Nicholls State at UAB

UAB opened its season Monday with a 99-78 loss to McNeese after hitting five of its first six shots for a 15-6 lead. McNeese answered with a 12-0 run, and the game had one lead change all night. Larry Johnson scored 31 for the Cowboys, 20 of them in the first half. They scored 44 points in the first half and 55 in the second, shooting 55% from the field. They made 12 of 27 from three-point range, 10 of 16 in the second half, scored 44 points in the paint, and went 8 of 8 on dunks. UAB lost the rebounding battle 33-26, and McNeese's Dellquan Warren handed out nine assists with one turnover. McNeese is a Southland team, the same league as Nicholls State. Nicholls arrives 1-0 in its first season under head coach Darion Brown, after a 110-56 win over North American, an NAIA program. I'm on Nicholls State on the spread tonight, against a UAB defense that turned 14 giveaways into 18 McNeese points.