CONWAY, Ark. – After a lopsided loss to Southland Conference-leading Sam Houston State, the Nicholls State University men's basketball team will look to seize its second conference victory of the season against the Bears of Central Arkansas, with tipoff set for 4 p.m. on Saturday in Conway.
 
The Colonels (4-11, 1-4 SLC) trailed by as many as 33 in their most recent outing against the machine-like Bearkats, who earned their ninth-straight victory. Central Arkansas (0-16, 0-5 SLC) has had a rough start in its 2014-15 season, riding an 18-game losing streak that dates back to last year. The Bears have not won a game since March 1, 2014 when they defeated Lamar University 76-69, and are coming off of an 84-61 loss to Houston Baptist on Monday.
 
Nicholls owns the all-time series against Central Arkansas 9-7, and earned a 78-67 win in the only meeting between the two programs on Feb. 1 last season.
 
The Colonels enter Saturday's matchup with their own struggles, having not won a game on the road this season. Nicholls holds a -11.4 scoring margin, -1.9 rebounding margin and a -2.6 turnover margin, while shooting 42 percent from the floor, 26.7 percent from three-point range and 61.9 percent at the free throw line. The Bears carry a -20.7 scoring margin, -7.6 rebounding margin and a -6.1 turnover margin. Central Arkansas is shooting 42.8 percent from the floor, 34.2 percent from beyond the arc and 67.5 percent at the charity strike this year.
 
Amin Torres leads the Colonels offensively, averaging 12.8 points per game. Sam McBeath paces the squad with 6.8 rebounds and Richie Lewis dishes out 2.5 assists per contest. McBeath is third in the conference in double-doubles with four on the year, and is averaging 10 points and 6.8 rebounds in conference play. Liam Thomas is averaging 1.9 blocks per game.
 
Jordan Howard spearheads the Bears offense with 14.8 points per contest. Jake Zuilhof leads the team with 5.6 boards per game and Mike Martin averages a team-leading 4.1 assists.
 
Nicholls will face Central Arkansas before taking on Northwestern State at 6:30 p.m. on Monday in Natchitoches. Both games will be broadcast live on KQKI 95.3 FM.
 
Visit geauxcolonels.com for live stats and the most up-to-date information on Nicholls men's basketball.