RUSTON – Louisiana Tech plays its final non-conference game of the regular season on Monday afternoon, taking on Dallas Christian inside the Thomas Assembly Center on Karl Malone Court.
 
GAME INFORMATION
Date/Time: Monday, Dec. 22 | 1 p.m. CT
Location: Thomas Assembly Center
TV: ESPN+
Radio: LA Tech Sports Network | LA Tech Athletics app
Tickets: LATechSports.com/Tickets
Promotion: Crazy Sweater Game | Christmas ornament giveaway
 
ABOUT LOUISIANA TECH (6-4)
LA Tech was unable to secure its first road win of the season this past Wednesday, falling 61-53 to Tulane in New Orleans. The dif­ference in the game ended up being free throws as the Bulldogs made 14 of their 18 attempts while the Green Wave lived at the charity stripe, sinking 24 of their 31 tries (both were the most by a LA Tech opponent this season).
 
The Bulldogs did enough defensively, holding the Green Wave to just 61 points on 17 made field goals and just three made three-pointers, all of which were season lows for Tulane. LA Tech continues to rank No. 1 in the country in scoring defense, allow­ing just 57.3 points per game. The 'Dogs also rank top 10 in both field goal percentage defense (36.0) and three-point field goal percentage defense (25.2).
 
LA Tech won the rebounding battle for an eighth time this sea­son, owning a 43-32 edge over the Green Wave. Of the 43 boards, 19 of those were offensive (second most in a single game), marking the fifth time this season with 15+ offensive rebounds. The Bulldogs currently rank top 30 in the nation in rebounds per game (41.70) and rebounding margin (+10.0).
 
DJ Dudley scored in double figures for a sixth straight game, netting a game-high 17 points at Tulane (fourth time anchoring the Bulldogs in scoring). During this six-game stretch, the guard is averaging 16.8 points while shooting 50.0 percent from the field and 44.8 percent from beyond the arc. He has made 7+ field goals in four of the six games. He is currently second on the team in scoring at 11.9 points per contest, having played every minute of the last two games.
 
AJ Bates reached double-digit points for the sixth time this sea­son with 10 points to go along with four assists versus the Green Wave. Over the last six contests, the sophomore is averaging 16.0 points while shooting 54.0 percent from the field. He made two three-pointers at Tulane, giving him a team-high 14 on the season (shooting 42.4 percent from deep). The point guard, who is averaging a team-high 12.6 points per game, also anchors the squad in assists with an average of 5.9 dimes per game, which ranks 27th in the nation. He is one of only two CUSA players currently averaging over 12 points and five assists.
 
Kaden Cooper pulled down a team-high seven boards at Tu­lane, anchoring the team in rebounding for a fifth time this sea­son (23rd time in his Bulldog career). The junior currently ranks 60th in the country in rebounds per game (8.3). He also leads LA Tech in total blocks (11) and steals (12). The guard has recorded at least one steal in 30 of his 42 games as a Bulldog).
 
ABOUT DALLAS CHRISTIAN (4-9)
Dallas Christian College is a private Christian college in Farmers Branch, Texas. The Crusad­ers participate in the National Christian Col­lege Athletic Association. DCC is in the NCCAA Division II Southwest di­vision along with Arlington Baptist, Champion Christian, College of Biblical Studies, Randall, and Southwestern Adventist. This will be the second NCCAA opponent the Bulldogs will face this non-conference season. LA Tech hosted Ecclesia College back on Dec. 7 in the TAC.
 
The Crusaders opened the season with back-to-back victories over Huston Tillotson and North Texas at Dallas. However, DCC has lost nine of its last 11 games including a pair of defeats to Howard Payne and McMurry in the HPU Tournament. DCC has also played three exhibition games so far this season against East Texas A&M, Midwestern State, and most recently Texas A&M-Corpus Christi which resulted in a 108- 55 loss to the Islanders.
 
DCC is averaging 74.8 points per game this season. The Crusaders do a good bit of scoring damage from the foul line where they shoot 70.1 percent while averaging 18.0 made free throws per game. They have attempted at least 20 free throws in 10 of their 13 games.
 
Carlas Canady is the top scorer for the Crusad­ers, averaging 12.0 points per contest. The se­nior guard has scored in double figures eight times this season, including a season-high 20 against Ouachita Baptist. He has gotten to the charity stripe 93 times, making 60 of them. Canaday also averages 4.9 rebounds and an­chors the team in assists (32) and steals (26).
 
THE SERIES
LA Tech and Dallas Christian have faced off only once in their history with the Bulldogs prevailing 96-55 back during the 2023-24 season.
 
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