Houston Baptist (4-15, 3-8) vs. McNeese State (9-11, 3-9)
Burton Coliseum, Lake Charles, Louisiana; Saturday, 8:30 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: Houston Baptist seeks revenge on McNeese State after dropping the first matchup in Houston. The teams last met on Jan. 23, when the Cowboys shot 48.3 percent from the field while limiting Houston Baptist to just 45.8 percent en route to the three-point victory.
SAVVY SENIORS: McNeese State has relied heavily on its seniors this year. Keyshawn Feazell, A.J. Lawson, Carlos Rosario, Dru Kuxhausen and Chris Orlina have combined to account for 64 percent of all Cowboys scoring this season, though that number has dropped to 50 percent over the last five games.
STEPPING IT UP: The Cowboys have scored 74.3 points per game and allowed 80 points per game across 12 conference games. Those are both noticeable improvements over the 65.7 points scored and 89 points given up per game to non-conference opponents.CLUTCH CASTRO: Pedro Castro has connected on 49.3 percent of the 73 3-pointers he’s attempted and has gone 4 for 12 over his last three games. He’s also converted 85 percent of his foul shots this season.
WINLESS WHEN: McNeese State is 0-7 this year when it scores 69 points or fewer and 9-4 when it scores at least 70.
COMING UP SHORT: Houston Baptist has dropped its last three road games, scoring 69 points and allowing 85.7 points during those contests. McNeese State has lost its last three home games, scoring an average of 76.7 points while giving up 83.7.
DID YOU KNOW: The McNeese State offense has scored 82.8 points per game this season, ranking the Cowboys ninth nationally. The Houston Baptist defense has allowed 81.5 points per game to opponents (ranked 308th).
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