The men’s basketball team stole a win at No. 23-ranked LSU-Shreveport (LSUS) 87-85 on Jan. 19. The Saints improve to 11-8 overall and 6-5 in the Red River Athletic Conference (RRAC). The Pilots drop to 14-5 overall and 8-3 in RRAC competition.

Head Coach Chris Dial commented, “This was a great win for our team and our program. The team showed a lot of grit tonight and I’m proud of them. Playing at LSU-Shreveport isn’t an easy place to grab a win.”

History
The Saints were 10-13 against the Pilots prior to the game.

Basics
The Saints defeated an NAIA Top 25 team for the first time since 2019. Both programs shot over 45 percent from the field in the first half. The Saints were solid from three-point range at 57.1 percent shooting and forced nine turnovers by the Pilots. Rob Gil had double-digit points at halftime and Tommie Law added four rebounds.

Shreveport’s three-point lead at halftime slowly deteriorated. The Saints tied the game six minutes into the second half and there were multiple lead changes as the frame went on. OLLU rallied to lead by six points with under three minutes left. The Pilots tallied four quick points to cut the advantage to one point. The game was tied with four seconds remaining when Law made a layup assisted by Gil. Shreveport missed a game-winning three point shot at the buzzer and the Saints held on for the victory.

Offensive/defensive standouts
Law led the Saints with 24 points. Law also grabbed a team-high six rebounds. Gil led the team with four assists.

Jalen Brooks led LSUS with 23 points. Brooks and Tyler Washington grabbed a team-high six rebounds each. Brooks and Jordan DeCuir finished with two assists apiece.

Inside the box
OLLU combined for 26-of-44 shooting for 59.1 percent, 8-of-13 from three-point range for 61.5 percent and 27-of-32 from the free-throw line for 84.4 percent. LSUS shot 28-of-52 for 53.8 percent, 9-of-19 three pointers for 47.4 percent and 20-of-34 from the free-throw line for 58.8 percent.

The Saints grabbed 20 rebounds while Shreveport collected 26.

Up next
The Saints face Texas College at home on Thursday at 7:30 p.m.