WASHINGTON (March 1, 2019) – Howard University men's basketball team continues its four-game road swing in Savannah, Ga. where the Savannah State Tigers (SSU) await. Saturday's crucial conference showdown starts 6 p.m.
Fans can follow all the action at
www.SSUAthletics.com.
LAST TIMEOUT
Monday (Feb. 25), the Bison used a second half surge to earn a 75-69 come-from-behind road win against Morgan State inside the Hill Field House.
HU shot 59-percent (16-of-27) from the field in the second half while limiting Morgan State to just 35-percent (8-of-23) shooting after the break.
Sophomore
RJ Cole (Union, N.J.) led all scorers with 19 points, six steals, five rebounds and four assists. Freshman
Andre Toure (Paris, France) provided a spark off the bench, finishing with 14 points (career-high) and four boards.
As a result, both Bison earned Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) weekly honors. Cole took home his fourth MEAC Co-Player of the Week award while Toure picked up his second top rookie weekly honor.
MATCHUP PREVIEW
HOWARD
HU (14-15, 8-6 MEAC) seeks its first 15-win season in more than four years while securing a first-round bye in the conference tourney.
Cole, redshirt junior
Chad Lott (Shreveport, La.) and junior
Charles Williams (Richmond, Va.) spearhead the Bison attack, combining for nearly 54 points per game.
"They are going to get a lot of the attention," said Howard men's basketball head coach
Kevin Nickelberry. "They are going to be a lot of eyes on RJ [Cole], CJ [
Charles Williams] and Chad [Lott] so we need to play off that and still get the shots we want [to shoot]."
In the last six games, HU's bench has averaged 21.8 points, including 20-plus in the last four games. In that span, the Bison have won four-out-of-six contests.
"We must continue to get better," Nickelberry added. "It starts with defense and getting touches for RJ, CJ and Chad with the other guys playing around them."
SAVANNAH STATE
SSU (10-18, 7-7 MEAC) sits in the sixth spot, looking to earn a first-round bye of their own with a victory.
Savannah State's fast-pace tempo leads the nation in three-point attempts (1,055) while topping the league in trey balls made (308).
Jaquan Dotson (12.9 ppg) and Zach Sellers (12.6 ppg) lead the Tigers in scoring.
UPCOMING SCHEDULE
Thursday (March 7), Howard concludes the regular season at Norfolk State. Tip-off at 8 p.m. inside Echols Memorial Hall.
For more information, visit the Bison Athletics website at
www.HUBison.com.
