LOUISIANA TECH 2024-25 BULLDOG BASKETBALL
All home games CAPS | All times CST and subject to change # Icons of the Game (Long Island, N.Y.) ^ Gulf Coast Showcase (Estero, Fla.) * Conference USA game | $ Huntsville, Ala.
A LA TECH WIN... • Would give the Bulldogs their 12th win of the season. LA Tech has won at least 12 of its first 14 games seven times in program history with the last time coming in the 2015-16 season. • Would give the Bulldogs their eighth win over the Miners in the Don Haskins Center. LA Tech has won three of the last four matchups in El Paso. • Would give the Bulldogs their 14th win over the Miners as CUSA foes. LA Tech is 13-6 versus UTEP as CUSA opponents.
@LATECHHOOPS
AT UTEP MINERS (10-3)
Head Coach: Joe Golding Record at UTEP: 62-51 (4th year) Career Record: 220-195 (14th year) Record vs. LA Tech: 2-4
AP Poll: NR Coaches Poll: NR NET Ranking: 94
AP Poll: NR Coaches Poll: NR NET Ranking: 142
BULLDOG STORYLINES & PROJECTED STARTERS
9.7 ppg | 2.6 rpg | 9.8 apg
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• LA Tech shot 56.4 percent from the field versus the Bearcats, marking the fifth straight game eclipsing 50 percent shooting (first time done since 2016). The Bulldogs are one of only 19 teams in the country shooting over 50 percent from the field this season, ranking 11th at 50.9.
AMAREE ABRAM
• LA Tech closed out non-conference with an 11-2 record, its best since 2015. The last victory was a 108-60 win against Rust College, the second time this season eclipsing the century mark. The Bulldogs registered a program record 33 assists, breaking the previous mark of 31 set in 1971.
4 SEAN NEWMAN JR.
• Louisiana Tech takes a four-game winning streak to El Paso as they open Conference USA play on Thursday against UTEP. It will be LA Tech’s 12th season in CUSA, a slate that will include 18 games. The Bulldogs, who will be playing for the first time in 12 days (longest Christmas break between games since 2012), are 8-3 all-time in CUSA openers.
• The Bulldogs scored a season-high 64 paint points against Rust College. LA Tech is averaging exactly 40.0 paint points per game, having scored 40+ points in the paint in each of its last four games. • Sean Newman Jr. was named CUSA Player of the Week for week seven after averaging 16.0 points and 14.5 assists in LA Tech’s two victories over WAC preseason favorite Grand Canyon and Rust College. The point guard scored a career-high 25 points to go along with nine assists versus the Lopes then broke the LA Tech and CUSA single-game assist record with 20 dimes against the Bearcats. He currently ranks first in the country in assists per game (9.8) and second in total assists (128), having posted six games with double-digit assists. • Daniel Batcho registered his fifth 20+ scoring performance, tallying a game-high 27 versus the Bearcats (has scored in double figures in 20 straight games). He also tied his season high with 11 rebounds, giving him his second double-double of the season. The CUSA Preseason Player of the Year is averaging 20.0 points per game while shooting 74.6 percent from the field, which leads the country. Defensively, his 35 total blocks rank fifth in the nation. • Amaree Abram has been one of the most consistent Bulldogs this season, both offensively and defensively. He is second on the team in scoring at 13.7 points per game, reaching double figures in 11 of the 13 contests. He has made a team-best 29 three-pointers, having made multiple threes in six straight games (shooting 44.1 percent from beyond the arc during that span). On defense, he has recorded at least one steal in all 13 games, posting a team-high 29 which ranks top 40 in the nation. • Talvin Hester is in his third season at the helm at LA Tech. In his second year, Hester was able to blend in seven newcomers in route to a 22-win season and a second-place finish in CUSA. He will be tasked with the same thing as seven newcomers join the 2024-25 squad, mixed in with six returners (five of which made a combined 67 starts last season). • LA Tech was picked to finish first in the Conference USA preseason poll, as voted on by the league head coaches. It was definitely not unanimous as five of the 10 conference teams picked up at least one first-place vote and the top three were separated by only four points. This marks the first time since 2014 that the Bulldogs are preseason league favorites.
@LATECHHOOPS
13.7 ppg | 4.8 rpg | 2.2 spg
KADEN 11 COOPER
Overall: 11-2 | CUSA: 0-0 | H: 5-1 | A: 2-1 | N: 4-0 NOVEMBER MEDIA W/L SCORE 4 LSU-ALEXANDRIA ESPN+ W 77-50 9 at UT Arlington ESPN+ W 92-77 13 vs. UMass# MSG+ W 76-66 18 MISSISSIPPI COLLEGE ESPN+ W 105-67 25 vs. Southern Illinois^ FloCollege W 85-79OT 26 vs. Richmond^ FloCollege W 65-62 27 vs. Eastern Kentucky^ FloCollege W 78-69 30 SOUTHERN ESPN+ L 70-73 DECEMBER 4 at #16 Memphis ESPN+ L 71-81 8 at UL-Lafayette ESPN+ W 69-58 13 GEORGIA SOUTHERN ESPN+ W 77-63 16 GRAND CANYON ESPN+ W 74-66 21 RUST COLLEGE ESPN+ W 108-60 JANUARY 2 at UTEP* ESPN+ 8 p.m. 4 at New Mexico State* ESPN+ 3 p.m. 9 FIU* ESPN+ 6:30 p.m. 11 LIBERTY* ESPNU 7 p.m. 16 at Jacksonville State* ESPN+ 6 p.m. 18 at Kennesaw State* ESPN+ 4 p.m. 23 WKU* CBS SN 6 p.m. 25 MIDDLE TENNESSEE* ESPNU 5:30 p.m. FEBRUARY 1 SAM HOUSTON* ESPNU 3 p.m. 6 at Liberty* CBS SN 7 p.m. 8 at FIU* ESPN+ 1 p.m. 13 KENNESAW STATE* ESPN+ 6:30 p.m. 15 JACKSONVILLE STATE* ESPN+ 3 p.m. 20 at Middle Tennessee* CBS SN 8 p.m. 22 at WKU* ESPN+ 7 p.m. MARCH 1 at Sam Houston* ESPN+ 4:30 p.m. 6 NEW MEXICO STATE* ESPN+ 6:30 p.m. 8 UTEP* ESPN+ 2 p.m. 11 CUSA Championship$ ----- TBA
Head Coach: Talvin Hester Record at LA Tech: 48-30 (3rd year) Career Record: Same Record vs. UTEP: 3-1
12.8 ppg | 8.3 rpg | 2.2 spg
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2024-25 SCHEDULE
LOUISIANA TECH BULLDOGs (11-2)
AL GREEN
DATE/TIME: Thursday, Jan. 2 | 8:00 p.m. CT LOCATION: Don Haskins Center (El Paso, Texas) SERIES HISTORY: LA Tech leads, 20-14 STREAK: LA Tech, 3 LAST MEETING: Feb. 22, 2024 | El Paso, Texas LA Tech 65, UTEP 59 MEDIA: ESPN+ TALENT: Andy Morgan (pxp), Bobby Braswell (analyst) RADIO: LA Tech Sports Network | LA Tech Athletics app STATS: LATechSports.com/Stats
GAME 14 MATCHUP
8.8 ppg | 2.1 rpg | 1.0 spg
DANIEL 13 BATCHO
GAMEDAY INFO
20.0 ppg | 6.8 rpg | 2.7 bpg
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