University of Southern Mississippi Athletics
Southern Miss Hosts Hardwood Club Holiday Tournament
12/27/2010 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Dec. 27, 2010
HATTIESBURG, Miss. - The Southern Miss men's basketball team will returns home for the first time in four weeks when it hosts the Hardwood Club Holiday Tournament, Dec. 29-30. The Golden Eagles will face in-state foe Mississippi Valley State this Wednesday, Dec. 29, at 7 p.m. CT in the first round.
Savannah State and Southeastern Louisiana will face off in the opening game at 4:30 p.m.
Southern Miss and Mississippi Valley State have met just four times in history, with the Golden Eagles winning each meeting. However, the teams have not faced off on the hardwood since 1998. All four games have taken place at Reed Green Coliseum.
Southern Miss enters the Hardwood Club Holiday Tournament with a 9-2 record after falling to Colorado State, 63-58, in the finals of the Cancun Governor's Cup.
Southern Miss was led by senior Gary Flowers, who scored 22 points while pulling down nine rebounds. Sophomore LaShay Page scored a season-high 14 points and senior R.L. Horton added eight points and four assists.
Flowers is currently second in Conference USA with 20.3 points. He also leads the league in three-point field goal percentage (.486), is fourth in blocks (1.6), sixth in field goal percentage (.523) and eighth in rebounding (7.0). Horton is second on the team with 11.9 points. Ayarza is scoring 9.8 points per game and is 18th in C-USA with 5.2 rebounds. Freshman D.J. Newbill is averaging 9.4 points and is ninth in the league with 6.6 rebounds. Johnson is adding 7.5 points and is third in the league with 4.7 assists while pulling down 4.8 rebounds.
As a team, the Eagles are second in Conference USA in scoring (78.6 ppg) while giving up 63.5 points. Southern Miss is connecting on 45.9-percent of its shots, while allowing its opposition to hit just 37.8-percent, which is also second in the league. The Black and Gold are also leading the league with 41.9 rebounds, while recording 12.1 assists and 4.5 blocks.
Head coach Larry Eustachy is in his seventh season at the helm of the Southern Miss men's basketball program. He has compiled a 104-96 (.520) record during his time as head coach. In 19 years, Eustachy has an overall record of 364-241 (.602).
Mississippi Valley State is 1-10 entering the Hardwood Club Holiday Tournament. The Delta Devils are looking to snap a five-game losing streak after falling to Marquette, 102-77, last Tuesday.
Junior center Paul Crosby led MVSU with 17 points and six rebounds. Senior guard D'Angelo Jackson also scored 17 points. Juniors Falando Jones and Terrence Joyner scored 13 points apiece and senior guard Kevin Burwell added 10 points.
Mississippi Valley State is led by Jackson, who is 11th in the Southwestern Athletic Conference in points with 10.2 ppg. Joyner is 15th in the SWAC with 10.2 ppg. Junior forward Jason Holmes leads the conference with 6.6 rebounds, while senior forward Orlando Smith is fourth with 5.8.
As a team, the Delta Devils are scoring 62.4 points while allowing 82.7. MVSU is shooting just 36.6-percent from the floor while its opposition is hitting 44.6-percent of its shots. From behind the arc, Mississippi Valley State is connecting on 30.5-percent of its shots, while their opposition is dropping in 33.2-percent. The Devils are also being outrebounded, 41.3-to-36.5.
Head coach Sean Woods is in his fourth season at the helm of the Mississippi Valley State men's basketball program. He has compiled a 17-58 (.227) record during his tenure as head coach.
After opening the season with a victory, the Savannah State Tigers have lost their last 13 games entering the Hardwood Club Holiday Tournament.
SSU is coming off a 68-55 defeat at Arkansas State last Monday. Sophomore guard Preston Blackmon was the only Tiger to score in double-figures, dropping in 19 points. He also had three assists and three steals. Senior forward Jovonni Shuler scored nine points and grabbed five rebounds, while sophomore forward Joshua Montgomery added eight points.
Savannah State is led by Shuler with 17.3 points, while also placing second on the team with 5.4 rebounds. Blackmon is second on the squad with 11.5 points while leading the team with 4.4 assists. Montgomery is adding 9.2 points and 5.1 rebounds, and freshman forward Jyles Smith is contributing a team-leading 6.5 rebounds.
As a team, the Tigers are scoring 53.1 points per game while allowing 60.4. SSU is shooting just 37.2-percent from the floor while its opposition is hitting 40.5-percent of its shots. From behind the arc, Savannah State is hitting 30.0-percent of its shots, while their opposition is dropping in 33.0-percent. The Tigers are also being outrebounded, 34.4-to-32.1.
Head coach Horace Broadnax is in his sixth season at the helm of the Savannah State men's basketball program. He has compiled a 54-106 (.338) record during his tenure as head coach. In 10 seasons, Broadnax is 96-194 (.331) as a head coach.
Southeastern Louisiana comes into the Hardwood Club Holiday Tournament with a 5-4 record. The Lions have dropped three of their last four games after falling at Vanderbilt, 85-52, on December 18.
Senior guard Gary Dixon was one of two players to score in double-figures for SLU, scoring a game-high 16 points and grabbing five rebounds. Freshman forward Antonnio Benton also scored 10 points. Senior forward David Ndoumba led the squad with six rebounds.
SLU is led by senior guard Trent Hutchin with 15.3 points and Dixon is scoring 10.6 points. Ndoumba is dropping in 9.8 points while leading the team with 7.2 rebounds. Junior guard Brandon Fortenberry is also averaging 9.4 points.
As a team, Southeastern Louisiana is scoring 72.8 points per game while allowing 70.4. SLU is shooting 43.0-percent from the floor while its opposition is hitting 45.8-percent of its shots. The Lions are connecting on 35.6-percent from behind the arc, while allowing its opposition to hit 36.9-percent. Southeastern Louisiana is outrebounding its opponents, 37.4-to-36.1.
Head coach Jim Yarbrough is in his sixth season leading the Southeastern Louisiana men's basketball program. He holds an 85-72 (.541) record at the school, and is 183-114 (.616) in 11 years as a head coach.
