STARKVILLE, Miss.-Louisiana's Ragin' Cajuns women's basketball head coach Errol Rogers returns to Starkville, Miss. for a match-up with his former school. The Cajuns square off with the Mississippi State Lady Bulldogs at 3:30 p.m. on Sunday afternoon.
Rogers, who is in his first year as head coach of UL, spent the past four season as an assistant coach at Mississippi State with his primary responsibilities including on-court teaching and assisting with recruiting. Last season, the Bulldogs enjoyed a 12-win turnaround, advancing to the quarterfinals of the Women's National Invitational Tournament ? their second WNIT trip in the last three seasons.
The game marks the second time this season that UL has entered the Magnolia State for a game. The Cajuns dropped an 86-60 decision to Ole Miss on Nov. 18.
The Ragin' Cajuns enter the game on the heels of a two-game losing skid. Louisiana will look to rebound after dropping a 72-59 decision to in-state and conference rival ULM and a 71-62 loss to Savannah State.
The Cajuns are 0-4 all-time against the Lady Bulldogs. The last time the two teams met came at the Mississippi State Tournament on Dec. 16, 2000. The Cajuns were upended in that game 101-68.
QUICK HITS:
Senior Leadership: UL has more seniors than any other school in the Sun Belt. The Cajuns six-pack of seniors Onna Charles (New Iberia, La.), Sonora Edwards (Snook, Texas), Elaine McCants (Boston, Mass.), Alicia McDaniel (Houston, Texas), Kina Miller (Aurora, Ill.) and Courtney Ratliff (Canton, Miss.) have played in a total of 391 games.
1,000-point Watch: Onna Charles (New Iberia, La.) and Sonora Edwards (Snook, Texas) both enter the season within sight of 1,000 career points. Charles sits just 22 points shy, while Edwards needs 155 more points to reach the coveted plateau. Charles and Edwards would become the 12th and 13th players to reach 1,000 points in UL history.
Block Party: Senior center Kina Miller (Aurora, Ill.) currently leads the Ragin' Cajuns with 21 blocked shots on the year. Combined with her 49 blocks from the 2006-07 season, Miller has 70 blocks in her career. She currently ranks fifth in the Cajuns annals, one block shy of Tiffany Washington (2003-05). Miller has at least one block in 10 of the Cajuns' 11 games this season with multiple blocked shots in seven games.
Records section: Alicia McDaniel (Houston, Texas) is 11 games played away from the all-time mark held by Shaunda Johnson-Bedel (1986-91) with 114 games. Sonora Edwards (Snook, Texas), currently third, is 94 rebounds from second all-time, tying her with Anna Petrakova (2001-05) with 774. Onna Charles (New Iberia, La.) needs six games started to move into a tie for fifth place with Lisa Merritt (1980-84) with 94 games started. Charles needs 44 field goals to crack the career top 10. Charles sits in the top five in career three-point field goals made, attempted and percentage.
Mississippi Connection: The Ragin' Cajuns have significant connections to the Magnolia State. Errol Rogers was an assistant coach at Mississippi State in Starkville, Miss. prior to taking over as head coach of the Ragin' Cajuns. Senior forward Courtney Ratliff and freshman guard Bronson Rodgers both hail from Mississippi. Ratliff is originally from Canton, Miss., while Rodgers is from Itawamba, Miss. Also, graduate assistant sports information director Chris Whitehead was born and raised in Natchez, Miss.
Birthday Bonanza: The Cajuns women's basketball team is finishing out the year with a trio of road games and a plethora of birthdays. UL finishes their three-game road tilt with a game at Mississippi State on Dec. 30. On Dec. 18, redshirt freshman Blair Brodhead (Lafayette, La.) celebrated her 21st birthday, while senior center Sonora Edwards (Snook, Texas) turned 22 the very next day. The baby of the Ragin' Cajuns women's basketball team, Jasmine Barnes (Baton Rouge, La.) turned 18 on Dec. 29. UL sports information director Chris Whitehead celebrates his 28th birthday on Dec. 30, while Ovigwerade Agbuke (San Antonio, Texas) turns 21 on New Year's Eve.
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