THIBODAUX, La. – The Nicholls State University men's basketball squad outscored the University of Central Arkansas 47-34 in the second half en route to an 86-79 victory at Stopher Gymnasium Saturday afternoon.

The Colonels improve to 11-8 overall and 5-1 in SLC play, the best six-game start in league play since the 2000-01 season. This marks the third occurrence since the 1997-98 season that Nicholls commences SLC play 5-1. The Colonels made their lone NCAA appearance in 1998 and finished 12-12 in 2001.

Senior Roddy Peters fronted Nicholls offensively with 21 points, marking his fourth straight game with 20-plus points. Fellow senior Tevon Saddler added 19 points (11-12 FT) and just missed a double-double with nine boards.  

The Colonels held Jordan Howard, the conference's leading scorer, to just 15 points on 4-15 shooting (0-8 3FG). UCA (9-10, 3-3 SLC) received a team-high 20 points from Mathieu Kamba.

Nicholls weathered 13 personal fouls and nine- and six-point UCA spurts to enter the half down 45-39. Following the Bears 6-0 run, the Colonels trailed by as much as 11 in the opening period.

Down eight with 10:52 to play, senior guard Lafayette Rutledge nailed back-to-back triples to put Nicholls within one possession at 65-63. After Kamba converted a jumper the next time down the floor, the Colonels tallied five straight points to take their first lead since 18:39 in the first half.

Nicholls never lost the edge after Roddy Peters knocked down a jumper in the paint at 5:28, closing the game on an 18-11 margin. The Colonels limited UCA to 38-percent shooting in the second half, including 3-15 from long range.

Nicholls shot 50 percent from the field so fans will receive a 50-percent discount on tickets to Tuesday's contest against Texas A&M – Corpus Christi. Tipoff from Stopher Gym is scheduled for 7 p.m.

Get your season or single game tickets now by calling 985-448-4790 or visiting nichollstickets.com. To stay up to date with Nicholls men's basketball, follow the team on Twitter @Nicholls_MBB.