University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns
Lamar
Cajuns? Second Half Surge Snaps Streak
12/19/2010 9:30:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Louisiana's Ragin' Cajuns men's basketball team used 13-2 run to start second half to come from behind and defeat Lamar, 68-65, at the Cajundome on Sunday. The win snaps a seven-game losing streak for the Cajuns.
UL outscored the Cardinals 39-32 in the second half thanks to a 48-percent shooting effort in the final 20 minutes. The Cajuns connected on 12-of-25 from the floor while Lamar struggled in the shooting just 32.3 percent (10-31) in the second half.
The Cajuns are now 2-8 this season while Lamar falls to 5-5 on the year.
After trailing 29-33 at break, UL put up four quick points to start the second half and tied the contest, 33-33, on a breakaway dunk by Scottie Farrington.
UL grabbed its first lead since the opening minutes of the first half on a free throw from Bryant Mbamalu on the next possession.
The 13-2 run was capped off by a jumper from Josh Brown to give UL a 42-35 lead six minutes into the half.
A three-pointer at the 11:16 mark from David Perez gave UL its first double-digit lead of the game, 51-41.
But the Cardinals would not go away quietly as Lamar was able to keep pace and slowly cut back into the Cajuns' 61-56 lead with 4:49 left in the game.
Lamar kept threatening, coming to within one possession of tying the contest as the UL held on to a slim 63-61 lead with 3:29 remaining in the contest.
The two-point margin held as the Cardinals were called for a charge with 30 seconds remaining and were forced to foul.
But Raymone Andrews only connected on one free throw and Lamar was able to advance the length of the court and score with 19 seconds to make the contest, 66-65.
Andrews was fouled again and this time made both from the charity stripe to stretch the lead to 68-65.
Lamar had its chance in the waning seconds but UL's defense stood tall to preserve the win.
Nine UL turnovers in the first eight minutes allowed Lamar to jump out to a 13-7 lead at the 11:44 mark. All of the Cardinals' points were a direct result of the Cajuns' miscues.
Lamar's lead would grow to as much as 11 points during the first half before UL closed out the half on a 10-3 run to close the gap to four points, 29-33.
The turnovers proved to be the difference in the first half as the Cajuns shot better and out-rebounded the Cardinals through the first 20 minutes. UL was 11-of-28 (39.3 percent) compared to Lamar's 12-of-23 effort (36.4 percent). On the boards, the Cajuns held a 23-17 advantage.
For the game, UL was 43.4 percent form the floor (23-53).
Brown led UL with 20 points after missing the last four games due to injury. He was 8-for-14 on field goals and pulled down five rebounds.
Farrington and Perez joined him in double figures with 11 points each.
Mbamalu was UL's leading rebounder grabbing a season-best 11 boards to go along with seven points.
The Cajuns will have a quick turnaround as they head to Las Cruces, N.M. to face New Mexico State on Tuesday. Tip-off is set for 8 p.m. CT. The two teams met earlier this year at the Cajundome with the Aggies posting a 92-76 win over UL in the season opener.
