FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (January 15, 2024) – NAU Basketball (10-7, 1-3 Big Sky) is back in Flagstaff this week, hosting Sacramento State (5-11, 1-2 Big Sky) and Portland State (10-6, 2-1) on Thursday night and Saturday night, respectively.
Both games this week will tip-off at 6 p.m. MST at Findlay Toyota Court in the J. Lawrence Walkup Skydome. Thursday night will feature NAU Athletics' 'Country Night' theme while Saturday's will feature 'Hip-Hop Night' as well as the sock drive where all donated socks will go to local Flagstaff community shelters.
NAU is looking to jump back in the win column after dropping its first back-to-back losses of the season. Averaging 79.6 points per game while allowing 71.5 from opponents, the Lumberjacks are shooting 46.9 percent from the field this season. Northern Arizona's hottest shooter,
Trent McLaughlin, averages a league-high 22.8 points per game on 42.1 percent field-goal shooting while ranking second in points per game in the nation, sitting behind Villanova's Eric Dixon (24.8).
McLaughlin is not the only Lumberjack sitting amongst the nation's best, while NAU's
Carson Towt ranks third in the country in rebounds per game (11.6), and second in total double-doubles (11). Towt is one of NAU's three double-digit averaging scorers, at 13.8 points per game. Towt's field goal percentage of 57.1 percent leads the team while ranking fourth in the Big Sky. As a team, the Lumberjacks have outrebounded opponents in 14 of 17 contests, averaging 39.8 a night.
Stepping up for the Lumberjacks,
Jayden Jackson has emerged as one of the Jacks three double-digit scorers, averaging 13.7 points per game while picking up three 20+ point performances in the last six games. Jackson leads the team with 3.6 assists per game, in addition to being second in rebounding, picking up 4.4 boards a game.
Sacramento State will also enter the week on a two-game losing skid, heading on the road for the first time in a month as they just ended a five-game home streak with a 3-2 record. Thursday night will mark the Hornets first conference road matchup. The Hornets lead the Big Sky in scoring defense, holding opponents to just 65.3 points per game. The Hornets average 66.6 points a game themselves, shooting 42.7 percent from the field and 32.6 percent from three-point range on 8.4 attempts a contest.
The Hornets are led by Jacob Holt who averages a team-high 16.4 points per game and a team-high 6.6 rebounds per game. Holt is shooting 51.9 percent from the field while Julian Vaughns follows with 9.9 points a night on 39.8 percent field-goal shooting. Bailey Nunn leads the team with 3.6 assists per game. The Jacks swept the Hornets in both meetings last season, with the last victory being a 73-58 win on Feb. 15, 2024, in Sacramento. A win on Thursday night would mark four-straight over Sacramento State for the Jacks.
Portland State will head to Northern Colorado to take on the Bears on Thursday night before making the trip to Flagstaff. The Vikings are coming off back-to-back Big Sky victories after taking down Eastern Washington 64-59 and Idaho 75-63 last week at home. As a team, the Vikings are averaging 79.8 points per game while holding opponents to 71.3. PSU has won six of their last seven matchups. The Vikings have only allowed 56.9 points per game and 35.4 percent shooting from opponents in the last seven contests.
Led by Jaylin Henderson, the Viks have two players currently averaging double-digit scoring with two more on the cusp. Henderson averages 14.0 points night, trailed by Isaiah Johnson's 10.8, Terri Miller Jr.'s 9.7, and Shane Nowell's 9.4. On the glass, Tre-Vaughn Minott leads his team with 5.9 boards per game, closely followed by Johnson's 5.7. The two teams split the series 1-1 in last season's meetings, as NAU grabbed a 19-point victory over the Vikings in Flagstaff, led by double-digit scoring from McLaughlin, Jackson, and
Oakland Fort.
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