GAME NOTES
KATY, Texas – The goal has always been to win the Southland Conference Championship and New Orleans will attempt for its second league crown as the fifth-seeded Privateers take on No. 8 Southeastern Wednesday at 5 p.m. on ESPN+.
UNO split the series with the Lions and ended the regular season with an overtime victory over Southeastern.
The Privateers are in the All-Louisiana side of the bracket. Following the Lions matchup are No. 4 Northwestern State Thursday at 5 p.m. and No. 1 Nicholls Friday at 5 p.m.
The championship will be televised nationally on ESPN2 at 8:30 p.m.
UNO has qualified for the Southland Tournament in four of the five seasons since becoming eligible in 2014-2015 with a 6-4 overall record in Katy. Slessinger led the Privateers to a pair of title games, 2019 versus Abilene Christian and the 2016-2017 victory over Texas A&M Corpus-Christi to win the 2017 Southland Tournament Championship.
Damion Rosser was named Second Team All-Southland after averaging 15.2 points and 7.7 rebounds and posted five double-doubles in the regular season, tied for third most in the league. Rosser has scored in double figures in 19 of 20 games so far and leads guards (third overall) in rebounds. He ranks in the top 10 in the league in shooting (51.5 percent, fourth), free throw percentage (77 percent, seventh) and scoring (eighth).
Troy Green ended the regular season with his second Southland Conference Player of the Week nod as well as receiving Louisiana Sports Writers Association Player of the Week.
TG ranks third all-time in free throws made (364), tied for fifth in steals (133), eighth in assists (309) and No. 12 in scoring with 1,306 points. He is just five points shy of
John Harris for 10
th in program history. The senior has played in 117 out of 118 possible games in his career - the 9th most games played all-time. His 34 points against the Camels were the most by a Privateer since
Christavious Gill had 38 in 2016, and the most on a neutral floor since
Bo McCalebb tallied 34 in the 2007 Sun Belt Tournament.
Derek St. Hilaire is shooting 43.4 percent from long distance in league play, the second best mark. He is a one-time LSWA Player of the Week and Southland Player of the Week. Earlier this season, he connected on 13 field goals and finished with 33 points in a win over McNeese. The 13 field goals are tied for the most by a Southland student-athlete this season and the point total is the third most by a SLC student-athlete.
Lamont Berzat became the 26
th Privateer to reach the century mark in games played, having appeared in his 100
th game on Senior Night this Saturday. He finished with a career-high five steals in his final home game of 2020-21.
Ahren Freeman pulled down a career-high 10 rebounds in the win over Southeastern Saturday.
Rodney Carson Jr. continues to show his improved jump shot, and the Philadelphia native posted 11 points in the regular season series finale. He has reached double figures six times this year, including back-to-back games to end the regular season.
Wednesday's Southland Tournament game will be game No. 1,500 for the Privateers.
SOCIAL MEDIA
Fans are encouraged to follow
@PrivateersMBB on Twitter,
@PrivateersMBB on Instagram, like
/PrivateersMBB on Facebook and subscribe to the
PrivateerAthletics YouTube channel.
