The LSU men’s basketball team puts a couple of win streaks on the line Friday night at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center as the Tigers host ULM in the final non-conference game of the 2018-19 season.

The Tigers and Warhawks will tip at 7 p.m. in a game streamed on SEC Network + (Lyn Rollins and Victor Howell) and broadcast on the affiliates of the LSU Sports Radio Network (Patrick Wright, John Brady).

Tickets are available online at LSUtix.net and on game day at the upper concourse ticket windows of the Maravich Center beginning at 5:30 p.m. LSU students are admitted free of charge with a valid student ID.

LSU will be going for its 15th consecutive win in the building against ULM dating back to last year. The Tigers won its final six regular season home games a year ago and a post-season NIT game against UL-Lafayette. LSU has won its first seven home games this season in going 9-3 on the year. The 14-game winning streak is tied for the sixth longest in the long 48 year history of the building.

The Tigers have also won 18 straight games against Louisiana competition, including three this year (Southeastern, Louisiana Tech, Grambling State). LSU’s last loss at home against Louisiana competition was on Nov. 16, 2010 against Nicholls State.

ULM comes in at 7-4 after a Dec. 21 win over Coppin State. Coached by Baton Rouge native Keith Richard, who served two years on Trent Johnson’s LSU staff as an assistant, is in his 18th year as a head coach, having served nine years as head coach at Louisiana Tech prior to joining the LSU staff, and he is now in his ninth year as head coach at ULM.

ULM is on a four-game win streak having wins over Grambling, Stephen F. Austin, Nicholls and Coppin State. The Warhawks are led by Wichita State transfer Daishon Smith at 18.0 points a game, Travis Munnings (who had 32 with eight treys against Coppin State) averaged 14.5, Michael Ertel 13.1 and JD Williams 12.7 points a game.

The Tigers come in off a Dec. 21 win over No. 24 and previously undefeated Furman before a Christmas break that ended when the team returned to practice late on Wednesday afternoon.

In that game, Tremont Waters, who was named the Louisiana Sports Writers Association Player of the Week, played 35 minutes off the bench and had 20 points and seven assists. Skylar Mays had 16 points, Kavell Bigby-Williams had 10 points and 10 rebounds and Naz Reid had nine points and 10 rebounds.

LSU played one its best defensive games in the 75-57 win, forcing multiple turnovers and imposing its will at the start of the second half when the Tigers for the second straight game made a sustaining run. 
“I thought we guarded them really well,” LSU Coach Will Wade said of the Furman game. “They are a really, really good offensive team. Thirteen of their 27 points at halftime were off of our turnovers. Our turnovers are loud turnovers too where we just hand you the ball and give you a runway to lay it in. We still had a few too many of those. I thought overall our defense was good. We contested a lot of shots. We rebounded them. I thought it was good. Our offense helped our defense as well.”

The Tigers turned the ball over 13 times in the first half, but just three in the final 20 minutes as it broke over a four-point halftime lead.

After Friday night’s game, LSU is off until it opens Southeastern Conference play on Tuesday, Jan. 8, at home against Alabama.

(Press Release Provided by LSU Athletics)