HUNTSVILLE, Texas -- With first-place on the Southland leaderboard officially up for grabs, the Nicholls State University men's basketball program (10-5, 7-1 SLC) carries the team's seven-game league win streak into a potentially conference-deciding contest at Sam Houston (13-6, 7-1 SLC), challenging the Bearkats as the latter end of a doubleheader with women's basketball on Saturday, Feb. 6 at Bernard G. Johnson Coliseum, tip slated for approximately 5 p.m.

WHAT: Nicholls at Sam Houston | Game Notes
WHEN: Saturday, Feb. 6 | ~5 p.m.
WHERE: Bernard G. Johnson Coliseum | Huntsville, Texas
MEDIA: Live Stats | Watch -- ESPN+ | Listen -- 100.3 FM ESPN New Orleans

Notably, more than just the league's top spot will be on the line for the Colonels in Saturday's clash with SHSU, as the 2020-21 squad has the opportunity to, with a victory, cement the best Southland start for the program in well over two decades (1997-98 squad opened 14-0 in conference play). Further, an eighth consecutive win will vault third-year head coach Austin Claunch past the best-ever opening of his predecessor, Richie Riley, who guided the 2017-18 Red & Gray to a 7-1 start in the SLC and, eventually, a regular-season conference title.

Earlier this season, the Bearkats edged past the Red & Gray in what remains Nicholls' only conference loss of the season, clipping the Colonels by a final 84-81 margin. A stellar first-half shooting performance out of the Red & Gray carried them to an early 15-point advantage, but an elite showing from the Bearkats' Demarkus Lampley (27 points) helped SHSU close the gap and squeeze out the win. For the Colonels, though, senior Kevin Johnson composed a strong night with 17 points while fellow seniors Ty Gordon and Jeremiah Buford added on 15 apiece, nearly managing to force overtime on a potentially game-tying triple attempt by Buford at the buzzer.

UP NEXT
After squaring off against Sam Houston on Saturday, the Colonels' three-game road stretch continues with Lamar, heading back across state lines to face off with the Cardinals on Wednesday, Feb. 10, tip set for 7 p.m.

COMPLETE PROGRAM BREAKDOWN
Roster | Schedule | Quick Facts | Record Book

• Austin Claunch remains in his third season at the helm for the Red & Gray, sporting a 45-32 (29-17 SLC) overall record with the Colonels.
• The team boasts eight seniors: G Ty Gordon, G Kevin Johnson, C Ryghe Lyons, G Jeremiah Buford, G Andre Jones, G Jaylen Fornes, F Damien Sears and G Shawn Williams.
• This year's roster is highlighted by 11 newcomers, including: six transfers from fellow Division I collegiate programs, two who joined the ranks via JUCO programs and another trio who signed on directly from high school. Of the six DI transfers, three -- redshirt senior G Jaylen Fornes (UNC-Wilmington) along with redshirt juniors G Isaac Johnson (Western Illinois) and F Najee Garvin (Charlotte) -- are of specific note, as each enter the season with one full year with the program after sitting out 2019-20 due to NCAA transfer restrictions.
• This season's depth chart features seven players from across the state of Louisiana, a pair from Little Rock, Ark., and one from each of the following: North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Mississippi, Alabama, Minnesota and Texas.
• The Colonels were projected to finish fourth in the Southland Conference, per the league's preseason poll. Notably, Nicholls had yet to notch a single-digit ranking since the 2014-15 poll, in which the Red & Gray pulled off an eighth-place finish.
• Nicholls returns two of last season's five starters: senior G Kevin Johnson and redshirt senior G Andre Jones.

STAY SOCIAL
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