Men’s Basketball: Northwestern State’s first-half run not enough at ULM

MONROE — Down by as many 18 points in the first half, Northwestern State took out its shovel and feverishly dug itself out of the hole with a 17-5 run to cut ULM’s halftime lead to five Saturday at Fant-Ewing Coliseum.

The Demons came as close as three points on two occasions in the second half, but NSU could never fully escape its early deficit as the Warhawks pulled away in an 84-71 Demons’ loss.

After its big first-half run, a Kendal Coleman layup sliced ULM’s edge to 48-45 with 17 minutes left, but the Warhawks (4-4) used multiple mini-runs over the remainder of the half to fend off the Demons (1-8).

ULM hit consecutive 3-pointers from Russell Harrison and Elijah Gonzales to re-extend its lead.

“We had back-to-back turnovers right there, and even though we did get to five points later in the game, we had too many lapses of energy after using a lot of energy to come back from the early deficit,” said NSU coach Mike McConathy. “We couldn’t respond to their run in the second half much like they couldn’t find an answers for ours late in the first half.

“Jalen King played at a high level, and we had some other good things happen, but ultimately we have to get better defensively and put longer stretches of the game together.”

After NSU climbed to within 58-53 midway through the second half, Harrison and Co. sealed the deal with a 17-6 run to lead 77-59.

Coleman posted his second double-double of the season with 18 points and 10 rebounds to lead five NSU scorers in double figures.

Brian White (season-high 14 points), Jalen King (career-high 12 points), LaTerrance Reed (11 points) and Monroe native Larry Owens (10 points) also reached that plateau. King added a career-high seven rebounds as NSU held a nine-rebound advantage over ULM, it’s largest margin of the season.

Those five scorers combined to make 25-42 (60 percent) while all other Demons combined to shoot 4-23 (17 percent).

It’s the first time five Demons scored in double figures since NSU did it against No. 1 Gonzaga on Dec. 22, 2020.

In the first half, White scored seven of his 12 first-half points in that 17-5 NSU run, including a 3-pointer to start the spurt under six minutes remaining.

Reed had consecutive three-point plays, one the old-fashioned way on a runout pass from Jalen King and the other from distance.

Owens also contributed two of his eight first-half points as the Carroll High product enjoyed his homecoming in front of friends and family.

Owens helped keep NSU afloat offensively in the early going as ULM lit the nets afire and built a 27-11 lead. Owens and White combined for NSU’s first 11 points.

ULM made 11 of its first 17 shots as Russell Harrison led the way with 11 points early. The Warhawks shot 52 percent from the field overall.

Harrison scored a game-high 25 points on 11-16 shooting as the Warhawks made 52 percent of their shots from the field. Koreem Ozier added 17 points while Trey Boston, who missed the first matchup, contributed 11 points.

Much like the first game in which ULM won on Nov. 22, the Warhawks cashed in NSU turnovers into transition points. ULM scored 21 points off 16 turnovers, although the Warhawks’ 13 fast break points paled in comparison to their 29 in the first meeting.

“The number one thing we’ll pull out is we still have a points-off-turnovers issue,” McConathy said. “ULM did what they did, but we only six points off their six turnovers.

“We competed more consistently today compared to the first meeting, and guys like King, White and Coleman had really good games. But we also were missing some things from guys, and we need everything we’ve got to beat disciplined teams like (ULM coach Keith Richard) has.”

NSU will attempt to snap a six-game losing streak Dec. 11 when they welcome Dallas Christian to Prather Coliseum at 3 p.m.