University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
Friday, November 16
Houston, Texas
7:00 PM
Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns
1-1
71
at
74
Texas Southern
1-2
1
2
OT 1
F
Louisiana-Lafayette
19
46
6
71
Texas Southern
29
36
9
74
Mbamalu and Payton Key Cajuns Rally, TSU Prevails in OT
11/16/2012 10:47:00 PM | Men's Basketball
| Box Score (PDF)
Contact: Matt Hebert
HOUSTON – A strong second half rally helped Louisiana's Ragin' Cajuns men's basketball team force overtime, but a cold spell in the final 2:36 of the extra session allowed Texas Southern to pull out a 74-71 triumph in the first road game of the 100th season of Ragin' Cajuns basketball here at the H&PE Arena.
Louisiana (1-1) battled back from a 10-point halftime deficit (29-19) behind the scoring exploits of Bryant Mbamalu and Elfrid Payton who scored all of their points in the second stanza. Mbamalu (20 points) and Payton (15 points) combined for 35 points in the Cajuns' 46-36 second half edge that resulted in overtime.
Mbamalu was personally responsible for an eight-point spurt over a four-minute stretch that drew Louisiana within four points, 49-45 with 11:12 remaining – the closest deficit since trailing 23-19 at 1:59 of the first stanza.
When Mbamalu raced in for a layup at 5:07 after a loose ball scramble off a TSU miss, the Cajuns had their first lead, 56-55. A Payton bucket at 4:15 upped the lead to three points, but the Tigers kept the game from slipping away when Ray Penn knocked down a trey 10 seconds later.
After Mbamalu fouled out with 1:22 on the clock and TSU (1-2) holding a 65-61 lead, Payton took charge in the final minute of regulation.
The sophomore point guard hit a stop-and-pop jumper with 42 seconds left, then after a defensive stop drove the lane and drew a foul with 0.8 seconds showing. After a lengthy delay to determine how much time would be placed on the clock, he knocked down both freebies to forge a 65-all tie.
Alan-Michael Thompson got the Cajuns on the scoreboard first in overtime, racing in for a layup after a loose ball scramble following tipoff.
Kevin Brown's third triple of the evening returned the lead to Louisiana, 70-67, at the 2:36 mark. That, though, would be the Cajuns final field goal and the Tigers finished the game on a 7-1 run.
Penn's trey from the left corner at 1:44 drew TSU even at 70-apiece, then two free throws from Dexter Ellington at 0:40 gave the hosts the lead for good as the Cajuns weren't able to convert on subsequent possessions.
The Tigers rally in overtime spoiled Louisiana's attempt at the program's first 2-0 start since the 2000-01 season. The game marked the third meeting all-time between the two schools, but the first since 1990 and first-ever in Houston.
The Ragin' Cajuns continue the current weekend road trek on Sunday when they face Boise State at 2 p.m. (CST) from Taco Bell Arena in Boise, Idaho. The meeting with BSU is the third of four in the Spartan Showcase presented by Auto-Owners Insurance.
Penn led the charge for the Tigers, who claimed their home opener, with 17 points. He was backed up Omar Strong's 14 points.
The Tigers benefitted from three triples in the opening four minutes to lay claim to a 9-3 lead. The shots weren't falling for the Cajuns who didn't crack the scoreboard until a Brown trey at 16:52.
Brown's second triple of the evening moved the Cajuns within four points (12-8), but the TSU lead remained near that margin due in large part to a four-plus minute scoring drought that persisted for Louisiana following a Kasey Shepherd finger roll at 11:08 which made it 16-12.
A seven-point spurt from Shawn Long which began with a three-point make at 7:28 and was capped off by the season's first dunk at 5:26 trimmed the Tigers lead to 20-19.
Long's dunk would be the final points of the opening stanza for the Ragin' Cajuns. The defense kept the squad in the contest, limiting TSU to a single free throw through the 1:59 mark.
A Strong baseline drive and Lawrence Johnson-Danner bucket inside the two-minute mark stretched the TSU lead to 25-19.
After two Kyrie Sutton freebies with 25 seconds remaining upped the Tigers lead to 27-19, the Cajuns elected to settle for the last basket of the first half. However, a Steven Wronkoski turnover in the backcourt led to a Fred Sturdivant layup and the first double digit lead of the night.
Louisiana stormed out of the locker room with baskets on its first three possessions, but couldn't lower the lead as TSU had an answer each time. The deficit was 13 points after a Strong three from the left corner at 18:06 and Penn basket at 17:38 put the Tigers ahead 38-25.
An 8-2 Ragin' Cajuns run dropped the TSU lead to 42-35 by 15:27 and prompted a Mike Davis timeout. Three-pointers from Long and Payton continued Louisiana's hot second half start.
TSU answered with a three-point play at 15:08 to stretch the lead back to 10 points.
