HOUSTON – Coming off its worst performance in three Southland Conference games in a 7-point loss to Sam Houston State, McNeese will look to bounce back on Saturday afternoon when it visits Houston Baptist in another key, early league contest.
 
Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. at HBU's Sharp Gym. The game will air on Cajun Radio 1470/1290 AM and on CajunRadio.com.

McNeese (5-9, 2-1 SLC) dropped its first league game of the season, 74-67, to preseason favorite Sam Houston State on Thursday night.
 
The Cowboys led by three points at the half but got outscored 8-0 to start the second half.
 
A mixture of turnovers, foul trouble and poor shooting was the trifecta in McNeese suffering the loss.
 
"I really believe we beat ourselves," said McNeese coach Dave Simmons after the game. "If Stephen (Ugochukwu) hadn't fouled out and we hit a few of our shots at the right time, I really believe it would've been a different story."
 
Ugochukwu, the team's leading scorer in conference games at 18.5 points going into that game, was held to just four points and 17 minutes of action. He fouled out with just under 10 minutes to play and the Cowboys trailing by just 3. He picked up fouls 2-4 in a 21 second span in the first minute of the second half.
 
With his absence, Lance Potier stepped up to record his second career double-double with a career-high 18 points to go along with 10 rebounds.
 
On the season, three Cowboys are scoring in double-figures to lead the team, led by Jamaya Burr's 11.3 average. Following him are Jarren Greenwood and Kalob Ledoux, both averaging 10.1 points.
 
As a team and in league games only, McNeese has emerged as one of the toughest teams to hit shots on as the Cowboys rank No. 1 in both field goal defense and 3-point field goal defense.
 
Both the Cowboys and Huskies are tied for third in scoring defense (66.7 ppg).
 
HBU (6-7, 2-1) defeated Southeastern Louisiana 81-74 on Thursday night to improve to 5-0 at home on the season.
 
The Huskies are led in scoring by senior forward Colter Lasher's 15.5 points per game. Lasher is coming off a 22-point outing against SLU and has scored 20 or more in three of the last five games.
 
Saturday's game will cap a stretch of four games played in eight days for the Cowboys. They'll have a week break before returning to action on Sunday, Jan. 15 at Southeastern Louisiana.