2020–21 Nicholls Colonels men's basketball team

2020–21 Nicholls Colonels men's basketball
2020–21 Nicholls Colonels men's basketball
Southland regular season champions
Conference	Southland Conference
Record	18–7 (14–2 Southland)
Head coach	Austin Claunch (3rd season);
Associate head coach	Trevor Deloach
Assistant coaches	Nick Bowman; Joey Brooks;
Home arena	Stopher Gymnasium
	Seasons ← 2019–20 2021–22 →

The 2020–21 Nicholls Colonels men's basketball team represented Nicholls State University in the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Colonels, led by third-year head coach Austin Claunch, played their home games at Stopher Gymnasium in Thibodaux, Louisiana as members of the Southland Conference.

2020–21 Southland Conference men's basketball standings
v t e	Conf				Overall
Team	W		L	PCT	W		L	PCT
Nicholls	14	–	2	.875	18	–	7	.720
Abilene Christian †	13	–	2	.867	24	–	5	.828
Sam Houston State	13	–	3	.813	19	–	9	.679
Stephen F. Austin*	12	–	3	.800	16	–	5	.762
Northwestern State	9	–	7	.563	11	–	18	.379
New Orleans	8	–	7	.533	10	–	15	.400
Lamar	6	–	10	.375	10	–	18	.357
Incarnate Word	5	–	9	.357	8	–	14	.364
Southeastern Louisiana	5	–	10	.333	8	–	18	.308
McNeese State	4	–	10	.286	10	–	14	.417
Houston Baptist	4	–	11	.267	6	–	19	.240
Central Arkansas	4	–	12	.250	5	–	19	.208
Texas A&M–CC	2	–	13	.133	5	–	19	.208
*Ineligible for postseason due to postseason ban

† 2021 Southland tournament winner

Previous season

The Colonels finished the 2019–20 season 21–10, 15–5 in Southland play to finish in a tie for second place. They were set to take on Lamar in the second round of the Southland tournament until the tournament was cancelled amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Roster

2020–21 Nicholls Colonels men's basketball team

Players

Coaches

Pos.	#	Name	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown
G	0	Ty Gordon	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	RS Jr	Tunica, Mississippi
F	1	Jaylen Fornes	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	210 lb (95 kg)	RS Sr	Pamlico County, North Carolina
G	1	AJ Fainey	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	155 lb (70 kg)	RS Jr	Gray, Louisiana
G	3	Kevin Johnson	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	160 lb (73 kg)	Sr	Thibodaux, Louisiana
F	4	Damien Sears	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	245 lb (111 kg)	RS Sr	Haughton, Louisiana
F	5	Najee Garvin	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	210 lb (95 kg)	RS Jr	Lexington, South Carolina
F	10	Anquaevious Pollard	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	Jr	Lanett, Alabama
G	11	Jeremiah Buford	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	Sr	Atlanta, Georgia
G	13	Andre Jones	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	RS Sr	Little Rock, Arkansas
F	14	Taylor Blanchard	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	165 lb (75 kg)	Fr	Morgan City, Louisiana
G	15	Tyrease Terrell	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	165 lb (75 kg)	So	Slidell, Louisiana
C	21	Ryghe Lyons	6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)	280 lb (127 kg)	Sr	Slidell, Louisiana
G	24	Quinn Strander	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	175 lb (79 kg)	Fr	Thibodaux, Louisiana
G	25	Pierce Spencer	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	175 lb (79 kg)	Fr	Porter, Texas
G	35	Isaac Johnson	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	210 lb (95 kg)	RS Jr	Minneapolis, Minnesota
G	55	Shawn Williams	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	Sr	Little Rock, Arkansas

Head coach

Austin Claunch (Emory)

Assistant coach(es)

Trevor Deloach (UNCW)
Nick Bowman (Eastern Kentucky)
Joey Brooks (Notre Dame)

Legend

(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible
(W) Walk-on

Injured
Current redshirt

Roster
Last update: December 8, 2020

Schedule and results

Due to COVID-19 protocol, Nicholls suspended activities from December 7 through December 26, cancelling five scheduled games.^[1]

