University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns
UCF
UCF's Strong Second Half Quells Cajuns
12/15/2010 10:24:00 PM | Men's Basketball
After nearly erasing a first half 17-point deficit, foul trouble and turnovers proved to be the difference as UCF claimed a 79-58 win over Louisiana's Ragin' Cajuns men's basketball team on Wednesday at the UCF Arena in Orlando, Fla.
UCF used the Cajuns' miscues to outscore UL, 44-33, in the second half.
The Knights' (9-0) full-court defense forced UL (1-8) into 20 turnovers, while the Cajuns were called for 26 of the game's 45 fouls.
With the Cajuns in foul trouble, UCF took advantage at the charity stripe going 27-for-35 (.771) compared to the Cajuns' 12-for-19 (.632) effort.
UCF quickly jumped out to a 9-0 lead after UL committed seven turnovers and picked up four fouls by the first media timeout at 15:50.
At 15:11, Courtney Wallace got the Cajuns on the board but the Knights rattled off an 11-1 run to grab a 20-3 lead.
The Cajuns would close the gap to single digits on a 14-6 run of their own but still trailed 26-17 with 7:18 remaining.
UL refused to back down and continued to chip away at the Knight's lead. A three-pointer from David Perez brought the Cajuns to within three, 30-27, with 3:09 left in the half.
UCF would take a 35-28 lead into the break as UL failed to hit a field goal for the final three minutes of the half.
The Cajuns would get no closer than six points as UCF went on a 19-4 run to take a 52-37 at the 10:23 mark and never looked back.
Scottie Farrington led UL with 12 points and six rebounds. Joining him in double figures was Perez who had 11.
The Cajuns shot 37.5 percent (21-56) from the floor on the night compared to the Knights' 43.4 percent effort (23-53).
Next up for the Cajuns will be a home contest against Lamar on Sunday, Dec. 19. The game marks the final home game of 2010 for UL. Tip-off is set for 2:15 p.m. CT.
