Louisiana Welcomes SUNO To Earl K. Long Gym on Wednesday

GAME CENTER

Game 6
Louisiana (2-3, 0-1 SBC) vs Southern-New Orleans (3-1)
Date: Wednesday, Nov. 28, 2012
Location: Lafayette, La.
Site: Earl K. Long Gym
Time: 7:00 p.m. CDT
Series History: First meeting

SETTING THE SCENE
Louisiana returns to Earl K. Long Gym on Wednesday, Nov. 28 hosting Southern-New Orleans beginning at 7 p.m. The Ragin' Cajuns look to rebound coming off their first Sun Belt Conference loss to a tradition-rich Middle Tennessee squad. Freshman Kia Wilridge led the Cajuns with 14 points to go along with seven rebounds and three steals. Byronesha Santiago recorded her second double-double of the season, scoring 10 points and snaring 10 rebounds. Robbie Brown also contributed 10 points, all of which came in the first half. UL returns just four players from a year ago, opening the season with seven newcomers (five freshmen and two junior college transfers). Four Cajuns average double digits in scoring and leading the way is freshman guard Sylvana Okde's 12.2 points per game. Fellow freshman, Kia Wilridge is second on the team in scoring, averaging 11.6 points and 5.2 rebounds. Her 4.2 steals per game is tied for 11^th in the NCAA division I rankings. Keke Veal and Ashley Benjamin contribute 11.2 and 10.8 points per game, respectively. Byronesha Santiago leads the squad in rebounding, posting a 7.8 average to go along with 9.6 points. Southern-New Orleans is currently on a two-game win streak, beating Judson College (89-45) and Oakwood College (85-39). Westminster College handed SUNO their only loss this season (57-56). April Perry leads the team in scoring and assists (18.0 ppg, 7.0 assists), while Janee Morton leads the squad in rebounds at 8.3 per contest. This will be the first meeting between the two teams.

Louisiana Overview
12-13 Record__________________2-3
12-13 Sun Belt Record__________0-0
Head Coach____________________Garry Brodhead (Lousiana, '80)
Record at UL___________________2-3 (first season)
Career Record__________________same
Last Game______________________ Nov. 24, 2012 vs Middle Tennessee
L, 72-45
Website________________________RaginCajuns.com

Southern-New Orleans Overview
12-13 Record___________________3-1
12-13 GCAC Record_____________0-0
Head Coach_____________________ Elston King (SUNO '81)
Record at MT____________________199-141 (14th season)
Career Record___________________same
Last Game________________________Nov. 17, 2012 vs Oakwood College
W, 85-39
Website__________________________Suno.edu/suno-athletics

THE OPPOSITION
• Southern-New Orleans (3-1) enters the game on a two game win streak, beating Judson (89-45) and Oakwood (85-39).
• April Perry leads the team in scoring and assists, averaging 18.0 ppg and 7.0 assists. Janee Morton leads the squad in rebounds, averaging 8.3 per contest.
• The Knights opened the 2012-13 season with a win over Johnson & Wales (106-56) before falling to Westminster College (57-56).
• The squad averages 84.0 points this season, holding the opposition to 49.3. The Knights have scored 336 points in four games, going 132-285 from the field and 63-104 from the charity stripe.
• The Knights are part of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and compete in the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference (GCAC).

GAME DAY STORY LINES
• The Cajuns, who are currently on a three game losing streak, look to get back on track Wednesday night as they play host to Southern-New Orleans at Earl K. Long Gym.
• Four UL players average double-digits in scoring with freshman guard Sylvana Okde leading the way, averaging 12.2 points, to go along with 4.4 rebounds and 2.6 assists.
• Fellow freshman Kia Wilridge is tied for 11^th in the NCAA division I rankings, averaging 4.2 steals per game. She currently has 21 steals in five games.
• She is also second on the team in scoring, averaging 11.6 points and 5.2 rebounds, while leading the squad in assists (4.2 per game).
• Keke Veal averages 11.2 points, 4.4 rebounds, and has snared 14 steals.
• Ashley Benjamin and Byronesha Santiago average 10.8 and 9.6 points, respectively. Santiago leads the team in rebounding with 7.8 per contest.
• UL has been outscored by opponents, 333-328. The Cajuns average 65.6 ppg to the opposition's 66.6.
• The Ragin' Cajuns are shooting .306 from behind the arc (22-72) and .568 from the charity stripe (50-88).
• UL scored 108 points in their opening exhibition game against Centenary, surpassing the century mark for the first time since Nov. 29, 1989 when the Cajuns beat Texas Southern, 101-83.
• The Cajuns had an exciting season opener after Kia Wilridge scored a layup as time expired to beat Southern, 71-69 to start the season 1-0.
• UL won convincingly, 83-42, against LSU-Shreveport on Nov. 12 and earned their first 2-0 start since the 2004-05 season.
• The Cajuns return just four letterwinners from last year.
• The squad welcomes seven newcomers, including five freshmen and two junior college transfers.
• Robbie Brown played in 30 games last season, averaging 3.4 points, 2.4 assists and 19.4 minutes played.
• Schambough is the lone senior on the squad. She saw action in 16 games last season, averaging 3.5 minutes per contest.

TURNING UP THE D
• Look for the Cajuns to be very solid on the defensive end of the court this season as coach Brodhead stresses defense more than anything.
• Thus far this season, the Cajuns swarming defense has forced the opposing teams to 22.0 turnovers per game while UL averages 20.0, giving the squad a -2.0 turnover margin.
• UL has already racked up 67 steals this season while only having the ball stolen from them 38 times.
• The Cajuns average a hefty 13.4 steals per game. Kia Wilridge's 21 steals in five games leads the team.
• The Cajuns average 39.8 rebounds per game, while the opposition is averaging 36.8.
• Louisiana forced 19.4 turnovers per game last season including a -1.9 turnover margin for a 0.5 assist/turnover ratio.
• UL had a total of 272 steals and averaged 9.1 per game last year.

HOMEGROWN TALENT
• Cajuns roster features eight players who hail from the state of Louisiana.
• To go a step further, five athletes prepped in the greater Lafayette area.

REUNITED AND IT FEELS SO GOOD
• For the first time since the 2010-11 academic year, sophomores Brooklyn Arceneaux and Robbie Brown and freshmen Kia Wilridge and Keke Veal are teammates.
• The quartet powered local St. Thomas More High to a state championship in 2011.
• Last season, Wilridge and Veal carried on the championship caliber effort, winning another state title in 2012.
• Wilrdige and Veal have contributed a combined 95 of 283 points in the first four games of the season.

RETURNING HOME
• Three of the Cajuns four coaches are alums of the University of Louisiana – head coach Garry Brodhead (1980), Sallie Guillory (2005), Deacon Jones (1999).
• For Brodhead, it represents a return to the city where many of his coaching successes occurred namely his stint at Teurlings Catholic High School where he posted a 297-78 record from 1998-2007.

UP NEXT FOR LOUISIANA
• The Ragin' Cajuns travel to Denton, Texas on Saturday, Dec. 1 for a Sun Belt contest against North Texas at 5 p.m.

-- Ragin' Cajuns --

University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics

Louisiana Welcomes SUNO To Earl K. Long Gym on Wednesday

Related Videos

Footer