THIBODAUX, La. - The Nicholls State University women's and men's basketball programs will conclude their 2021-22 regular seasons with Senior Day, hosting rival New Orleans for a doubleheader on Saturday, March 5 at Stopher Gymnasium. Both games will air on ESPN+, with the women set for 1 p.m. and the men to follow around 3:30.

On the men side, Nicholls (20-10, 10-3 SLC) will honor seniors Devante Carter, Ty Gordon, Latrell Jones, Manny Littles, and Ryghe Lyons prior to a championship bout against the Privateers (17-11, 10-3 SLC).

The matchup will be a winner-take-all for the Southland Conference regular season championship. Not only does the winner earn the title and the No. 1 seed in next week's postseason tournament, but the loser could fall to the No. 3 seed depending on Southeastern's result against Northwestern State. A win by the Lions would secure the No. 2 spot and a double bye, while the Colonels or Privateers would have to play Thursday in the quarterfinal round. 

The defending champion Colonels are looking for their third championship in the last five years, and would be the first repeat Southland champ since Stephen F. Austin won in 2013 and '14. 

On display will not only be the top two teams in the Southland, but the league's most prolific scorers will have at it. Ty Gordon leads Nicholls and the Southland Conference in scoring at 21.1 points per game, which ranks 10th in the NCAA, but UNO's Derek St. Hilaire is just a half point behind at 20.6 ppg. St. Hilarie scored 23 in the teams' league opener, lifting UNO to a 78-66 victory against Nicholls at the Lakefront. Gordon had 11 in the game but was seeing his first action after missing two weeks with an injury. Pierce Spencer shined in a losing effort, scoring a career-high 25 points to go along with seven rebounds and four steals.

Spencer is one of the leading scorers for Nicholls at 9.6 points per game. Carter is at 11.7 points and leads the league with 3.8 assists per outing, while Jones is third at 11.2 points. 

Nicholls was able to bounce back from a tough loss last weekend that ended an eight-game winning streak, going on the road to defeat Texas A&M-Corpus Christi for a third time this season. UNO survived a scare at home Wednesday, rallying for 17 down to knock off HBU. 

For the women, Nicholls (4-20, 2-11 SLC) will recognize seniors Chyna Allen and Lauryn Bowie.

While both teams sit at the bottom of the standings, the game still has postseason significance as the winner will take the No. 7 seed in next week's tournament in Katy.

New Orleans (3-17, 2-11 SLC) and Nicholls came down to the wire in the previous meeting, with the Colonels escaping with a 68-67 win in the opener. But since then, the only win for the Red and Gray was a road victory at UIW. Nicholls will be looking to send its seniors out on a high note by snapping a seven-game losing streak as they head to postseason next week. 

Allen and Bowie both had strong games for the Colonels in the loss against the Islanders Wednesday. Allen scored 19 and played all 40 minutes while Bowie added 12. Allen is averaging 13.2 points and is followed by Bryanna Washington at 10.2 ppg. 
 

They gave us their all, let's give them a night to remember😤 pic.twitter.com/KD3jiVc4Y6

— Nicholls Colonels (@GeauxColonels) March 4, 2022