Game 22 Preview vs Louisiana Tech

Game 22 • vs Louisiana Tech
Huntsville • Johnson Coliseum
LA Tech (12-8, 5-4 CUSA) vs Sam Houston (14-7, 6-4 CUSA)
Saturday, Jan. 31 • 9 PM CST

TV: ESPN2
RADIO: BSN

HOW TO FOLLOW: Live Stats • @Bearkats_MBB
Series vs the Bulldogs: 3-6

HUNTSVILLE — After a quick and successful road trip to Missouri State this week, Sam Houston returns to Johnson Coliseum to host Louisiana Tech in Conference USA action on Saturday evening.

The Bearkats knocked off the Bears 80-71 to stretch their current winning streak to five. Saturday's matchup with the Bulldogs will be broadcast nationally on ESPN2 and can also be heard online on the Bearkat Sports Network with Carlos Zimmermann on the call.

WINNING IS CONTAGIOUS
The Kats began CUSA play 0-3 and have since won six of their last seven contests, including a current five-game winning streak, featuring home wins against Delaware and Western Kentucky and three on the road at Jax State, FIU and Missouri State. The last time Sam won five straight in league play was during the 2023-24 championship season when the Bearkats won eight.

KING SHOOTS WAY TO CUSA Co-PLAYER OF THE WEEK
King was sensational as Sam Houston picked up a pair of home wins last week to extend its win streak to four as he earned CUSA Player of the Week honors for the first time this season, the league announced Monday. The Roanoke Rapids, N.C., native averaged 25.0 points and shot 58 percent from the floor and from downtown. King finished with 23 points and four assists in an offensive battle with the Owls on Wednesday. In Saturday's win, he dropped 27 points and was 4-6 from beyond the arc.

DYNAMIC FRESHMEN
Jacob Walker and Jacoby Coleman have made immediate impacts for Sam Houston as true freshmen this season. Walker is averaging 8.2 points per game, just ahead of Coleman at 7.6. They are the top freshman scoring duo in CUSA this season, averaging a combined 15.8 PPG. Matt Dann has also come on as of late. He had his best game as a Bearkat in the win over Missouri State, scoring 8 points and grabbing 7 boards to up his scoring average to 2.8 PPG as injuries to the backcourt have increased his minutes.

LIKE A THIEF IN THE NIGHT
Kashie Natt is one of the best pickpockets in the country this season. He is currently ranked 18th in the nation in steals at 48 and 24th in steals per game with 2.29 which both also lead CUSA. The CUSA single season record is 3.39 set by Oliver Lafayette from Houston during the 2005-06 season.

BIG MAN GETTING IT DONE IN THE PAINT
Veljko Ilic has been a force inside for the Bearkats this season, averaging 11.0 points and 7.2 rebounds. He has stepped up big recently as injuries have hit the Kats in the post hard, and he is in the middle off a key five-game stretch which saw him match a career-high 18 points and 7 boards in a 77-62 victory at Jax State on Jan. 14 to spark a five-game CUSA win streak. He battled through an injury to pour in 11 points and four rebounds in a 13-point win at FIU on Jan. 17 and went for 12 points and 6 boards in a win over Kennesaw State on Jan. 21. He went for 12 and 7 in a blowout home win over WKU on Jan. 24 then poured in 14 points with boards in Wednesday's road win at Missouri State. Ilic's 4 double-doubles this season is second in CUSA behind Liberty's Zach Cleveland (6).

CONTROLLING THE OFFENSIVE GLASS
The Bearkats have been one of the best offensive rebounding teams in the country this season. They are ranked 13th in the nation in offensive rebounds per game at 14.00. This ranks third in the league mainly because Sam doesn't miss much. The Kats are second in the league in shooting percentage (47.1). Senior Veljko Ilic has been the driving force on the offensive glass. He ranks 46th individually in o-boards, averaging 3.19 per game which ranks 2nd in CUSA.

BENCH GETTING IT DONE
Sam Houston has had to replace 96 percent of its scoring from last season. The Bearkats scored 2,411 total points with 92 of those coming from sophomore returners Jaxson Ford (69 points) and Cheik Ndiaye (23), accounting for just 4 percent of last year's scoring. The bench has come through so far this season as the Kats rank 39th in the country in bench points at 30.33 per game. Freshmen Jacob Walker and Jacobe Coleman are scoring 8.6 and 7.8 points off the bench, respectively. Sophomore CJ Beaumont and freshman Matt Dann have seen increased minutes and are combining for 5.2 PPG following season-ending injuries to Isaiah Manning, who was third on the team in scoring at 10.7 before suffering a season-ending injury after 16 games, and Jaxson Ford.

HOW THE KATS STACK UP IN NATIONAL STAT RANKINGS (As of Jan. 30)
Sam Houston likes to run and is ranked 29th in the country and first overall in CUSA in fastbreak points per game at 15.38 and is 49th in the nation in scoring at 83.9 PPG. Aside from being 39th in the country in bench points (see above information on the bench), the Bearkats are 13th in the nation in offensive rebounds per game at 14.00, 11th in total rebounds (41.90), 24th in rebound margin (7.9), and 44th in field goal percentage defense at 40.9.

Game 22 Preview vs Louisiana Tech

Next Event

Players Mentioned

CJ Beaumont

Jacobe Coleman

Matt Dann

Jaxson Ford

Veljko Ilic

Isaiah Manning

Kashie Natt

Jacob Walker

Footer