Lions host Henderson State

Improving their shooting and rebounding are the main goals for the North Alabama men tonight as the Lions host Henderson State.

Tip-off at Flowers Hall is at 6 p.m. for the women's game and 8 p.m. for the men.

The men opened their season Sunday with a 78-65 loss to Christian Brothers. The Lions (0-1) were outrebounded 47-30 by the Buccaneers and shot just 41 percent from the field in the loss.

"Rebounding is a concern and something that we've stressed this week in practice," coach Bobby Champagne said.

"I thought we did a pretty good job defensively, but when their shots went up we didn't get the rebounds. We also missed eight layups, so we have to do better in both those areas."

Champagne said Henderson State (1-0) will be another team that is tough to defend.

"They have a great shooter in Kyle Oldham and an outstanding post player in Lance Smith," Champagne said. "They are a very hard team to play all of their guards can shoot and drive to the basket. We have to play much better as a team than we did in the opener."

Meanwhile, the UNA women will play at home for the first time this season. The Lions (1-3) earned their first win Monday with a 69-66 victory over Tuskegee. Junior forward Niala Harris had 27 points and 13 rebounds in the win for UNA.

Coach Terry Fowler said UNA must do a good job handling the defensive pressure of Henderson State (2-0).

"Henderson State is a team that wants to force you into turnovers," Fowler said. "They will press and try to get you into an up-tempo game. We've been pretty good at avoiding turnovers so far, but this will be a big test for us."

Fowler said he saw signs of improvement in the win Monday night. Still, he said the Lions have plenty of things to improve on.

"We still have not shot the ball well through four games," he said. "I expected us to be a better shooting team this year, but it has not happened yet. We also have to improve our rebounding. But it's nice to be coming off a road region win and to finally play at home."

An official visit to North Alabama was all that Georgia Myrex needed to decide where she wanted to play college basketball.

The senior guard at Cold Springs soon committed to UNA and signed a letter-of-intent with the Lions on Monday.

"I just fell in love with the campus when I visited," Myrex said. "That made my decision easy. The UNA coaches have recruited me for a long time and I have a good relationship with them. I felt really comfortable with everything at UNA."

Myrex has experienced nothing but success at Cold Springs. She has led the Eagles to back-to-back Class 2A state championships in the last two seasons. She averaged 18 points per game as a junior in leading the Eagles to a 34-1 record and the state title. Cold Springs has gone 70-2 in the last two seasons.

A three-time all-state selection, Myrex has also been a finalist for Class 2A Player of the Year the last two seasons.

"Coach Fowler and his staff do a great job and I expect UNA to contend for championships," Myrex said. "I hope to be able to contribute to that. I want to work on my ball handling and get quicker on defense so I can come in and contribute right away."

Fowler said what makes Myrex special is her intensity on the court.

"Georgia has an unbelievable passion for the game," Fowler said. "She works hard at it and we're excited to have her bring that passion to our program."

Myrex was recruited by many schools, including Alabama-Huntsville, South Alabama, Southern Miss, Troy and UT-Martin. She had 30 points, 16 rebounds and six assists in Cold Springs' season-opening victory over Vinemont on Tuesday.

"I was glad to go ahead and sign because it will be one less thing to worry about this season," she said. "I can just play my game and not worry about impressing anyone. If we work hard we should have a chance to win another championship."

Jeff McIntyre can be reached at 740-5737 or jeff.mcintyre@timesdaily.com.