Contact: Matt Hebert
HOUSTON – A strong second half rally helped Louisiana's Ragin' Cajuns men's basketball team force overtime, but a cold spell in the final 2:36 of the extra session allowed Texas Southern to pull out a 74-71 triumph in the first road game of the 100th season of Ragin' Cajuns basketball here at the H&PE Arena.
Louisiana (1-1) battled back from a 10-point halftime deficit (29-19) behind the scoring exploits of Bryant Mbamalu and Elfrid Payton who scored all of their points in the second stanza. Mbamalu (20 points) and Payton (15 points) combined for 35 points in the Cajuns' 46-36 second half edge that resulted in overtime.
Mbamalu was personally responsible for an eight-point spurt over a four-minute stretch that drew Louisiana within four points, 49-45 with 11:12 remaining – the closest deficit since trailing 23-19 at 1:59 of the first stanza.
When Mbamalu raced in for a layup at 5:07 after a loose ball scramble off a TSU miss, the Cajuns had their first lead, 56-55. A Payton bucket at 4:15 upped the lead to three points, but the Tigers kept the game from slipping away when Ray Penn knocked down a trey 10 seconds later.
After Mbamalu fouled out with 1:22 on the clock and TSU (1-2) holding a 65-61 lead, Payton took charge in the final minute of regulation.
The sophomore point guard hit a stop-and-pop jumper with 42 seconds left, then after a defensive stop drove the lane and drew a foul with 0.8 seconds showing. After a lengthy delay to determine how much time would be placed on the clock, he knocked down both freebies to forge a 65-all tie.
Alan-Michael Thompson got the Cajuns on the scoreboard first in overtime, racing in for a layup after a loose ball scramble following tipoff.
Kevin Brown's third triple of the evening returned the lead to Louisiana, 70-67, at the 2:36 mark. That, though, would be the Cajuns final field goal and the Tigers finished the game on a 7-1 run.
Penn's trey from the left corner at 1:44 drew TSU even at 70-apiece, then two free throws from Dexter Ellington at 0:40 gave the hosts the lead for good as the Cajuns weren't able to convert on subsequent possessions.
The Tigers rally in overtime spoiled Louisiana's attempt at the program's first 2-0 start since the 2000-01 season. The game marked the third meeting all-time between the two schools, but the first since 1990 and first-ever in Houston.
The Ragin' Cajuns continue the current weekend road trek on Sunday when they face Boise State at 2 p.m. (CST) from Taco Bell Arena in Boise, Idaho. The meeting with BSU is the third of four in the Spartan Showcase presented by Auto-Owners Insurance.
Penn led the charge for the Tigers, who claimed their home opener, with 17 points. He was backed up Omar Strong's 14 points.
The Tigers benefitted from three triples in the opening four minutes to lay claim to a 9-3 lead. The shots weren't falling for the Cajuns who didn't crack the scoreboard until a Brown trey at 16:52.
Brown's second triple of the evening moved the Cajuns within four points (12-8), but the TSU lead remained near that margin due in large part to a four-plus minute scoring drought that persisted for Louisiana following a Kasey Shepherd finger roll at 11:08 which made it 16-12.
A seven-point spurt from Shawn Long which began with a three-point make at 7:28 and was capped off by the season's first dunk at 5:26 trimmed the Tigers lead to 20-19.
Long's dunk would be the final points of the opening stanza for the Ragin' Cajuns. The defense kept the squad in the contest, limiting TSU to a single free throw through the 1:59 mark.
A Strong baseline drive and Lawrence Johnson-Danner bucket inside the two-minute mark stretched the TSU lead to 25-19.
After two Kyrie Sutton freebies with 25 seconds remaining upped the Tigers lead to 27-19, the Cajuns elected to settle for the last basket of the first half. However, a Steven Wronkoski turnover in the backcourt led to a Fred Sturdivant layup and the first double digit lead of the night.
Louisiana stormed out of the locker room with baskets on its first three possessions, but couldn't lower the lead as TSU had an answer each time. The deficit was 13 points after a Strong three from the left corner at 18:06 and Penn basket at 17:38 put the Tigers ahead 38-25.
An 8-2 Ragin' Cajuns run dropped the TSU lead to 42-35 by 15:27 and prompted a Mike Davis timeout. Three-pointers from Long and Payton continued Louisiana's hot second half start.
TSU answered with a three-point play at 15:08 to stretch the lead back to 10 points.
-- Ragin' Cajuns --
Team Stats
UL
TXSOM
FG%
.360
.383
3FG%
.304
.318
FT%
.588
.656
RB
49
45
TO
14
11
STL
3
7
Game Leaders
Pts
20
FGM
8
3FGM
2
FTM
2
Pts
18
FGM
7
3FGM
1
FTM
3
Pts
15
FGM
5
3FGM
1
FTM
4
Pts
9
FGM
3
3FGM
3
FTM
0
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