The Nicholls Colonels fell to the UNO Privateers 80-62 at Stopher Gym on Tuesday, Jan. 27.

The Colonels (8-13 overall, 6-6 in Southland Conference play) opened the game strong with five quick points from star guard Jaylen Searles, who finished the game with 12 points. The Privateers (8-13, 7-5 SLC) took the lead after about three minutes in the first half. 

Zee Hamoda caught fire with about 10 minutes in the half, hitting back to back three pointers and a layup. He finished the half with 12 points and ended the game with 19. The Colonels trailed by 10 going into halftime.

About halfway through the second half the Privateers began to pull away, extending their lead to 16. Churchill Abass led UNO with 20 points on a perfect 8/8 shooting, as  they held onto their lead the rest of the game.

Reasons for the Loss

• Interior Dominance

UNO out rebounded Nicholls 48-28 which allowed for 7 more second chance points. Nicholls had just 20 points in the paint compared to UNO’s 44, their ability to control the paint forced the Colonels into less ideal shots.

• Shooting Percentage

The Colonels shot 36.1% from the field, 30.3% from the 3-point line and 53.3% on free throws all below the Division I average. UNO shot 47.4% from the field, 33.3% from three and 80.8% on free throws better than the Colonels across the board.

Notable Performances

• Sincere Malone played the entire game, he tied his season high with eight assists and had three steals.
• Zee Hamoda led the Colonels in scoring with 19, rebounds with seven and field goal percentage with 50%.
• Jalik Dunkley had 13 points and tied with Malone for a team high three steals.