GameDay Central | Game Notes

RUSTON -- After going coast to coast in November taking on opponents, Louisiana Tech will not leave its home state for all of December.

The month starts off for the Bulldogs with a matchup against in-state foe Southeastern Louisiana on Saturday night at 6 p.m. inside the Thomas Assembly Center.

The game is the second of three in the TAC as part of part of the multi-team event that is the California Bears Classic. LA Tech (3-3) is perfect at home this season, pushing its winning streak to 10 which is tied for the 19th longest in the country, and has won 24 straight non-conference home games.

The Bulldogs nearly ended California's 23-game home winning streak this past Wednesday, but the Bears were able to escape with a 68-59 win in overtime.

Down a couple of key players, the `Dogs still played as good of a defensive game as one could possibly have by holding Cal to just 17 percent shooting from the arc. On top of being undermanned, LA Tech was also undersized yet still held its own on the glass by being outrebounded by only four.

One of the key contributors in the near upset was sophomore guard Derric Jean who had an all-around performance with a team-high 13 points, seven boards, six assists and two steals. He is currently averaging 10.5 points, 4.3 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game.

Then there is the other point guard, cat-quick DaQuan Bracey, who continues to play more like a veteran than a true freshman. The sixth man currently has 24 assists to only three turnovers which ranks third in Division I basketball.

Their perimeter defense will be crucial come Saturday against Southeastern Louisiana (5-3) who have won four of its last six games, including an impressive 62-56 victory at UTEP and most recently an 85-75 win over Maryland Eastern Shore.

As a team, the Lions rank 16th in the country in three-point field goal percentage (41.4). They were 11-of-22 from long range in this past Wednesday's victory versus the Hawks.

Among those lighting it up from beyond the arc are Marlain Vail who is averaging 16.9 points per game. The guard has had to pick up the slack for Jordan Capps who was averaging a team-best 22.0 points and 8.5 rebounds per contest before suffering an injury two games into the season.

The two Louisiana schools will go at it on the hardwood for the first time since Nov. 29, 2012. LA Tech was down by as much as 22-8 to Southeastern but stormed back to win 99-62 at home, scoring 91 points in 26+ minutes of action.

LA Tech has won 16 of the last 17 meetings in the series against SLU as well as 20 straight in Ruston. The in-state battle was at its peak from 1945-71 when they played twice a season as foes in the Gulf States Conference.

Fans can access live video via the Internet by subscribing to CUSA.tv. The game can also be heard live on the LA Tech Sports Network on KXKZ 107.5 FM (Ruston), KVJC 92.7 FM (Mansfield), KTKC 92.9 FM (Springhill) and on the LA Tech X Mobile app. Kyle Roberts will call the play-by-play and Jack Thigpen will provide analysis.

Twitter users can receive live in-game updates by following @LATechHoops.