GAME NOTES: New Orleans/No. 11 Christian Brothers at Delta State Statesmen (2.23-25.12)
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CLEVELAND, Miss. - The Statesmen (5-19, 1-12 GSC) of Delta State University takes a break in Gulf South Conference action welcoming the University of New Orleans (16-12) on Thursday, Feb. 23 to Sillers Coliseum before retuning to league play against No. 13 Christian Brothers University (19-5, 10-3 GSC) for the final home game of the season on Saturday, Feb. 25.  Both games will be broadcast on the Statesmen Sports Network with J.T. Webb and Clayton Coffman on the call.   

Delta State welcomes the University of New Orleans for the first time to Sillers Coliseum on Thursday, Feb. 23. The Statesmen and Privateers have met previously just once, an 81-59 UNO win inside Lakefront Arena.

Saturday, Feb. 25, the Statesmen welcome Christian Brothers University to Sillers Coliseum, looking for their second Gulf South Conference win of the season. Delta State holds the lead in the all-time series over the Buccaneers 49-34. The green-and-white let CBU claim a 75-49 win inside Canale Arena back in January.

Since sophomore guard Aaron Cooper's return to action for the Statesmen, he has provided a spark for the offense. Cooper is 24-for-61 (39.3%) from the floor and 12-for-36 (33.3%) from behind the arc totaling 95 points and is averaging 33.6 minutes of playing time in the seven games since his return including playing the complete 40 minutes in two games against West Georgia and West Alabama. Cooper is averaging 11.8 points per game on the season, and despite being out, is third on the team in assists with 45.

Rob Sikes, 6-foot-8 senior from Biloxi, Miss. showed that he's not just a big body inside the paint this past week against the University of West Alabama as he showed his knack for shooting the three-ball connecting on 3-of-4 of his shots and posting a total of 11 points in the contest. Sikes so far on the season is 5-of-13 (38.5%) from behind the arc.

Terry Leake has stepped up his game since entering Gulf South Conference play averaging 16.0 points, 4 rebounds, and 29.3 minutes through the last 13 games. Leake has also led the Statesmen in scoring in eight of the last 15 games.

Mobile, Ala., native Cornel Knight has helped the Statesmen backcourt this season in a variety of ways. He's averaged 7.9 points per game, connected on nearly 26% from three-point land, has 1.8 steals per game and collected 5.5 rebounds per contest.

Jason Conner enters this week's contests with a 92-69 record in his six seasons as head coach of the Statesmen.  The Lakeland, Fla., native needs just eight wins to top the 100-victories plateau.

Through 40 seasons in the Gulf South Conference, Delta State is second in league history with 684 victories, 15 behind North Alabama (699). The Statesmen boast a .613 winning percentage during that time.

UP NEXT
DSU will begin postseason play next Thursday-Sunday, March 1-4 at the Gulf South Conference Men's Basketball Tournament in Niceville, Fla.  The four-day event will be held at The Arena on the campus of Northwest Florida State College.