MONROE ? He gave Louisiana its first lead of the game with 43 seconds left on the clock. Then, trailing by two, he delivered the game-winning shot. Freshman Chris Gradnigo's (Lake Charles, La.) three-pointer from the left wing gave the Ragin' Cajuns a monumental 68-67 victory over the ULM Warhawks Sunday afternoon at Fant-Ewing Coliseum.
Gradnigo finished the game with 15 points, including three crucial three-point baskets. Freshman Travis Bureau (Gonzales, La.) made his long-awaited Louisiana debut, chipping in 11 points and five rebounds. La'Ryan Gary (Lafayette, La.) and Randell Daigle (Lafayette, La.) each added 12 points for the Cajuns.
The win for Louisiana (2-6, 1-0 Sun Belt) snapped a six-game losing streak, while giving the Cajuns their first conference-opening victory since the 2003-04 season. ULM (4-6, 0-1 Sun Belt) lost for the first time on its home court this season.
Louisiana went 9-of-14 from three-point range in the second half to help erase a nine-point halftime deficit.
ULM's Jordan Payne led all scorers with 16 points, while Lance Brasher added 13 and 10 rebounds.
Louisiana and ULM exchanged three-point baskets to start the second half, but the Warhawks still maintained a nine-point edge, 33-24. After a ULM turnover, Daigle added another triple on the ensuing possession to cut the deficit to six points, 33-27.
However, Afam Nweke converted a three-point play to preserve ULM's previous nine-point lead. A turnover by Gary allowed the Warhawks to extended their lead to 12, 39-27, after a Jonas Brown three-point play.
Daigle's third trey of the second half cut the deficit to seven points, 39-32, with 17:32 remaining in regulation.
After the Warhawks again took an 11-point advantage, Louisiana cut it to seven, 50-43, on a Bureau triple from the right wing. A pair of Gradnigo free throws later cut the lead to five, 50-45.
A triple by Bureau with 6:14 on the clock pulled the Cajuns to within two points, 52-50. Both teams would go back-and-forth before Louisiana cut it to one, 58-57.
Bureau tied the game at 60 all with a three-pointer from the left corner with 3:02 remaining in regulation. The Cajuns then forced a ULM turnover on the Warhawks' next possession.
Trailing by two points, Gradnigo drained a deep trey to give Louisiana its first lead of the game, 65-64, with 43 seconds left to play. The Warhawks responded on the ensuing possession as Rudy Turner gave the lead back to ULM with a three-point play, 67-65, with 23 seconds on the clock. Gradnigo then drained the game-winning bucket with eight seconds on the clock.
ULM started the game on an 8-0 run heading into the under-16 minute media timeout at the 15:39 mark. Following the stoppage in play, Elijah Millsap (Grambling, La.) provided Louisiana with its first points of the contest on a wide-open three-pointer from the right wing, cutting the ULM lead to 8-3. Millsap's three-pointer was his first made basket since the Tennessee game on Nov. 30, snapping a streak of 12 consecutive misses.
The Warhawks added a transition basket on the ensuing possession to bring their lead back to seven points, 10-3.
Louisiana would later cut the ULM lead to two points, 19-17, on a Daigle triple. Daigle has now made a three-point basket in six consecutive contests.
ULM responded, closing the first half with an 11-4 run to take a 30-21 halftime lead.
Neither team shot exceptionally well from the field in the first half. ULM shot 31 percent (9-of-29), while Louisiana shot 29.6 percent (8-of-27). The Warhawks out-shot the Ragin' Cajuns from three-point range, making four triples compared to two by Louisiana.
Gary led all scorers with 11 points on 5-of-6 shooting along with four rebounds. ULM shut down Millsap, who was held to 1-of-8 shooting in the first half. Jordan Payne paced ULM with eight points on 2-of-8 shooting, while Lance Brasher added six points from three-point range.
Louisiana's Ragin' Cajuns men's basketball team returns to action Wednesday, December 19, when it travels to Honolulu, Hawai'i to face the Hawai'i Rainbow Warriors in game two of the 44th Outrigger Hotels Rainbow Classic. Tip-off is set for 11:30 p.m. (CT).
In addition to tuning in to SportsRadio ESPN 1420 AM with Jay Walker, fans will be able to watch all three of Louisiana's games in Hawai'i on KLFT-TV (Cox Digital Channel 135). Wednesday's game will feature complete production by Hawai'i's KFVE-TV with the broadcast team of Jim Leahey (play-by-play) and Artie Wilson (color).
Louisiana-ULM Game Notes
- Stephen Dees started at point guard for the Cajuns Sunday ? his first start of the season and the third of his career.
- Elijah Millsap's streak of seven consecutive free throws made snapped with his first miss of the first half. Millsap later snapped his streak of 12 consecutive missed field goals with his triple in the first half.
- Freshman Travis Bureau made his Louisiana debut at the 11:24 mark of the first half. He scored his first career points at the 8:39 mark of the second half with a three-point basket.
- Randell Daigle's four three-pointers Sunday are the most by a Cajun this season and the most since Ross Mouton's six triples vs. North Texas on Feb. 24, 2007.
- Louisiana went 9-of-14 from three-point range in the second half to seal the win.
LOUISIANA-LAFAYETTE (68)
Gradnigo, Chris 4-8 4-4 15; Daigle, Randell 4-11 0-0 12; Gary, La'Ryan 5-7
2-4 12; Bureau, Travis 3-7 2-3 11; Millsap, Elijah 2-10 0-2 5; Lago, Willie
2-2 1-2 5; Dees, David 1-4 2-3 4; Johnson, Tyren 1-1 0-0 2; Milson, Abray
1-2 0-0 2; Wallace, Courtney 0-1 0-0 0; Dees, Stephen 0-1 0-0 0; Dison,
Brandon 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 23-54 11-18 68.
ULM (67)
Payne, Jordan 5-16 5-5 16; Brasher, Lance 5-8 0-0 13; Brown, Jonas 4-10 2-4
10; Hooper, Tony 2-13 5-6 9; Turner, Raphelle 2-3 3-3 7; Nweke, Afam 3-6 1-3
7; Averette, Kenneth 1-1 0-0 3; Hampton, Mitchell 1-3 0-0 2. Totals 23-60
16-21 67.
Halftime: ULM 30, UL 21. 3-point goals--Louisiana-Lafayette 11-27 (Daigle, Randell 4-9; Bureau, Travis 3-7; Gradnigo, Chris 3-5; Millsap, Elijah 1-4; Dees, Stephen 0-1; Dees, David 0-1), ULM 5-20 (Brasher, Lance 3-5; Averette, Kenneth 1-1; Payne, Jordan 1-5; Hooper, Tony 0-4; Brown, Jonas 0-5). A-1039.
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