Coming off its third consecutive conference road game this season, the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff women's and men's basketball teams return home for their SWAC opener for Lion Pride Weekend, with Saturday is Greek Night against Southern U., and Monday is Martin Luther King Night at the H.O. Clemmons Arena. 
 
We encourage all Greeks to wear paraphernalia for Saturday's night event, and general admission is $5 for both nights. 
 
The doubleheader is set for 5 p.m. with the women's game, followed by the men's game at 7:30 p.m. The UAPB Sports Network will have the live broadcast starting at 4:30 p.m. on 99.3 FM The Beat, online at uapblionsroar.com, and on the free UAPB Athletics app.
 
Both teams enter this weekend matchup with a 2-1 record in the Southwestern Athletic Conference standings. 
 
After being on the road for 13 consecutive games, the Lady Lions will open up at home for the first time against the Lady Jags. The Lady Lions (3-10 overall, 2-1 SWAC) are coming off a big win at Alabama State, 73-62. UAPB is currently tied for third in the conference and marks its best start since the 2014-15 season.
 
"Southern is Southern. They've been doing a lot of things consistently for the past years," said first-year UAPB head coach Dawn Brown. "Southern is a complete team that's very aggressive, and they do a lot of things well. This game will be a great matchup for us, so playing them at home in front of our fans will be big."
 
UAPB had four student-athletes to score in double figures in the win over the Lady Hornets. Senior Noe'll Taylor scored a career-high 19 points, followed by Aiya El Hassan with 17 points, junior Jayla Atmore with 12 points, and Kyeonia Harris added 10 points. Senior Katherine Darden, who's playing in her second game of the season, grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds, followed by freshman Nissa Sam-Grant with eight rebounds and four blocks. 
 
Harris and Atmore both tied for 12th in the conference in scoring, averaging 10.5 ppg. Harris also ranks fourth in the conference in assists, averaging 2.9 apg, and sixth in the conference in steals, averaging 2.2 spg. Sam-Grant continues to climb the polls, ranks ninth in the conference in rebounds, averaging 5.3 rpg, and third in the conference in blocks, averaging 1.4 rpg. 
 
Southern (4-11 overall, 2-2 SWAC) dropped a 72-51 defeat to Jackson State. The Lady Jags are led by Brittany Rose in scoring, averaging 9.81 ppg, and Taneara Moore, who leads the team in rebounds, averaging 4.5 rpg.  
 
On the men's side, the Golden Lions (3-12 overall, 2-1 SWAC) enter the match tied for second in the conference and are coming off a 61-56 win over Alabama State. 
 
 "Southern is going come out the gate and play hard to get a road win," said UAPB head coach George Ivory. "Even though we didn't win the conference last year, teams in the league look at it as a big win to beat UAPB on our home court. We're looking forward to the challenge and put out an exciting brand of basketball Saturday night for our fans."  
 
In the win over the Hornets, the Golden Lions were led by senior Marquell Carter, who scored 19 points, followed by junior Dequan Morris with 10 points. Alabama native, freshman Kshun Stokes contributed big on the boards with six rebounds. 
 
UAPB continues to lead the conference in defense as a team, holding its opponents to 70.7 ppg. Junior Markedric Bell, who leads the team in scoring, continues to dominate in the conference stats, ranks 15th in the conference in scoring, averaging 10.5 ppg, 13th in rebounds, averaging 5.3 rpg, and fourth in blocked shots, averaging 1.0 bpg. Morris ranks second in the conference in steals, averaging 1.9 spg. 
 
Southern U. (4-13 overall, 1-3 SWAC) picked up their first conference win of the season, defeating Jackson State 56-50. Damiree Burns leads the Jags in scoring, averaging 8.33 ppg, and Darius Williams leads the team in rebounds, averaging 6.63 rpg.