LAKE CHARLES, LA. - The Privateers (7-12, 2-4) looks to conquer a road challenge in Lake Charles against the McNeese Cowboys Saturday. Tip-off is scheduled for 4 p.m. or approximately 30 minutes after the girls game.
The game will broadcast on ESPN+ and 106.1 Nash FM with Jude Young on the call.
This will be the 31st meeting between both programs.
New Orleans will head up the road to Beaumont on Monday to face the Lamar Cardinals.
In its last time out, New Orleans fell at HCU Monday night despite a 35-point effort from Jordan Johnson and a career-high night from Khaleb Wilson-Rouse. Tyson Jackson became the second Privateer this season to surpass 1,000 career points with eight points and four rebounds. Wilson-Rouse matched his career-high for the third time this season with 22 points and a team-best six rebounds. Jah Short accounted for nine points off the bench.
Johnson shot 13-of-33 from the field, 4-of-10 from long-range, and 5-of-7 from the charity stripe in his sixth game with 30 or more points. He also grabbed five rebounds, three assists and two steals. The Privateers out-rebounded the Huskies 16-8 offensively, shot 40.5% from the field and 59.1% from the charity stripe.
Johnson, who leads in scoring moved back up to fourth nationally, averaging 22.5 points per game overall and 25.7 ppg in SLC play. The senior was named AP and Oscar Robertson National Player of the Week last week after averaging 38 points, 5.5 rebounds, 4.5 assists, and 2.5 steals to help lead New Orleans over A&M Commerce and Corpus Christi in the second week of conference play.
The other two seniors are also averaging double-figures in conference with Wilson-Rouse averaging 13.7 and Tyson Jackson averaging 10.5 ppg. Jackson also leads in rebounding through conference play with 5.3 boards per game ahead of Turk Vincent who's averaged 5.2 boards per game. New Orleans is still missing longest tenured member D'Ante Bell out of the lineup due to a shoulder injury. Bell has not played since the conference opener against Southeastern.
Mason Jones has started all six SLC games and went on a three-game streak of double-figure scoring before the last home game. Short has seen a significant increase in playing time since the start of SLC play. As a true freshman, Short started in three games and has consistently averaged eight points over the last six games. The other true freshman Dorian "Pop" Booker also played a career-high of seven minutes against a DI opponent at HCU last time out and grabbed a career-high four boards in that time. Carlos Hart was one of the six players to score at HCU contributing four points and two rebounds.
The last time the Privateers faced the Cowboys was at the Legacy Center for last season's final regular season matchup. New Orleans fell 80-73 despite a 26-point and 17-point effort from Johnson and Wilson-Rouse respectively. Now, the Cowboys are the only undefeated team in the conference at 6-0. The Cowboys overcame an 18-point deficit to beat Texas A&M Corpus Christi Monday, 62-61. McNeese's winning streak of 12 is the third-longest in the country. Three Cowboys were in double figures including Shahada Wells and Javohn Garcia with 10 points apiece, while DJ Richards jr. led with 12 points.
Christian Shumate grabbed 13 boards and made the game winning tip-in. Wells leads the team with 18.4 points per game. Shumate and Richards also average double figures with 12.1 and 10.9 ppg respectively. Shumate leads the team in rebounds with 9.8 per contest. McNeese leads the SLC and is top ten in the nation in FG% defense (37.5), scoring defense (60.8), scoring margin (17.8), steals per game (10.3), turnover margin (5.5), and winning percentage (89.5).
The Cardinals are coming off a win against Texas A&M Commerce, 76-65, Monday. They are 10-9 on the season and 4-2 in the SLC. Lamar has the league's top offense (80.9 ppg) and has four players averaging in double-figures, with two more averaging better than eight per game. Chris Pryor leads with 12.1 ppg.
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