MBB-D2: Henderson State Reddies (7-7) at Southern Arkansas Muleriders (10-4)

Henderson State meets Southern Arkansas for the second time this season and the first in Magnolia when the two teams face off from inside the W.T. Watson Athletic Center Thursday, Jan. 19 at 7:30 p.m.
 
REDDIES REPORT
The Reddies dropped back-to-back nail biters over the weekend against Northwestern and Southwestern Oklahoma State by a combined six points. Against the Bulldogs, HSU managed just five three-pointers while SWOSU netted 11 triples to come away with the five-point victory, 75-70. Henderson got 46 of its 70 points from Franck Kamgain (17), Malik Riddle (15) and Alvin Miles (14).
 
Kamgain continues his career scoring streak as he now has scored in double figures in 12 consecutive games, marking the longest HSU streak of that kind since Kaylon Tappin scored 10 or more in 18 straight contests during the 2017-18 season. Among the 25 leading scorers in the GAC this year, the senior from Kansas City, Missouri is tied with Southeastern’s Jett Sternberger for the longest active such streak.
 
As a team, Henderson is one of just three programs in the conference to be averaging at least 70 points on offense while holding their opponents below 68 points per game. The Reddies continue to be an excellent rebounding team as well, averaging 37.6 a game. On the offensive glass, HSU is third in the GAC and 53rd in Division II with 11.6 boards an outing. Both Tomislav Miholjcic (5.9) and Riddle (5.6) rank among the Top-17 rebounding leaders in the league.
 
On Thursday, the Reddies will look to break its current three-game losing streak, having not lost four in a row since head coach Jimmy Elgas‘ second season with the program in 2016-17. The men have fared well against Southern Arkansas in recent years, having won three straight, including last season in Magnolia when Ryan Boyce hit a buzzer-beater three to lift HSU over SAU, 65-62. Henderson leads the all-time series against the Muleriders, 110-78.
 
In the season’s first matchup against Southern Arkansas, all five starters for Henderson scored in double figures, led by Miles with 18 on 6-of-11 shooting and 3-of-4 at the line as the Reddies won their GAC Opener, 75-67. The Muleriders held a two-point lead at halftime and then a four-point advantage early in the second frame before HSU outscored SAU 38-26 over the final 15 minutes of game action.
 
SCOUTING SOUTHERN ARKANSAS
Since losing to Henderson St. in its conference opener, Southern Arkansas has gone on a run, winning seven straight prior to its most recent loss to Southeastern Oklahoma St. During that winning streak, SAU averaged 81.4 points per game while holding its opponents to 68.4 points.
 
In the Muleriders’ 11-point loss against the Savage Storm last Saturday, SAU shot just 24.1 percent (7-29) from three and 35.2 percent (25-71) from the field. Gregory Hammond Jr. scored a team-high 20 points with 14 rebounds, followed by Brock Schreiner’s 11 points as the only two Muleriders to score in double figures.
 
Southern Arkansas boasts three guys who are averaging 5.7 or more rebounds per game as SAU is one of the premier teams on the glass, leading the league in combined team rebounds (39.6) and offensive rebounds (13.9). The Muleriders’ rebounding margin over their opponents is 8.6, which ranks 13th in Division II. In the first matchup with the Reddies, HSU held the slight rebounding edge, 36-34.