Men take on UC-Irvine Monday in El Paso
12/20/2015 8:04:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Sam Houston faces off against talented UC-Irvine at 6 p.m. Huntsville time Monday as the Bearkats begin play in the 54th edition of the WestStar Bank Don Haskins Sun Bowl Invitational.
The event is the oldest NCAA Division I holiday basketball tournament. The Sun Bowl Invitational features four teams that posted 20 plus victories last year. All four saw NCAA post-season tournament competition last year as well. Host UTEP went 22-11 and was an NIT participant. UC-Irvine is coming off a 21-13 campaign that ended in the NCAA tournament. Both Norfolk State (20-14) and Sam Houston (26-9) appeared in the CollegeInsider.com tournament.
“The Sun Bowl Invitational is one of the top events in Division I basketball and we're excited to be here,” Sam Houston. “Some of the biggest names in the game have played in this tournament.”
UCI brings an 8-4 record into Monday's Sun Bowl opening game while Sam Houston stands 5-5. The Anteaters feature an intimidating front line with 7-6 junior center Mamadou Ndiaye, 6-10 senior forward Mike Best and 6-4 guard Luke Nelson. UCI has 7-2 Ioannis Dimakopoulos and 6-10 Jonathan Galloway on the bench.
“UCI is one of the biggest teams in the nation this season,” Hooten said. “Once again, we face another challenge in this tough non-conference schedule we have this year.”
Nidiaye leads the Anteaters with 12.3 points and 7.3 rebounds per game. Nelson adds 11.5 points per contest. UC-Irvine has posted victories over Utah State, Pacific, Boston College, Santa Clara, Central Florida and Loyola Marymount.
Sam Houston is coming off a 75-69 victory over LIU-Brooklyn in New York last Friday. Aurimas Majauskas, the Kats' 6-8 junior center, leads the team with 14.5 points per game. Junior guard Dakarai Henderson also is averaging in double figures with a 14.2 scoring mean.
Jamal Williams, a 6-4 sophomore who has started at point guard the past three games, adds 9.0 points per game. Williams took over at the point after both senior Paul Baxter and transfer Ameer Jackson were sidelined for the season with injuries.
“We did all the things you have to do to win on the road in the victory at LIU,” Hooten said. “We played with intensity on defense, we went after loose balls, we took charges and hit the boards – all the little things. We're going to need another outstanding effort Monday and Tuesday here in El Paso.”
The winner of the UCI versus Sam Houston game and the winner of the UTEP-Norfolk State contest will play at 8 p.m. Tuesday night. The two opening night losers will battle at 6 p.m.
