University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns
Murray State
Strong Shooting Propels UL Past Racers
11/27/2010 9:08:00 PM | Women's Basketball
The Ragin' Cajuns' (2-3) three-game losing skid was snapped in large part due to the offensive attack. UL hit 29-of-66 shots from the floor for 44 percent. Murray State (2-4) was held to 34 percent (24-of-71). Louisiana forced 22 turnovers, while tying a season-low 15 turnovers.
Three Cajuns reached double-figures as Louisiana scored 70-plus points for the third time this season.
Louisiana used a steady offense and a 7-0 run to close out the first half with a 36-29 lead. The Cajuns started out with a 13-2 run in the second half to break away from the Racers. UL led by as many as 23 with 11:44 remaining in the second half.
Mercedes Johnson led the way for Louisiana with 19 points. With her 19 points, Johnson reached her ninth consecutive double-digit performance dating back to Feb. 20, 2010. The junior just missed a double-double, reeling in nine boards and she inked a team-high three steals. She made seven of her 10 attempts from the line.
Johnson earned All-Tournament honors, tallying 33 points for an average of 16.5 per game. She totaled 18 rebounds for an average of 9.0 per game.
Lafayette native Lyndra Bell followed up with 15 points. The senior hit 54 percent of her shots as she drained a team-high seven from the floor in 13 attempts. Bell pulled in four rebounds.
Junior Danielle Smith had her second consecutive double-figure game with 12 points, nine of which came from three-pointers. Smith was also had a defensive block in the contest.
Murray State's Kayla Lowe recorded 13 points and nine rebounds, while Jessica Winfrey had 11 points and eight boards in the game.
In the first half, UL made 45 percent of their shots from the field compared to Murray State's 32 percent. Johnson added 15 points in the half, pulling down six boards and making five out of eight free from the line.
UL went up 10-8 from a picked steal by Barnes and a pass to Bell. A couple of possessions later, Bell was trapped inside and threw a backdoor pass to Nicole Morris, giving UL a 12-8 lead with 13:55 left. Morris finished with seven points and two rebounds.
Kayla Lowe hit a triple for the Racers to cut Murray's deficit to 14-13 with 11:15 on the clock.
A pair of jumpers by Johnson helped Louisiana keep a five point lead for the Cajuns with less than 10 minutes remaining. Lowe hit another trey for Murray State to cut the Cajuns lead to within two.
Bell's jumper at 8:29 allowed Louisiana to jump out to a 23-18 lead. Murray State again answered as Mariah Robinson hit the Racers' third triple of the game at 7:43 to cut Louisiana's lead to 23-21.
Murray State pulled within one, 26-25, with a layup by Lowe at 5:48 left in the game. Rachel Isom's pair of made baskets tied the game at 29 with two minutes remaining.
D'Mya Clay hit one-of-two from the line to extend UL's lead to 34-29. A steal by Louisiana allowed Johnson to score on a fast break to give the Cajuns a 36-29 lead at the half-way point.
Louisiana went on a 13-to-2 run to begin the second half to extend their lead to 43-29. Jasmine Barnes scored a fast break layup. Smith followed with her second triple in the game. UL stole another pass from Murray State and Barnes added her fourth point with a jumper inside, extending UL's lead to 14.
Barnes, a senior from Baton Rouge, tallied six points with four rebounds.
Smith aced her third triple at 17:21 to give Louisiana a 15-point edge. Morris added another 3-pointer breaking the Cajuns lead out to 49-31 with 16:51 left.
Murray State went on a small 4-0 run, but couldn't contain UL's hot offense. Bell drove to lane and scored. She added the plus-one after being fouled.
Clay followed up with two back-to-back triples to give the Ragin' Cajuns a 58-37 lead with 14:17 left in the contest. Clay finished the game with 2-of-3 made three-pointers for seven points, while picking up three boards.
Bell's jumped at 11:44 opened the largest lead of the night for the Cajuns with a 23-point margin. The Racers used a 6-0 rally to pull within 16 at the 8:23 mark in the contest.
Jumpers by Bell and Johnson helped the Cajuns re-extend their lead to 20. Murray State used four freebies to pull within 14 at 2:44. Allison Karst's triple helped Murray State pull within 13 with a minute-plus left in the game.
Louisiana dished out 16 total assists, while Johnson, Smith and Morris each dished out three. Freshman Bianca Davis recorded a season-high five rebounds in nine minutes of action.
Louisiana closes out their longest road trip of the season on Monday. UL will visit former Sun Belt Conference member New Orleans. The Lady Privateers are 0-5 on the season including an 85-37 loss at Southern Miss on Nov. 21. Tip-off is slated for 6:00 p.m. at Lakefront Arena in New Orleans.
Lady Eagle Thanksgiving Classic All-Tournament Team
A'dia Mathies, Kentucky - MVP
Kastine Evans, Kentucky
Rachel Vigers, Southern Miss
Jamierrra Faulkner, Southern Miss
Mercedes Johnson, Louisiana
Kayla Lowe, Murray State
-- Ragin' Cajuns --
