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SWOSU (16-10, 12-8 GAC) at Henderson State (6-19, 5-15 GAC) Thursday, February 25, 7:30 pm Arkadelphia, Ark. (Duke Wells Center) Live Stats  |  Watch Live SWOSU Game Notes (pdf)

Setting the Stage
- Having clinched their spot in the GAC Tournament, the SWOSU Men's Basketball team now looks to solidified their seeding with two road games to conclude the 2015-16 regular season
- First up for the Bulldogs is a meeting against Henderson State on Thursday evening in Arkadelphia that tips off at 7:30 pm
- SWOSU has won their last three meetings with the Reddies in the Duke Wells Center, including a 74-56 victory last January in Arkadelphia
- Henderson State snapped a four-game losing streak in the series last month with a 77-52 victory over the Bulldogs in Weatherford
- SWOSU leads the series against Henderson State 6-4 since the beginning of Great American Conference play and the Dawgs are 3-1 in Arkadelphia against HSU
- The Bulldogs victory over Oklahoma Baptist last Saturday clinched a spot for SWOSU in the GAC Tournament and they enter the weekend alone in fourth place in the standings
- Several scenarios could still play out over the final weekend, with SWOSU unable to get a seed any higher than fourth
 
The Opponent
Henderson State (6-19, 5-15 GAC)
- Have lost three straight games and six of their last seven, falling out of contention to qualify for the GAC Tournament
- Only one Henderson State win has come away from home, that being their 77-52 victory at SWOSU last month
- Lowest-scoring team in the GAC, averaging 67.0 points per game but they also have the top scoring defense by holding teams to 72.2 points per contest
- Opponents are outrebounding the Reddies by an average of 4.8 boards per game and they are 12th in the league with an average of 11.4 assists per game
- Kaylon Tappin leads Henderson State in scoring with an average of 13.5 points per game while Kevin Kozan is ranked second with 12.4 points per contest
- Alioune Mboup is HSU's leading rebounder with 5.6 rebounds per game and he's ranked fifth in the GAC with 29 blocked shots this season
 
The Coaches
SWOSU: Bob Battisti (49-33, 3rd season; 458-329 career, 27th season)
- In his third season as the head coach of the Bulldogs, having led SWOSU to back-to-back winning seasons in his first two years at the helm
- Has coached three players at SWOSU that earned All-GAC distinction, including one GAC Player of the Year and one GAC Defensive Player of the Year
- Previously spent 25 years at Northwestern Oklahoma State, coaching the men's basketball team for 21 seasons before taking over as the school's athletic director
- In 26 years as a head coach, Battisti has a career record of 458-329 (.582) and he is 4-1 against Henderson State as the head coach at SWOSU
 
Henderson State: Jimmy Elgas (6-19, 1st season)
- In his first season at Henderson State after being named the 28th head coach in HSU men's basketball history in April of 2015
- Had served as the top assistant coach at NCAA Division I program Evansville since 2007, helping the Aces to four postseason appearance in his final five seasons
- Previous coaching stops included assistant positions at Kansas State, Texas State and Lincoln (Ill.) College
 
The Series
GAC History Only
      Date                Location                            Score             
      *1/5/2012         Arkadelphia, Ark.              L 80-86
      *2/2/2012         Weatherford, Okla.           L 73-77
      3/1/2012          Bartlesville, Okla.              W 81-60
      *1/17/2013       Arkadelphia, Ark.              W 90-84
      *2/21/2013       Weatherford, Okla.           L 55-59
      *1/16/2014       Weatherford, Okla.           W 79-76
      *2/20/2014       Arkadelphia, Ark.              W 79-74 (2 OT)
      *1/15/2015       Arkadelphia, Ark.              W 73-60
      *2/21/2015       Weatherford, Okla.           W 74-56
      *1/7/2016         Weatherford, Okla.           L 52-77
*GAC Conference Meeting
 
Last Time Out
- Bulldog Basketball converted 21 offensive rebounds into 31 second-chance points as they finished off a season-sweep of GAC-newcomer Oklahoma Baptist with a 78-67 victory
- Emeche Wells recorded his first double-double in a SWOSU uniform with 12 points and 11 rebounds while Collin Jennings and Ayo Ojo each added 10 points
- SWOSU outscored Oklahoma Baptist 38-18 in the paint and played a clean game by committing just eight turnovers
 
SWOSU Notes
- Juwan Newmen grabbed 11 rebounds for the Bulldogs against Oklahoma Baptist, the ninth time this season the senior had pulled down 10 or more rebounds in a game
- Collin Jennings scored 12 points on Saturday for his fifth double-digit scoring performance in the past seven games, upping his season average to 9.5 points per game
- SWOSU has committed 10 or fewer turnovers in a game six times this season, including each of the past two games for their longest streak of the year
- The Bulldogs added three blocked shots to their season total on Saturday, eclipsing the 100-block plateau as a team with an average of 3.9 blocks per game
- Markeise Champion leads the GAC with 82 made three-pointers this season and he's moved into the top five for single-season three's made at SWOSU
- Emeche Wells has scored in double figures three times in the past four games and he's coming off his first double-double as a Bulldog on Saturday
- Wells also continues to lead the GAC in steals with 49 (2.1/game)
 
Looking Ahead
- SWOSU concludes the 2015-16 regular season with a trip across the street in Arkadelphia, where they will face Ouachita Baptist on Saturday
- The Bulldogs have punched their ticket to the postseason and they head to Bartlesville next week for the GAC Tournament, which is held on March 3-6