University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns
Southern University
Cajuns' Late Run Not Enough at Southern
11/24/2010 1:06:00 AM | Women's Basketball
The University of Louisiana women's basketball team pulled within four in the final minutes, but Southern University withheld the run to snag a 75-65 victory over the Ragin' Cajuns at the Mini-Dome on Tuesday evening in Baton Rouge.
The Ragin' Cajuns (1-2) dropped their second game of the season, as Southern (2-2) led by as many as 15 points in the contest. Louisiana utilized a 22-13 run to pull within four in the final minutes, but fell just short in the contest.
UL reached within nine in the second half, but Southern continued to maintain the lead at the free throw line. Lyndra Bell's layup inside the paint made it a two possession game, 64-58, at 2:31.
Krystal Motley cut UL's deficit to five as she drained a free throw. Southern then committed a turnover, giving UL an opportunity to make it a one possession contest at 1:54. The Cajuns missed and SU added free throws to extend the score to seven.
Danyell Oliver drained a three at 1:21 to cut the deficit to four. A missed jumper with 36 seconds left gave UL a chance to cut the game to three.
Louisiana hit 15 shots from the floor for 33 percent in the game. SU was 28-for-69, totaling 41 percent. The Cajuns made 32 free throws at the line out of 40 attempts. The Cajuns missed a school record in attempts (42 in 1999) and free throws made (32 in 1999).
Southern dominated the glass, reeling in 48 rebounds compared to UL's 33.
Mercedes Johnson added her seventh consecutive double-digit contest as she inked 20 points in the contest. Johnson's double-digit streak dates back to Feb. 20, 2010. The Houston native pulled in six boards with two assists. Johnson made 10 of her 12 free throws at line.
Danyell Oliver also tallied 20 points, reaching the double-digit plateau for the second time this season. The Belle Rose native drained all four of Louisiana's triples. She had four rebounds, three steals and two rebounds.
Hannah Kador led the Jags with 14 points, while Ashley Augerson reached double-figures with 14.
Barnes provided the spark for the Cajuns in the second half. The senior scored 12 points in the final half, finishing with 14 on the evening. The guard was also stout on the boards, recording eight boards.
The first 14 minutes of the contest went back and forth with UL trailing 19-18 at 6:48. Southern used a 13-2 run to end the half and take a 32-21 lead into the locker room. Southern forced 18 Louisiana turnovers as the Cajuns were held to just 25 percent in the first half. SU made 12 shots from the floor, shooting 32 percent in the half.
Johnson led Louisiana with nine points, while Oliver had seven at the midway point. On the boards, Barnes had three of UL's 16 rebounds.
After hitting a pair of buckets, Southern took a 5-2 lead at 18:18.
Oliver drained a three from inside the paint to cut UL's deficit to one at 16:03. Oliver then had a steal on the next possession, giving Barnes an opportunity to hit two at the line, giving UL a 6-3 lead.
A made trey by Oliver at 13:22 gave UL their largest lead at 11-9.
Augerson answered with a pair of jumpers to help SU regain a two-point lead. The Cajuns' returned to tie the contest, 13-13, as Johnson nailed a jumper at 11:18.
Southern went on a 9-0 run, using two triples to take a 19-13 advantage.
Johnson returned with a bucket inside the paint to narrow the game to 19-15 at 7:50. Her pair of free throws cut SU's lead to two at 7:12.
A pair of Oliver free throws cut UL's gap to 20-25 with 4:02 left in the half.
Southern used a fast break opportunity to extend the lead to eight at 3:02. The Jags added four points to close out the half, extending their mark to 32-21.
Louisiana opened with a 10-2 run to start the second half. However, Southern answered with their own run, extending the Jaguars lead to 15 at 11:35.
Barnes added a three point opportunity after scoring inside the paint and adding the freebie. She proceeded to ink two more freebies, cutting UL's deficit to ten at 18:15. Freshman Bianca Davis stole the ball, passed to Barnes and the senior added two fast break points, making the score, 38-26.
Oliver proceeded to drain a three at 16:51, slicing the Southern lead to five. Despite pulling within four, Southern re-extended their mark to 11 with a seven point swing at 14:42.
The Ragin' Cajuns cut the deficit to 56-44 with a fade away by Oliver at 8:37. Southern continued to pad the lead, holding a double-digit lead for the first 12 minutes in the second half.
UL proceeded on a 22-to-15 run, pulling within four at 1:21 left in the game. SU held of the Cajuns to secure their second victory of the season.
Louisiana continues their longest road trip of the season on Friday, Nov. 26 - 27 at the USM Lady Eagle Thanksgiving Classic. The Cajuns will play tournament host Southern Miss at 5:00 p.m. On Saturday, UL will play either No. 9 Kentucky or Murray State at 2:30 or 4:30 p.m.
-- Ragin' Cajuns --
