FRISCO, Texas – Seniors Nick Garth and Josh Nzeakor have been named to the 2019 All-Southland Conference teams announced league officials Monday afternoon. Garth garnered first-team honors, while Nzeakor was named to the league's second team.
 
It marks the third consecutive season that LU has had a first-team all-conference selection (Colton Weisbrod in 2017 and 2018).
 
The honors come following one of the best runs in program history to close out the regular season. After opening the season with a 1-4 (.200) SLC record and in a tie for 11^th in the conference standings, the Cardinals got hot midway through the season and haven't looked back. The Red and White closed the regular season as the league's hottest team winners of eight straight – the longest current streak in the Southland – and climbed all the way into a tie for third in the conference standings.
 
"I'm ecstatic that both have been recognized for all of their hard work as seniors," said LU head coach Tic Price. "It's an honor that is well deserved. The whole body of work throughout their career has been tremendous. To be chosen as first and second-team All-Southland speaks volumes about how other coaches and media relations directors around the league feel about them."
 
A former two-time honorable mention selection, Garth has been one of the league more accurate three-point shooters. He closed out his career ranked seventh in the Southland shooting .369 from three-point range and was second in the league averaging 2.7 three-pointers per game.
 
Garth led the team and ranked sixth in the league averaging 16.5 points per game – a number that jumps to 17.2 in conference only games. Garth hit double figures 28 times during his senior campaign, including eight 20-point efforts – and had a career-high 36 points against Texas Southern. He closed the season on one of the best runs of his career with six 20-point efforts in his final eight games.
 
Nzeakor came to LU in the same signing class with Garth. Both players are members of the Cardinals' 1,000-point club which Nzeakor joined earlier this year (he is currently 12^th all-time in program history). Over the course of his four years in Beaumont, Nzeakor transformed himself into one of the league's top scorers and rebounders, graduating among the school's all-time top 10 with more than 800 rebounds.
 
During the 2018-19 season, Nzeakor ranked eighth in the league averaging 14.7 points per game and was tied for third in rebounds (7.6 rpg). The Mesquite, Texas native, ranked among the Southland's elite with five double-doubles this season despite facing double and triple teams on a nightly basis. He hit double figures 21 times this season, including six 20-point efforts, and recorded six games of at least 10 rebounds.
 
"The thing that separates both of them has been their tremendous work ethic," said Price. "During the summers, these guys didn't go out spending time with their friends or being lazy, but they were in the gym trying to get better. They were always willing to put in extra work. What fans see on gameday is only part of the story. It's like going to see a movie but walking during the middle of the movie and staying to end. Fans never get to see the hard work they put in behind closed doors before the game began ."
 
The fifth-seeded Cardinals will open the Southland Conference Championships Wednesday at 5 p.m. from the Merrell Center. Big Red will face eighth-seeded Houston Baptist in the very first game of the tournament. Tickets for the Southland Championships are available through the LU Ticket Office – (409) 880-1715. Fans can also purchase tournament tickets in Katy by going to LU Ticket kiosk at the Merrell Center. The kiosk will open 90 minutes prior to start of the session.
 
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