Southern Arkansas men's and women's basketball teams picked up wins against different teams Thursday night at the W.T. Watson Athletic Center.
The Lady Muleriders, who will also play at home this afternoon, won by 50 points, 101-51, over Arlington Baptist, while the Muleriders survived a tight 78-77 outcome against Arlington Baptist.
The Muleriders were also in action on their home court Friday night against Ecclesia, while the Lady Muleriders will look to move their record to 4-0 this afternoon at 2 p.m. against Centenary.
In action Thursday, the Lady Muleriders saw seven players end up in double figures led by Sihirah Reese's 12 points and nine rebounds. Lynn Griffin and Layla Carter followed with 11 points each, and four other players scored 10 points. A 37-point second quarter jump started the Lady Muleriders after the two teams managed just 20 first-quarter points as SAU led 12-8 through one. SAU outscored ABU 52-29 in the second half.
The SAU women shot 41.7% from the floor and turned 35 ABU turnovers into 38 points. Southern Arkansas gathered 25 steals and collected the second-most rebounds in a game with 72 as SAU finished +32 in rebounding.
The Muleriders used a double-double of 18 points and 14 rebounds with six assists and three steals from senior Gregory Hammond Jr. to outlast a pesky Patriots squad. Hammond blocked a three-quarter court heave by ABU to preserve the victory. The Muleriders led 37-35 at the half and were outscored 42-41 in the second twenty minutes despite leading by as much as 14 points with 14 minutes to play.
SAU scored seven more points off of turnovers than the Patriots. The Muleriders shot 44.1% from the floor and made eight three-point attempts. Three players, Mohamed Traore, Jaren Harris and Carel Ray Jr., joined Hammond in double figures for SAU.
