2013 Southland Conference Men's Basketball Tournament Page

THIBODAUX, La. – The Nicholls State University men's basketball team opens play at the 2013 Southland Conference Men's Basketball Tournament on Wednesday at 5 p.m. at the Merrell Center, taking on regular season finale opponent McNeese State in Katy, Texas.
 
This will be the third meeting between the Colonels and Cowboys this season, as the two teams split the regular season series with Nicholls getting a 64-63 win over McNeese State in Lake Charles, while the Cowboys earned a double overtime victory last Saturday evening 91-88 in Thibodaux.
 
Nicholls is making its 13^th appearance all-time in the Southland Conference tournament, participating in the postseason event for a record fifth consecutive time when the Colonels take to the court on Wednesday evening. With an overall record of 9-20, Nicholls had a league mark of 8-10 finishing in a tie for fifth place with Sam Houston State, but with the season sweep of the Bearkats the Colonels earned the fifth slot in the eight-team contest.
 
A lot is on the line for the Colonels going into Wednesday, as Nicholls is one win shy of earning double-digit wins for a sixth consecutive season which ties the second longest such streak in program history. For just the third time since 2000, Nicholls won eight league games in a season, reaching that mark for the first time since the 2010-11 year when the team was the eighth seed that season. If the team goes on a tear and makes it to the championship game, it will also give head coach J.P. Piper his 100^th win as head coach, becoming just the fourth person to achieve that many in a career at Nicholls.
 
The Colonels will be led into the contest by senior guard Fred Hunter, who on Tuesday was named first team All-Southland Conference and to the U.S. Basketball Writers Association All-District VII team. Hunter is the first player since Anatoly Bose in the 2010-11 season to earn first team all-conference honors, becoming just the tenth player in Nicholls history to rank among the top five players in the conference at the end of the season. In his first season as a Colonel in 2008, he was named the conference's freshman of the year and will end his career with a first-team selection after averaging career highs in points and rebounds.
 
Nicholls is 7-10 all-time at the conference tournament, and has not won a game since the 2007 championship when the Colonels were the No. 2 seed and won its opening round game against Sam Houston State. This will be the second time in three years that the Colonels and Cowboys will lock horns in the opening round, as McNeese State defeated Nicholls 61-54 in the first game of the 2011 tournament. McNeese holds a 2-1 advantage in tournament meetings, while having a 48-32 advantage in the overall series.
 
The winner on Wednesday will move on to the quarterfinals, with a 5 p.m. game against No. 4 seed Southeastern Louisiana on Thursday.
 
The radio broadcast of the game will begin with the Colonel Countdown pregame show, beginning 15 minutes prior to the start of the contest.
 
 
GAMEDAY INFORMATION
TV: None
Radio: 100.3 FM KLRZ (Larose, La); 1600 KLEB (Golden Meadow, La.)
Broadcast Team: Mike Wagenheim (play-by-play)
Colonels on the Internet: www.klrzfm.com
Live Stats: www.southland.org