ODU (3-8) vs. ULM (4-9)
WHEN: Saturday, Dec. 21 - 3:00 p.m.
WHERE: Monroe, La.
Live Stats: Click Here!
WATCH: ESPN+
LISTEN - ESPN Radio 94.1
SOCIAL MEDIA - X, Facebook, Instagram
NORFOLK, Va. – The Old Dominion men’s basketball team (3-8) will travel to Monroe, La. to face off against ULM (4-9) on Saturday, December 21 at 3 p.m. in the Sun Belt Conference opener.
The game will have live stats and will be streamed on ESPN+. Ted Alexander and Dennis Wolff will be on the call for ESPN Radio 94.1.
Old Dominion faced off against the Warhawks for the first time in program history on January 20, 2024. ODU fell 80-73 in Norfolk fueled by 20 points from Tyreke Locure and 16 points by Tyreese Watson. Chaunce Jenkins scored 20 points and played 36 minutes in the loss.
ABOUT ODU:
ODU will aim to bounce back from back-to-back single digit defeats, losing to George Washington 78-70 and Northeastern 75-71. Old Dominion was tied for eighth place with Georgia Southern in the 2024 Sun Belt Men’s Basketball Preseason Coaches Poll.
Robert Davis Jr. leads the team in scoring with 12.7 ppg, three-point attempts, and makes (33-for-88) averaging 3.30 per game ranking 28th nationally. Devin Ceaser, a junior from Waldorf, Maryland provides a spark off the bench for the Monarchs, averaging 12.5 ppg. Caelum Swanton-Rodger is coming off his highest scoring game of his career, scoring 12 points in 21 minutes played. The junior transfer from Maryland has been a deterrent in the paint swatting away 20 blocks this season which puts him 35th in the nation. Sean Durugordon, a transfer from Siena and native of Harlem, New York has made it a knack of securing offensive boards, averaging 3.73 per game and placing him at 16th in the NCAA. Stepahun Walker, a junior transfer out of Robert Morris, grabbed a season high 14 rebounds in the loss to Northeastern. He now has 21 offensive rebounds in the past four games, sitting at 44th in the NCAA with 3.18 per game.
The Monarchs are shooting 40% from the field and average 67.9 ppg, the squad averages 6.1 three pointers per game. 5.2 steals per game, and 3.3 blocks per game. ODU has played in the largest attendance of all Sun Belt teams averaging 4,819 seats filled at each home game. ODU’s opponents this season have averaged an attendance of 7,857. A second half team, the Monarchs have scored 410 of their 747 points this season in the latter half of the game.
Mike Jones took over as head coach of the Monarchs from long-time coach Jeff Jones who moved into a mentor role for ODU at the end of the 2023 season. For just the second time in program history, Old Dominion University has hired an alumnus to coach the men's basketball team. Jones played for the Monarchs from 1991-95 and was a part of two tournament championship teams, he returned to ODU after spending this past season as an assistant coach at Maryland.
ABOUT ULM:
The Warhawks head into this game on a two game skid, having lost to UT Arlington, 77-68, and Houston Christian, 74-68. ULM has scored over 100 points in half of their victories this season, beating Champion Christian, 111-61, and Ecclesia, 110-48. ULM is ranked 344 in NCAA Net Ranking, 335 in Kenpom, and has a -8.7 BPI.
Jalen Bolden leads ULM in scoring and rebounding, averaging 12.8 ppg. and 6.8 rpg. Tyresse Watson ranks second in points per game (10.8) and leads the team in assists with 52. The Warhawks have eight players who average over 15 minutes per game.
As a team, ULM is shooting a combined .439 while conceding an average of .438. Netting 84 threes on the season and shooting an average of .317 from deep. From the stripe, ULM averages a free throw percentage of 69%. The Warhawks have soared higher than their competition as they have outrebounded their opponents this season by a margin of +73 in total rebounds, as well as +32 in offensive rebounds. A team with active hands, both Bolden and Watson have 20+ steals this season. ULM was picked to finish 14th in the 2024 Sun Belt Men’s Basketball Preseason Coaches Poll.
UP NEXT:
ODU will host Virginia Wesleyan on Saturday, Dec. 28 at 4 p.m. The Monarchs rekindle Sun Belt Conference play on Thursday, Jan. 2 against Arkansas State.
Season Tickets Available Now
Men's and women's basketball season tickets for the 2024-25 season are available now at odusports.com/basketball-season-tickets.
Men's basketball season tickets cost $217 covering all of ODU’s regular season home contests. Women's basketball season tickets cost $115 for adults and include tickets to all of the Monarchs' home games. Discounted season ticket rates are available for ODU faculty and staff, ODU letterwinners, young alumni, band and spirit parents and military. Fans also have the option for mini-plans which consist of six men’s games for $84 and six women’s games for $42. Single-game tickets are now on sale. Call the ODU Ticket Office at 757-683-4444 for more information.