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Setting the Scene
- SWOSU Men's Basketball will conclude the 2017-18 season by playing five of their final seven games away from home, beginning on Thursday evening at Southern Arkansas
- The Bulldogs are coming off a weekend that saw them drop a one-point contest to Harding on Thursday before falling to Arkansas Tech 90-81 on Saturday
- Southern Arkansas is 6-3 since defeating SWOSU 84-73 back on January 6th, but the Muleriders enter Thursday's contest on a three-game slide
- SAU has defended their home court well, with a 7-3 mark at W.T. Watson Center this season and their only setback at home in 2018 was a 62-60 loss to GAC leader Southern Nazarene
- SWOSU is 1-7 in true road games this season, with their lone victory coming back on December 2nd at Harding
 
The Opponent
Southern Arkansas (11-10, 7-8 GAC)
- After dropping three straight games, the Muleriders have fallen into a tie for seventh place in the GAC standings with Ouachita
- Southern Arkansas ranks fifth in the GAC in scoring with an average of 78.9 points per game while limiting their opponents to 72.0 points per contest
- A trio of Muleriders are averaging double figures in scoring, led by CJ Elkins (13.5 ppg), Keeton Tennison (12.1 ppg) and Draylan Perkins (11.1 ppg)
 
The Coaches
SWOSU: Kris Johnson (1-11, 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
 
Southern Arkansas: Andy Sharpe (78-85, 6th season)
- In his sixth season at SAU, Sharpe has led the Muleriders to five consecutive GAC Tournament Appearances with two winning seasons to his credit
- Previously spent five years at NAIA Martin Methodist College in Tennessee, leading the RedHawks to the national tournament three times
 
Checking the Standings
- Southern Nazarene remains unbeaten and sitting alone atop the GAC standings at 15-0 with seven games remaining in the regular season
- SNU maintains a five-game lead over Northwestern Oklahoma State and Southeastern Oklahoma State for second place
- East Central is now sitting alone in fourth place in the standings at 9-6, one game ahead of Arkansas Tech and Arkansas-Monticello in fifth place
- The final two spots in the GAC Tournament are separated by just one game, with Harding and SWOSU trailing the rest of the field by multiple games
 
The Series (GAC Era)
Date                Location                     Score
*1/21/2012       Magnolia, Ark.             W 62-56
*2/18/2012       Weatherford, Okla.     W 74-65
*12/1/2012       Weatherford, Okla.     W 61-58
*1/31/2013       Magnolia, Ark.             L 66-69 (OT)
*11/23/2013     Magnolia, Ark.             W 76-68
*1/30/2014       Weatherford, Okla.     W 72-63
3/6/2014          Bartlesville, Okla.        L 59-63
*1/10/2015       Weatherford, Okla.     L 73-81
*2/14/2015       Magnolia, Ark.             W 76-70
*12/5/2015       Magnolia, Ark.             W 77-74
*2/6/2016         Weatherford, Okla.     W 71-69
3/3/2016          Bartlesville, Okla.        L 82-83
*12/3/2016       Weatherford, Okla.     W 80-76
*2/2/2017         Magnolia, Ark.             L 65-76
*1/6/2018         Weatherford, Okla.     L 73-84
 
GAC Era: SWOSU leads 9-6
In Weatherford: SWOSU leads 5-2
In Magnolia: SWOSU leads 4-2
In Bartlesville: SAU leads 2-0
 
SWOSU Notes
- Nick Shoemaker scored a season-high 20 points on 7-of-11 shooting against Arkansas Tech, extending his streak of games with a made three-pointer to 36 in the process
- Shoemaker also tied a season-high with six made three-pointers, giving him 144 three-point field goals made in his career and moving him past Kevin Ritter (140, 2000-02) for fifth on the Bulldogs NCAA era list
- Charles Beauregard, Jr., was held to 15 points on 5-of-18 shooting against Arkansas Tech, dropping him to third in the GAC in scoring with an average of 18.9 points per game
- Devin Pugh dropped 17 points in both of SWOSU's games last weekend, giving him five consecutive games in which he has scored 12 points or more
- Pugh is the Bulldogs second-leading scorer at 13.7 points per game while leading the Bulldogs with 43 assists and ranking third in rebounding with 4.6 per game
- Collin Jennings leads SWOSU in rebounds per game with 5.3 and he has 42 assists in his 12 games since returning to the lineup
- Jefkins Agyeman-Budu reached double figures in scoring for the third time this season - all within the past seven games - by putting up 12 points against Arkansas Tech, all in the second half
 
Looking Ahead
- SWOSU concludes their Arkansas road trip on Saturday afternoon against Arkansas-Monticello (Feb. 10)
- The final five games of the 2018 season will be against in-state foes, beginning on February 15th as the Dawgs host Southeastern Oklahoma State