HCU vs. SOUTHEASTERN LOUISIANA
Houston Christian University hosts Southeastern Louisiana University on Monday night in the second game of the quick two-game homestand. The Huskies will be looking to tame the Lions for the second time in three Mondays as the two clubs jockey for prime position in the muddled Southland Conference standings.
HCU is now 11-13 overall and 8-5 in the league after snapping a two-game losing streak on Saturday with an 81-68 victory over New Orleans. The Huskies now sit in a tie for third with Texas A&M-Corpus Christi as a cluster of six teams continue sticking within two games of each other from second to fourth place. Nicholls, Southeastern and Lamar all stand 9-4, one game ahead the Huskies and Islanders, with Northwestern State coming in fourth with a 7-6 mark. UTRGV is 5-8 and holding onto the final playoff spot, one game ahead of UIW and a resurgent Stephen F. Austin, which has won three of four.
The top eight teams qualify for the postseason tournament in Lake Charles starting March 9, with league-leading McNeese (12-1) the first team in the conference to have secured a spot in the field. The top four teams receive first-round byes in the tournament, with the top two clubs getting a double-bye straight to the semifinals.
HCU took an early lead over New Orleans on Saturday afternoon and never looked back to step back into the win column. The Huskies broke away from a 10-all tie just four minutes in by going on a 14-3 run over the next six minutes to take control. The Privateers would cut the lead to six but another run, this of 16-5, pushed the HCU lead up to its largest at 17, 40-23 just before the half. The visitors would get no closer than nine the rest of the afternoon, as HCU led by double-digits most the way.
New single-game bests of 17 made three-pointers and 19 assists were set in the contest as the Huskies hit 43% from long range on a season-high 40 attempts. The 17 three-pointers made were the most in a single game since HCU set the school record with 22 in a 122-44 victory over Barclay College in 2021. HCU is now 7-0 on the season when it scores 80 or more points.
Julian Mackey had 27 points while
Bryson Dawkins added 22 for the Huskies to lead the offensive charge.
D'Aundre Samuels notched new career-highs with four triples and three steals to go along with his 14 points, five boards and three assists.
Porter Bazil matched his career-high with three three-pointers, set originally against the same UNO club just two weeks prior
HCU is led by first-year head coach
Craig Doty, who was hired as the ninth head coach in school history last March as the program is now in its 59th season. Doty brings 12 years of head coaching experience to the HCU sidelines, having coached on the NJCAA, NAIA and NCAA Division II levels while capturing three national titles along the way.
Julian Mackey continues to pace the Huskies in scoring, sitting at 15.5 points with now nine 20-point efforts on the campaign. The senior transfer from the Peach State has eclipsed his career-high three times this year. He currently ranks fourth in the SLC in scoring and three's made per game, and second from the free throw line at 79.4 % clip for the season.
Bryson Dawkins is now eighth in the league in scoring at 13.9 points and he ranks second on the club in rebounding, hauling in 4.9 per game. He is now first on the club in conference scoring at 16.7 points with Mackey close behind at 16.4 points. The pair still rank as the third-highest scoring duo overall in the Southland.
Elijah Brooks continues to check boxes with 9.4 points, 3.9 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.2 steals per game on the season. Samuels is now up to 7.3 points per game and 2.6 boards and leads the Huskies with his 41.3% clip from long distance.
The Huskies and Lions hook up for the second time in three Mondays and for the 22nd time overall. The previous game this year on January 27 saw HCU take the lead nine minutes into the game and never trail thereafter in earning a 70-62 victory by HCU in Hammond. The win snapped SLU's six-game winning streak, and trimmed the Lions lead in the overall series to 13-8 and in conference play to 12-5 as
Bryson Dawkins and
Julian Mackey combined for 54 points.
Dawkins and Mackey tied for game-high honors in that contest with 27 points apiece. Dawkins led the way in the first frame, hitting five three's for 15 points, while Mackey paced the second session by connecting on two three's with a 9-12 showing from the charity stripe for 17 points. It was the second time this season that the Huskies have had a pair combine for 50 or more points, and the second time Mackey has been involved. Mackey had 28 points to go along with a career-high 29 from
Elijah Brooks as the two combined for 57 in a loss to Northern Arizona on November 27.
The Lions are led by sixth-year head coach David Kiefer. SLU has rebounded from the loss to HCU to capture wins over New Orleans and Lamar at home last week before rallying in San Antonio on Saturday for a 71-66 victory over UIW. The Lions have now won nine of their last 10 to improve to 15-9 overall and 9-4 in the league.
Sam Hines Jr., a 6'6 senior guard who transferred from South Florida, continues to pace the Lions in scoring (16.7 ppg) and rebounding (6.5 rpg) and is second on the club in assists (2.0 apg). Jakevion Buckley, a 6'1 senior guard who transferred after playing two seasons at conference foe Lamar, scored a career-high 27 in the win over UIW on Saturday to up his average to 13.7 points. He also chips in 4.3 boards and a team-leading 4.1 assists and 1.9 steals. 6'10 junior post Brody Rowbury records 7.6 points and 5.7 boards per game.
HCU will be playing for the 20th time on February 10. The Huskies hold an 11-8 record on this date, with the most recent outing being an 86-83 victory one year ago over Incarnate Word.
Another quick two-game trip follows, as the Huskies head down the coast next week for a pair of return games at UTRGV and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. The Huskies defeated each previously this season in Sharp Gym, beating UTRGV 66-57 on January 18 before a 76-72 victory over TAMUCC the following Monday night.
HCU will return to the friendly confines for its final two home games of the season on February 22 and 24. The Saturday afternoon tilt against Lamar will be the annual "Hustlin' Husky" throwback game followed by "Senior Night" against SFA the following Monday evening.
#DawgsUp
