Jan. 9, 2008

THIBODAUX, La. - The Colonels will open up Southland Conference play against Stephen F. Austin on Thursday in Stopher Gym at 6:30 p.m.

Nicholls and Stephen F. Austin have been competing against one another on the hardwood since the 1961-62 season, and the Lumberjacks hold the all-time series advantage 27-20. The Lumberjacks won last season's contest 61-55 in Nacogdoches, Tex., however the Colonels won the 2005-06 match up in Stopher Gym, 77-71.

The Colonels (5-10) are coming off of an 84-68 win over Kennesaw State in the Duel in the Desert Tournament hosted by UNLV. In that game, junior Ryan Bathie had a season best 22-points, while true freshman Anatoly Bose had a career high 21-points off the bench to lead the Colonels to the victory. Bathie is currently second on the team with an 11.5 ppg average.

Leading the team in rebounding is freshman Dominic Friend with 4.2 boards per game. Friend pulled down a career best eight rebounds in the win against Kennesaw State, and boasts an 8.3 points per game average heading into the game against Stephen F. Austin.

The Lumberjacks (12-1) have had some big wins in non-conference play this season, as they defeated Oklahoma, 66-62, San Diego, 56-50, and Southern Methodist, 61-58, with all three coming on their opponents home floor. Their only losses came at Texas Tech, 60-44, on Nov. 17, and since have rattled off 10 consecutive wins. For the season, Stephen F. Austin is 12-0 when they score 56 or more points.

The game can be heard on locally on 105.9 FM KBZE and 690 AM KTIB, while listeners outside the area can tune in at www.kbze.com. Brennan Matherne will have all the play-by-play action starting with pre-game at 6:15 p.m. The GameTracker link, which is accessible from www.geauxcolonels.com, will also be available for fans to follow the game live statistically.

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