THIBODAUX, La. – The Nicholls State University women's basketball team is back at home for just the second time since the New Year, and will welcome Central Arkansas on Saturday, Jan. 18 for a 1 p.m. matchup on ESPN3 in Stopher Gymnasium.
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Nicholls (4-12, 1-6 SLC) saw another tough loss on the road Wednesday at Northwestern State but will look to return to its winning ways at home. The Colonels started the season 3-0 in Thibodaux, including a victory over ULM, but dropped a pair of close contests in league play against Abilene Christian and Lamar. Despite the two setbacks, Nicholls has won 19 of its last 22 games in Stopher.
The Red and Gray ended their five-game skid last weekend with a victory over Southeastern Louisiana behind a trio of scorers,
Chrystal Ezechukwu (23 points),
Loan-Anh Johnson (21), and
Tykeria Williams (14). But the Colonels were held to less than 60 points for the third time in conference play at Northwestern State, which prevented them from earning consecutive wins.
Ezechukwu continues to lead Nicholls in both scoring (12.2 ppg) and rebounding (7.2), making starts in the previous two contests. Her 23 against SLU was a career-high and she was a rebound shy of her second double-double of the season. With Johnson's 21.5 scoring average last week, the Colonels now have four players averaging double figures -
Airi Hamilton (10.2), Williams (10.0), and Johnson (10.0).
Nicholls will need to find ways to score against Central Arkansas, which brings the 35th ranked scoring defense in the NCAA at 57.1 points per game. The Sugar Bears (6-7, 3-4 SLC) limited UIW to only 37 points in one of their earlier conference wins this season.
Despite its stingy defensive numbers, UCA allowed Stephen F. Austin to score over 100 points in its last outing, falling to the Ladyacks, 102-41. The loss was the third straight for Central Arkansas, which started the conference slate with a 3-1 mark. Along with the UIW win, their other victories were against McNeese and HBU.
Taylor Sells heads the Sugar Bears at 9.3 points per game. Her best scoring effort was a 22-point outing in the win over McNeese, but has since been held to single figures in the last three games.
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For more information on Colonels Women's Basketball, follow the team on Twitter (
@Nicholls_WBB) and Instagram (
@Nicholls_WBB)
