University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns
ARKANSAS STATE*
Cajuns Shooting Woes Lead to Second Half Collapse
2/23/2006 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Thursday, February 23, 2006
LAFAYETTE- The last team to defeat the Cajuns when UL had the lead at halftime was Arkansas State on Feb. 26, 2004. Louisiana held a three-point lead in that game, but lost 57-48.
On Thursday, it happened again.
The Cajuns had won 32 straight games when leading at the half, but a disastrous second half shooting the ball led to a 70-64 victory by ASU.
Louisiana (17-9, 7-7) shot just 21.9 percent in the second half, including 1-for-16 from three-point range. Arkansas State (12-14, 6-7) shot 41.4 percent (12-29) in the second stanza ? nearly identical to their first half performance (12-30).
Louisiana didn't make a field goal in the first eight minutes of the second half and turned the ball over five times, but remarkably held onto their 10-point halftime lead.
Both teams struggled from the floor in the first eight-plus minutes of the second half, shooting a combined 3-for-20. The Cajuns scored eight points, all from the free throw line, while the Indians eight points kept pace with UL.
As the Cajuns continued to struggle, ASU found a rhythm. The Indians 16-4 run gave ASU a 55-53 lead with 5:22 remaining.
Louisiana, at this point in the second half, was just 3-for-17 from the floor.
Baskets by Yolanda Jones and Onna Charles quickly gave UL back the lead with 4:31 remaining.
Adrianne Davie's three-point play returned the lead to ASU, as Jones picked up her fourth foul of the game on the play ? her third foul in a 90 second span.
Davie's basket sparked a 7-0 burst by ASU, and the Cajuns suddenly found themselves with a five-point deficit and only 2:42 to play.
Jones fouled out with 1:23 remaining and the Cajuns trailing 63-59.
Alicia McDaniel missed a three-pointer on the ensuing possession and Rudy Sims nailed a life-draining triple to give ASU a 66-59 lead with only 51 seconds remaining.
Jeanenne Colbert quickly hit a triple for Louisiana, but the Cajuns couldn't get the shots to fall.
Colbert led a trio of Cajuns in double figures with 19 points. Charles added 17 points and Jones contributed 14 points and a team-high six rebounds.
The Cajuns were outrebounded by a 47-36 margin.
Sims led all players with 21 points. Four other Indians scored in double figures, including Caroline Starr, who finished with 10 points and a game-high 10 rebounds.
UL ran out to a quick 8-0 in the game's first two minutes. Four different players; Charles, McDaniel, Colbert and Jones, scored for the Cajuns.
ASU cut into the Cajuns lead with a pair of three-pointers, but UL countered with a 6-0 run on a free throw from Charles, triple by Colbert and fast break lay-up by Jones to take a 16-6 lead at the 15:14 mark.
The Cajuns continued to dominate, shooting 60 percent from the floor to 25 percent by ASU at the 11:31 mark. The Indians five early turnovers hurt the visitors.
Following a basket by Davie, Louisiana rattled off seven more points to build a 23-8 advantage. Charles added four points on the burst and Colbert nailed her second triple.
UL cooled off from the floor, allowing ASU to use a 10-2 run get back into the game. The Indians deficit was just seven, 25-18, with 6:54 remaining in the half.
ASU whittled their hole to three points, 28-25, on seven straight points by Sims.
The Cajuns responded in a big way. An 11-0 run boosted UL's three-point edge to 14 points in just 1:32. Ashley Blanche nailed a triple from the top of the key before back-to-back triples on the wing by Charles. McDaniel capped the run with a steal and driving lay-up to put Louisiana up 39-25 with 1:14 to play in the half.
The Indians scored the last four points of the half to close the second stanza down 10.
-Ragin' Cajuns-
