Louisiana beats ULM 80-59 for 20th win
MONROE, La. -- Frank Bartley IV had 22 points to lead Louisiana to its 20th win of the season, beating Louisiana-Monroe 80-59 on Saturday to remain undefeated in Sun Belt Conference play.
This was the earliest date in school history for the Ragin' Cajuns to reach the 20-win mark. Louisiana (20-3, 10-0) has won 20 games for the fourth time in the past five years. The win also gives Louisiana 16 straight Sun Belt wins over two seasons.
The Ragin' Cajuns will face Georgia State, the second-place team, on Thursday.
Malik Marquetti had 17 points, JaKeenan Gant added 14 with six blocks and Johnathan Stoveand Bryce Washington chipped in 12 apiece for the Ragin' Cajuns.
Louisiana shot 55 percent (29-53) from the floor, while limiting ULM to 22-of-58 shooting (38 percent).
The Ragin' Cajuns jumped out to a 20-8 lead and took a 38-33 advantage into the break. They pushed their lead to 62-40 and coasted home.
Jordan Harris had 16 points and Travis Munnings 14 for the Warhawks (9-12, 3-7)
Troy sweeps rival for first time since 2009-10 season
TROY, Ala. -- Wesley Person scored 18 points, Jordon Varnado had 17 and Troy defeated rival South Alabama 80-63 on Saturday for the Trojans' first season sweep of the Jaguars since 2009-10.
Varnado added eight rebounds, four assists and three blocks while Person made four 3-pointers. Alex Hicks scored 14 points, B.J. Miller 13 and Kevin Baker had 11 points and 10 rebounds off the bench for his first career double. The Trojans (10-13, 4-6 Sun Belt) made 10 3-pointers.
Trhae Mitchell and Josh Ajayi scored 17 points apiece for South Alabama (11-12, 4-6) with Rodrick Sikes adding 12.
A 9-0 run with seven points from Miller late in the first half gave the Trojans the lead for good. Leading 61-53 with 8:35 remaining in the game, Troy used a 13-2 run to put the game away.
Hamilton has 5th double double, UTA wins 87-80
ARLINGTON, Texas -- Johnny Hamilton celebrated his birthday by scoring 20 points while grabbing 13 rebounds as UT Arlington held off Coastal Carolina 87-80 to even its Sun Belt Conference record on Saturday night.
Davion Turner had a career-high 20 points as the Mavericks halted Coastal Carolina's four-game win streak. Kevin Hervey added 15 points and Nathan Hawkins chipped in 11 with six assists and two steals for UTA (15-10, 6-6). Erick Neal, who finished with nine points, four assists and five steals became the first player in conference history to surpass 1,300 points, 700 assists, 400 rebounds and 200 steals.
Trailing 39-38 at the break, Neal drained a 3 to start the second half and Hamilton, who recorded his fifth double double, followed with a layup to take a 43-39 advantage and the Mavericks led the rest of the way.
Coastal Carolina stayed within striking distance, closing to 66-65 with 8:56 remaining. Hervey nailed a trey and the Mavericks pushed their lead to 75-67 after Hervey hit a jumper with 6:35 left.
Zac Cuthbertson led the Chanticleers (11-14, 5-7) with 15 points and 11 rebounds.
Kinney leads with 17, Appalachian State upends Texas State 59-56
SAN MARCOS, Texas -- Griffin Kinney scored 17 points with seven rebounds and Appalachian State upended Texas State 59-56 on Saturday night.
The Mountaineers (10-15, 5-7 Sun Belt Conference) trailed by one at intermission, but they stayed close early in the second half when a Kinney layup tied it 49-all with 7:35 to play. Shelby Adams's jumper gave Texas State a 54-53 lead with 4:32 remaining. The Bobcats (14-11, 7-5) did not score a field goal after that as Kinney, Craig Hinton, Justin Forrest and Tyrell Johnson each made a single foul shot in the stretch to give the Mountaineers the edge.
Ronshad Shabazz added 15 points for Appalachian State. Forrest had eight points.
Nijal Pearson scored 14 points with four rebounds for the Bobcats, who have lost three straight. Tyler Blount added 10 points.
Mitchell has career-high 38, Georgia State thrashes Little Rock
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. -- Devin Mitchell scored a career-high 38 points to lead Georgia State to its ninth straight Sun Belt Conference victory, an 81-51 thrashing of Little Rock on Saturday night.
The Panthers ran away with this one in the second half in preparation for their showdown with league-leader Louisiana on Thursday. Georgia State (18-6, 9-2) will host the Ragin' Cajuns, who have won 10 straight and remain undefeated in conference play.
Georgia State started its current win streak by beating Little Rock in Atlanta 73-64 last month.
Mitchell nailed a career-best 10 of 13 from beyond the arc while grabbing six rebounds and dishing out four assists. D'Marcus Simonds added 12 points with eight assists, and Jordan Session chipped in 11 points with nine rebounds and two blocks.
The Panthers spotted Little Rock a 5-0 lead before going on a 20-4 run and finished the first half with a 38-24 lead. They won the second period 43-27.
Georgia State drained 15 of 27 from distance while hitting 27 of 50 field-goal attempts.
Cameron Corcoran had 18 points for Little Rock (5-19, 2-9).
*Georgia Southern at Arkansas State (ESPN3), 7:00 PM