A week between games was a welcome arrival ahead of senior night at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff.
The UAPB men’s basketball team will host Mississippi Valley State for its final game at H.O. Clemmons Arena this season at 5:30 p.m. Saturday.
UAPB Coach Solomon Bozeman said this week of practice is vital since the Golden Lions didn’t have much practice time last week and won’t have any next week, given the schedule.
“For the most part, we’re going to be who we are,” Bozeman said. “We do have some things that we’ll add, might have some twists for some teams. But right now, our main focus is on Mississippi Valley and focusing on ourselves, honestly, just being disciplined on the defensive and offensive end.”
UAPB (12-16, 9-6 SWAC) had to play four games in eight days between Feb. 14-21 — two on the road and two at home. The Golden Lions, which had been on a five-game winning streak, lost the first three of that stretch before senior guard Quion Williams delivered a game-winning jumper to beat Prairie View A&M 84-82 last Saturday.
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
Sixth man Ramel Lloyd Jr. missed those four games with an ankle injury. Bozeman said he will be a game-time decision on Saturday. Lloyd’s 6.9 points per game are the most by any UAPB bench player, as are his 20.6 minutes per game.
Saturday’s game against Valley (2-27, 1-14) comes after UAPB had a week to practice and prepare for the final stretch of the regular season, which will feature three games in six days. UAPB will travel to Jackson State and Alcorn State following its home finale.
All three remaining opponents are teams the Golden Lions defeated the first time they met, but rematches with such teams haven’t gone well so far. UAPB is 0-3 this season against teams it had previously beaten, though the Golden Lions avenged their prior loss to Prairie View in that rematch.
Senior guard Alex Mirhosseini said the Golden Lions need to be more disciplined in these rematches going forward.
“That’s the only reason we been losing the second games, the second time we played the teams,” Mirhosseini said. “We’re playing into their strengths, not our strengths.”
Valley junior guard Michael James led the Delta Devils with 25 points when UAPB and Valley first met on Jan. 31 in Itta Bena, Miss. He is the SWAC’s third-leading scorer since the start of SWAC play with 22.9 per game.
James is one of two reigning SWAC Co-Newcomers of the Week alongside Koron Davis of Alabama A&M. James scored the game-winning layup last Saturday when the Delta Devils defeated Texas Southern, 72-71. He finished with a game-high 24 points after scoring 20 two days prior against Prairie View A&M.
Bozeman said he loves how James plays.
“He’s one of those guys that you gotta get in his chest,” Bozeman said. “He can really shoot the basketball. He can shoot it. He can score it. He’s a three-level scorer. We just gotta throw different bodies at him and use our size and length on him to kind of slow him down. He’s a tough cover, man, because he’s got the green light. He’s extra confident.”
Valley’s win against Texas Southern, which came two days after Texas Southern defeated UAPB 83-64 in Pine Bluff, was its first win this season against a Division I foe.
The Delta Devils had close calls prior to the breakthrough against Texas Southern. Valley took Utah Tech to double overtime on Nov. 14, then lost by seven points to Manhattan the next day. On Jan. 10, Valley fell 70-69 at Prairie View. UAPB defeated Valley 78-70 last month, and the Devils have had two more single-digit losses since.
Monday’s 83-62 loss at Grambling State means Valley won’t be coming off a win when it arrives in Pine Bluff, but Bozeman said Delta Devils Coach George Ivory has done well with his team.
“He has those guys up for every game,” Bozeman said. “They’ve been in every game. Even the Grambling game, they got beat by, I think, 19, but that was a two-point game for a lot of that game. Our guys gotta be focused. Coach Ivory used to coach here, so it’s always going to be personal for him.”
Valley is 0-16 on the road this season, while UAPB is 7-3 at home. A UAPB win would clinch the Golden Lions’ first winning season in SWAC play since 2018-19, when Ivory was the head coach.