University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
Cajuns Have Won Nine Straight Sun Belt Openers Since 1994-95 Season
1/7/2005 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Cajuns Have
Won Nine Straight Sun Belt Openers Since 1994-95 Season
Friday, Jan. 7, 2005
Sun Belt Play is Here – Cajuns Host Denver
Saturday...
Louisiana-Lafayette (6-6) enters the game riding a 10-game win streak at the Cajundome. The Cajuns bested Southern Illinois 63-61 Wednesday to extend their homecourt win streak. Overall, UL Lafayette has won three of its last four outings.
Denver (5-6) has lost its last three games and will be playing its fifth straight road game. The Pioneers have not had a home contest since Monday, Dec. 13.
At Home in the 'Dome...
Cajuns In Sun Belt
Openers...
Louisiana-Lafayette
is beginning its 14th season of competition
within the Sun Belt Conference. Since joining the league in
time for the 1991-92 season, the Cajuns are 11-2 (.846) in
league openers.
The Cajuns are opening their Sun Belt slate at the Cajundome for the 8th time (5-2 record in previous occurrences).
UL Lafayette has won nine straight SBC openers since a 96-92 loss to South Alabama Dec. 29, 1994, to open the 1994-95 SBC campaign.
Last season the Cajuns defeated Denver 83-81 Jan. 10, 2004, in the Sun Belt opener at Hamilton Gymnasium in Denver.
UL Lafayette and Denver are meeting in a Sun Belt opener for the third time overall (1999-2000, 2003-04, 2004-05) and for the second straight season.
Cajuns in Sun Belt Openers
Jan. 6, 1993 – vs. Lamar L, 73-76
Jan. 3, 1994 – at Jacksonville W, 89-78
Dec. 29, 1994 – vs. South Ala. L, 92-96
Dec. 22, 1995 – at La. Tech W, 80-77
Dec. 28, 1996 – at South Ala. W, 66-63
Dec. 27, 1997 – vs. UALR W, 83-70
Jan. 4, 1999 – vs. La. Tech W, 67-65
Nov. 30, 1999 – at Denver W, 81-68
Dec. 23, 2000 – at South Ala. W, 67-55
Jan. 3, 2002 – vs. South Ala. W, 75-54
Jan. 2, 2003 – vs. NMSU W, 81-74
Jan. 10, 2004 – at Denver W, 83-81
The Series vs. Denver – Cajuns Lead 10-1...
Saturday's encounter marks the 12th meeting all-time between the Cajuns and Pioneers and is the first of two scheduled meetings this season between the two Sun Belt West Division foes. The two teams will meet again on Saturday, Feb. 5 at Magness Arena in Denver.
All meetings have taken place since Denver joined the Sun Belt in 1999-2000. This is the sixth (6th) meeting in the Cajundome – Louisiana-Lafayette holds a 5-0 lead in games played at the Cajundome.
Seven of the 11 previous meetings were decided by double-digits in the Cajuns' favor. Louisiana-Lafayette's average margin of victory in the series is 12.6 points. However, three of the last four meetings have been decided by four points or less.
Four of the five previous meetings in the Cajundome were decided by double figures and the average margin of victory was 16.4 points. The Cajuns won last season's Cajundome meeting, posting a 94-74 victory on Feb. 7, 2004.
Denver's lone victory in the series was a 72-68 decision in the quarterfinals of the 2003 Sun Belt Tournament at E.A. Diddle Arena in Bowling Green, Ky.
Stingy "D" in the Cajundome...
Holding the Lead...
Louisiana-Lafayette has never trailed in the second half of a Cajundome game this season.
Cruisin' in the Cajundome...
The Ragin' Cajuns 10-game home court winning streak currently is tied for the 16th longest active streak in NCAA Division I men's basketball.
The streak is Louisiana-Lafayette's second double-digit home win streak in the last four seasons. The Cajuns began a Cajundome-record, 21-game home court win streak during the 2001-02 season which was snapped by Western Kentucky on Feb. 26, 2003 (L, 66-69).
The current home win streak began with an 85-64 rout of I-10 rival New Orleans on Saturday, Jan. 17, 2004.
UL Lafayette is 4-0 at home this season and is attempting its first-ever undefeated season at the Cajundome and first on its home court since 1972-73 (12-0 at Blackham Coliseum). Should the Cajuns run the table in the Cajundome this season, then their home court winning streak would be extended to 18 straight games.
A Cajuns Win Would...
A Cajuns Loss Would...
Next on the Schedule...
The game at South Alabama marks the beginning of three straight road outings for the Cajuns who visit UNO Jan. 15 and New Mexico State Jan. 20 following the South Alabama game.
-Ragin' Cajuns-
