University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns
Florida International
Cajuns Top Florida International
2/6/2008 6:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
MIAMI - Louisiana's Ragin' Cajuns reversed recent history in defeating Florida International by a final score of 72-62 at Pharmed Arena. The Cajuns had not played well in Miami in recent history, losing by three points in Pharmed Arena in 2007 and falling by five points the season before. The last win by UL at FIU was a 78-58 decision back on Jan. 24, 2004.
Head coach Robert Lee earns his first win in the state of Florida after three unsuccessful tries. Despite the 10-point margin, the game's final 10 minutes were tightly contested.
Louisiana (10-12, 6-5) started the second half with a 12-3 burst to build an 18-point lead, 47-29. A three-point play from La'Ryan Gary and three-pointers from Randell Daigle and Travis Bureau helped the onslaught.
FIU (6-16, 3-9) countered with a 12-4 run to cut the Cajuns lead to 10 points, 53-43.
Bureau connected on his fourth triple of the game to slow the run, but a free throw by Erick Nsangou and a triple by Chris Fuller trimmed the visitor's lead down to single digits.
Another Bureau three-point basket boosted the Cajuns lead back to 12 points, 59-47, with 9:42 remaining.
The Golden Panthers responded with two baskets to get back within eight points after Elijah Millsap missed two from the stripe and a dunk.
FIU took the Cajuns lead down to six with a Tremayne Russell basket, but Russell's turnover and foul led to two free throws by Maurice Barksdale.
Millsap missed two more free throws and Alex Galindo converted a three-point play on the other end to return the Cajuns lead back down to six points, 66-60, with 1:38 remaining.
After the teams traded a pair of free throws, Barksdale broke the FIU press and found a wide-open Gary who made the lay-up and was fouled. Gary's free throw, coupled with a Barksdale steal and free throw pushed the Cajuns lead to 10 points with 51 seconds remaining.
Bureau led the Cajuns with a career-high 18 points on five-of-six shooting. Barksdale had a season-high 11 points, while adding three assists and two steals in 15 minutes. Millsap finished with 10 points and a team-high nine rebounds.
Four Golden Panthers hit double-figures led by Russell Hicks' 15 points.
The Cajuns carried a nine-point lead, 35-26, into the second half after making 12 of their final 15 shot attempts in the opening stanza.
UL started the game 1-for-11 with three turnovers, but luckily trailed just 7-2. Barksdale nailed a triple from the top of the arc to draw the Cajuns closer, 7-5, at 13:24 of the first half. Barksdale's lay-in at 10:39 tied the game at 11-11.
A tough basket in the paint by Courtney Wallace gave the Cajuns at 15-13 edge at 8:47, their first lead since 2-0 in the opening minutes.
The Cajuns took a seven-point lead, 24-17, on a three-point basket from Bureau and a jumper from Millsap at the 5-minute mark. UL rebounded from their 1-for-11 start from the floor to make 10-of-14 during a 10-minute span.
Two from the stripe by Millsap, a jumper by Johnson and a triple in the corner by Bureau created at 7-0 run and a 31-20 lead for the Cajuns with 2:47 showing in the first half.
Louisiana will be back in action Sunday, Feb. 10, when it travels west to face the Denver Pioneers. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m. (CT). The game will be televised locally on KLFT-TV (Cox Channel 135). KLFT will air a live pre- and post-game show featuring Dan McDonald and Don Allen.
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