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Setting the Scene
- Bulldog Basketball concludes their weekend road trip to Arkadelphia on Saturday afternoon with a visit to Bill Vining Arena to take on Ouachita
- The Tigers improved to 5-7 in GAC play with a 76-68 victory over Northwestern on Thursday night while SWOSU dropped a 94-67 contest at Henderson State to fall to 1-11 in league play
- Ouachita won the first meeting between the teams this season, claiming a 63-61 victory after Mahlon Martin hit the game-winning shot with 2.5 seconds to play
- SWOSU has dropped three straight games against Ouachita and six of the last eight, with their last win over the Tigers coming on February 27, 2017 in Arkadelphia
 
The Opponent
Ouachita (7-10, 5-7 GAC)
- The Tigers have won two of their last three games to move into a three-way tie for eighth place in the standings at 5-7
- Ouachita has the second-lowest scoring offense in the GAC, averaging 72.3 points per game while their opponents are scoring 73.0 points per contest
- Leading the way for Ouachita is Mahlon Martin, who averages 11.4 points per game, and Wesley Franklin, who has 10.0 points and 4.2 rebounds per game to his credit
 
The Coaches
SWOSU: Kris Johnson (1-8, 1st season) * Interim
- Named the interim head coach at SWOSU for the remainder of the 2017-18 season on December 13 following the retirement of head coach Bob Battisti
- Now in his seventh season as an assistant coach at SWOSU, including the last four-plus years as the lead assistant to Battisti
- A native of Kansas City, Mo., Johnson came to SWOSU following a four-year playing career at Northwestern Oklahoma State
 
Ouachita: Dennis Nutt (102-84, 7th season)
- Now in his sixth season at Ouachita, Nutt has led the Tigers to two GAC Tournament Championships (2013, 2016) and the NCAA Division II National Tournament in 2016
- A former NBA player with the Dallas Mavericks, Nutt was the head coach at Texas State from 2000-06 and an assistant at Coastal Carolina, Arkansas State and Westark CC
 
Checking the Standings
- Southern Nazarene defeated Arkansas-Monticello on Thursday evening to remain unblemished in GAC play at 12-0
- The Crimson Storm now have a four-game lead on the rest of the field, with East Central, Northwestern Oklahoma State and Southeastern Oklahoma State tied for second at 8-4
- Southern Arkansas has won seven straight games to improve to 7-5 in GAC play and sit alone in fifth place in the standings
- SWOSU sits tied for Harding for 11th place in the league race at 1-11, four games behind Henderson State, Oklahoma Baptist and Ouachita for the final spot in the GAC Tournament
 
The Series (GAC Era)
Date                Location                     Score
*1/7/2012         Arkadelphia, Ark.        L 56-68
*2/5/2012         Weatherford, Okla.     W 79-53
*1/19/2013       Arkadelphia, Ark.        L 52-58
*2/23/2013       Weatherford, Okla.     W 75-63
*1/18/2014       Weatherford, Okla.     W 72-68
*2/22/2014       Arkadelphia, Ark.        W 67-63
*1/8/2015         Weatherford, Okla.     L 58-66
*2/12/2015       Arkadelphia, Ark.        L 63-89
3/6/2015          Bartlesville, Okla.        W 71-67 (OT)
*1/9/2016         Weatherford, Okla.     L 62-73
*2/27/2016       Arkadelphia, Ark.        W 81-74
*1/7/2017         Arkadelphia, Ark.        L 62-80
*2/23/2017       Weatherford, Okla.     L 85-88
*11/16/2017     Weatherford, Okla.     L 61-63
 
NCAA Division II Era: Ouachita leads 8-6
In Weatherford: Ouachita leads 4-3
In Arkadelphia: Ouachita leads 4-2
 
SWOSU Notes
- Jefkins Agyeman-Budu led the Bulldogs in scoring for the first time this season with 16 points against Henderson State to go along with seven rebounds
- Nick Shoemaker extended his streak of games with a made three-pointer to 33 after hitting 2-of-6 attempts from long range against Henderson State
- Shoemaker has now connected on 133 three-pointers in his career, the seventh-most at SWOSU in the NCAA Division II era
- SWOSU got a combined 30 points off the bench from Daniel Eibel and Agyeman-Budu, helping the Dawgs outscore HSU's bench 39-to-27
- Eibel reached double figures in scoring on Thursday for the sixth time this season and first time in five games with 14 points on 5-of-10 shooting
- Devin Pugh scored right at his average at Henderson State, putting in 12 points on 4-of-14 shooting and he's now made 14-of-15 free throw attempts over the last two games
- SWOSU's leading scorer, Charles Beauregard, Jr., was held to a season-low two points on 1-of-8 shooting in just nine minutes of action against HSU
 
Looking Ahead
- SWOSU will be back at home to open the month of February by hosting Harding next Thursday evening at the Pioneer Cellular Event Center
- The Bulldogs close out the weekend by hosting Arkansas Tech next Saturday at 1:00 pm in Weatherford