Courtesy of LA Tech Athletic Communications
Louisiana Tech heads back on the road for a pair of conference games, starting on tonight versus Jacksonville State at Pete Mathews Coliseum.
Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. and the game can be heard on KXKZ 107.5 FM with Malcolm Butler providing a call of the action.
LA Tech (13-4, 2-2) made it a home sweep this past week, handing Liberty just its third loss of the season with a 79-74 victory on Saturday. Down seven at halftime, the Bulldogs put up a whopping 52 points on the Flames in the second half (came into the contest allowing 59.9 points per game). It marked the sixth time this season LA Tech has won after trailing at halftime and the 79 points was also the most scored on Liberty all season. It was a milestone for Talvin Hester who collected his 50th career win as head coach of the ‘Dogs.
After averaging just 54.0 points on 35.6 percent shooting in their two conference road losses to UTEP and New Mexico State, the Bulldogs regrouped at home by averaging 80.0 points on 51.8 percent shooting in the two victories over FIU and Liberty. LA Tech currently ranks 23rd in the country in field goal percentage this season at a 49.3 percent clip.
LA Tech made 22 of its 25 free throw attempts against Liberty (most in a game with at least 25 attempts since 2021). The Bulldogs, who rank second in CUSA in free throw percentage at 75.6 percent, have now had five games where they shot at least 80 percent from the charity stripe.
Jacksonville State (9-7, 1-2) went 8-5 in the non-conference slate, registering marquee wins over East Carolina and Utah Valley. The Gamecocks will be playing their first CUSA game at home, having won all five matchups this season at Pete Mathews Coliseum. Jax State is the only CUSA yet to play a home game with all three league games coming on the road. They suffered losses at Kennesaw State and Middle Tennessee while recording a 73-67 victory at WKU.
Jacksonville State has made a living of owning the rebounding battle this season. The Gamecocks rank top 15 in the country in rebounds per game (41.25), rebounding margin (9.1) and defensive rebounds per game (29.75). Jax State has outrebounded its opponent in 13 of its 16 games this season, eclipsing 40 boards in seven contests.
The Gamecocks are also known for taking care of the basketball. They average only 9.9 turnovers per game, which ranks 21st in the country. In half of their games this season, they have committed less than 10 turnovers.
Jax State is anchored offensively by Jaron Pierre Jr. The Wichita State transfer is averaging 22.2 points per game, the most in CUSA and fourth most in the country. He has scored in double figures in every game this season and owns 12 20+ scoring performances. Two of those have come in league play, scoring 20 against KSU and 22 versus Middle Tennessee.
LA Tech and Jax State faced off twice last season for the first time ever with the Bulldogs winning both contests. The ‘Dogs pulled out a 74-57 victory in Jacksonville State and then pulled out a 63-58 win in Ruston.
