rebounding (8.7), 7
th in shooting percentage (48%) and 6
th in minutes played (31.0).
Sophomore guard
Jada Duncantell is next in scoring for UNO knocking down 8.4 points per game. Duncantell had 16 points against Northwestern State. She was a perfect 8-of-8 from the free throw line. She leads the Privateers in assists averaging 2.4 an outing.
Freshman guard
Traya Bruce has started 19-of-20 games this season averaging 7.3 points per game. She is the Privateers top long-ball threat with 33 treys, nearly twice as number 2 on the list,
Alyssa Quixley who has 17.
Junior
Whitley Larry is first in the SLC in blocked shots with 40. Fellow Privateer
Kayla Thomas ranks 5
th with 26. They combined for 9 blocks (Thomas 5 and Larry 4) as New Orleans' total of 10 in the game was the most since 2006.
Nicholls comes to town with the reigning Southland Conference Player of the Year in senior Cassidy Barrios. In a win over Southeastern Louisiana on Feb. 2, Barrios became the program's all-time leading scorer with 1,773 points during her collegiate career.
From Raceland, Louisiana, she is the conference's leader in scoring (20.6), rebounding (11.1), free throw percentage (88%) and minutes played (38.4). Barrios is third in assists (4.6) and sixth in blocks (1.2).
The senior has been voted Southland Conference Player of the Week 5 times this season.
"She's such a team player. You have players who put up lots of points but with her it's points, rebounds, assists, whatever the team needs. That's what makes her special. I'll be glad when she graduates. I won't miss her," Davenport chuckled.
Last season the Colonels swept the season series with the Privateers falling in New Orleans on Feb. 3, 2018, 62-61, thanks to three free throws by Cassidy Barrios with .3 seconds remaining in regulation. Nicholls won easily over New Orleans in Thibodaux on Feb. 24, 2018, 72-48.
Up Next
New Orleans has a bye and will have one week away from the court. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi comes to lakefront Arena Saturday, Feb. 16. Tipoff is 2 p. m. and it's the first game of a doubleheader. The UNO men will face the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi men after the women's game.
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