Date time, TV	Rank^#	Opponent^#	Result	Record	Site (attendance) city, state
Regular season
November 25, 2020* 9:00 pm		vs. UC Davis Bronco Invitational	W 101–93	1–0	Leavey Center Santa Clara, CA
November 27, 2020* 6:00 pm		vs. Idaho State Bronco Invitational	W 70–51	2–0	Leavey Center Santa Clara, CA
November 28, 2020* 6:00 pm		at Santa Clara Bronco Invitational	L 57–73	2–1	Leavey Center Santa Clara, CA
November 30, 2020* 6:30 pm, P12N		at California	W 60–49	2–2	Haas Pavilion Berkeley, CA
December 1, 2020* 9:00 pm		at Saint Mary's	L 50–73	2–3	University Credit Union Pavilion Moraga, CA
December 8, 2020* 8:00 pm		at No. 2 Baylor	Canceled due to COVID-19 issues		Ferrell Center Waco, Texas
December 10, 2020* 7:00 pm		Campbellsville	Canceled due to COVID-19 issues		Stopher Gymnasium Thibodaux, LA
December 12, 2020* 7:00 pm		Carver	Canceled due to COVID-19 issues		Stopher Gymnasium Thibodaux, LA
December 15, 2020* 7:00 pm		Arlington Baptist	Canceled due to COVID-19 issues		Stopher Gymnasium Thibodaux, LA
December 23, 2020*		at Southern Illinois	Canceled due to COVID-19 issues		Banterra Center Carbondale, IL
December 26, 2020* 1:00 pm, SECN		at LSU	L 80–86	2–4	Pete Maravich Assembly Center (2,198) Baton Rouge, LA
December 27, 2020* 5:00 pm		Paul Quinn	Canceled due to COVID-19 issues		Stopher Gymnasium Thibodaux, LA
December 28, 2020* 12:00 pm		Paul Quinn	Canceled due to COVID-19 issues		Stopher Gymnasium Thibodaux, LA
January 2, 2021 5:00 pm, ESPN+		Sam Houston State	L 81–84	2–5 (0–1)	Stopher Gymnasium (200) Thibodaux, LA
January 6, 2021 7:00 pm		Lamar	W 76–69	3–5 (1–1)	Stopher Gymnasium (200) Thibodaux, LA
January 9, 2021 5:00 pm		Southeastern Louisiana	W 87–67	4–5 (2–1)	Stopher Gymnasium (211) Thibodaux, LA
January 13, 2021 6:30 pm		at Northwestern State	W 76–66	5–5 (3–1)	Prather Coliseum (1,000) Natchitoches, LA
January 16, 2021 4:00 pm		at Central Arkansas	W 74–72	6–5 (4–1)	Stopher Gymnasium (258) Thibodaux, LA
January 20, 2021 7:00 pm		at Houston Baptist	W 92–83	7–5 (5–1)	Sharp Gymnasium (140) Houston, TX
January 23, 2021 5:00 pm		New Orleans	W 86–62	8–5 (6–1)	Stopher Gymnasium (230) Thibodaux, LA
January 24, 2021 2:00 pm		Carver rescheduled from December 12	W 105–60	9–5	Stopher Gymnasium (97) Thibodaux, LA
January 27, 2021 7:00 pm		McNeese State	W 76–69	10–5 (7–1)	Stopher Gymnasium (230) Thibodaux, LA
February 6, 2021 5:00 pm, ESPN+		at Sam Houston State	L 71–78	10–6 (7–2)	Bernard Johnson Coliseum (812) Huntsville, TX
February 10, 2021 7:00 pm, ESPN+		at Lamar	W 76–71	11–6 (8–2)	Montagne Center (831) Thibodaux, LA
February 13, 2021 7:00 pm, ESPN+		at Southeastern Louisiana	W 86–84 ^OT	12–6 (9–2)	University Center (531) Hammond, LA
February 17, 2021 7:00 pm		Northwestern State	Postponed due to weather		Stopher Gymnasium Thibodaux, LA
February 20, 2021 5:00 pm		Central Arkansas	W 79–68	13–6 (10–2)	Stopher Gymnasium (132) Thibodaux, LA
February 24, 2021 7:00 pm		Houston Baptist	W 83–68	14–6 (11–2)	Stopher Gymnasium (231) Thibodaux, LA
February 27, 2021 6:00 pm		at New Orleans	W 105–101 ^OT	15–6 (12–2)	Lakefront Arena (726) New Orleans, LA
March 1, 2021 6:00 pm		Northwestern State rescheduled from February 17	W 87–71	16–6 (13–2)	Stopher Gymnasium (233) Thibodaux, LA
March 4, 2021 6:30 pm		at McNeese State	W 80–67	17–6 (14–2)	Burton Coliseum (255) Lake Charles, LA
Southland tournament
March 12, 2021 5:00 pm, ESPN+	(1)	vs. (4) Northwestern State Semifinals	W 88–76	18–6	Merrell Center Katy, TX
March 13, 2021 8:30 pm, ESPN2	(1)	vs. (2) Abilene Christian Championship	L 45–79	18–7	Merrell Center Katy, TX
*Non-conference game. ^#Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Central.

Source^[2]

References

^ "Nicholls suspends men's basketball activities through Dec. 26".
^ "2020–21 Men's Basketball Schedule". Nicholls State University Athletics. Retrieved December 8, 2020.

[1] "Nicholls suspends men's basketball activities through Dec. 26".

[2] "2020–21 Men's Basketball Schedule". Nicholls State University Athletics. Retrieved December 8, 2020.

[1]

[2]