Cajuns Face Defending National Champion Louisville

Contact: Brian McCann

Complete Game Notes (PDF)

Game 9
Louisiana (6-2) at No. 6/7 Louisville (7-1)
Date: Saturday, Dec. 7, 2013
Time: 1:00 p.m. EST (12:00 noon CST)
Site: KFC Yum! Center (22,000) Louisville, Ky.
Radio: KPEL (1420 AM) & KHXT (107.9 FM) (Jay Walker)
TV: WHAS-TV (Louisville) & ESPN3 (Drew Deener &Bob Valvano)
Series: Louisville leads, 8-0
Last Meeting: Louisville 84, Louisiana 69 (12/23/09, Louisville)

THE COACHES:
LOUISIANA
BOB MARLIN (Mississippi State '81)
At Louisiana: 49-53 (4th year)
4-Year Overall: 274-184 (16th year)
All Collegiate: 397-219 (21st year)
vs. Louisville: 0-0

LOUISVILLE
RICK PITINO (UMass '74)
At Louisville: 317-112 (12th year)
Overall: 671-240 (28th year)
vs. Louisiana: 2-1

SETTING THE SCENE: The Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns play one more game before breaking for finals,putting their four-game win streak on the line when they play at defending national champion (No. 6/7) Louisville on Saturday, Dec. 7 beginning at 12:00 noon CST in the KFC Yum! Center in downtown Louisville, Ky. The game will be televised nationally on ESPN3 and the ESPN FullCourt package with Drew Deener and Bob Valvano providing the commentary. The Cajuns are coming off an 89-80 win at Louisiana Tech on Wednesday, a game that snapped the Bulldogs' 19-game home win streak and improved Louisiana to 6-2 for the first time since 1995-96. Shawn Long (20.1 ppg, 11.6 rpg) and Elfrid Payton (19.9, 6.3) continue to lead the Cajuns with strong contributions from reserves Xavian Rimmer (8.6 ppg) and Kasey Shepherd (6.9). Louisville (7-1) has won all eight previous meeting with the Cajuns.

PREVIEWING LOUISIANA: Louisiana is off to a 6-2 start in 2013-14, benefiting from the return of four starters and a total of 10 lettermen from last year's squad that went 13-20, leading fourth-year head coach Bob Marlin to feel confident that the Cajuns are on a path to return to national prominence. The team is centered around the duo of point guard Elfrid Payton (19.9 ppg, 6.3 rpg, 5.0 apg, 2.5 spg) and forward Shawn Long (20.1 ppg, 11.6 rpg, 3.1 bpg), both of whom were named to the preseason All-Sun Belt first team this year. Long plays mostly at center with Elridge Moore (7.1, 4.9) starting as an under-sized forward. Bryant Mbamalu (13.8, 3.7 in 2012-13), who started 26 games as a wing guard last season, is out indefinitely with a foot injury in September. With Mbamalu out, junior Kevin Brown (6.8, 1.6), who is returning after missing most of last season with an injury, has taken over with Steven Wronkoski (6.0, 3.0) starting on the other wing. The bench has been a source of a good offensive spark as junior Xavian Rimmer (8.6, 2.0) and sophomore Kasey Shepherd 6.9, 2.1) providing the biggest lift at guard with freshman Hayward Register (3.0) also seeing time. Junior J.J. Davenport (2.8, 3.1), who played the last two seasons at New Mexico Junior College, and freshmen Vieux Kande (0.4, 0.7), and Luka Kamber (0.7 ppg) are the primary reserves inside with both Davenport and Kande playing center and Kamber a forward. Marlin is utilizing the depth and quickness by forcing an up-tempo game at both ends of the court by applying more defensive pressure. The Cajuns use their quickness and outside shooting ability to create a balanced offense, forcing opponents to cover the entire court.

LOUISIANA IN THE NCAA STATS: The Cajuns were featured prominently in the latest NCAA stats, which were released on Monday (Dec. 2). Junior Elfrid Payton was 13th in steals (2.5), 43rd in assists (5.0) and 52nd in scoring (19.9). Shawn Long is sixth in rebounding (11.6), 10th in double-doubles (5), 25th in blocks (3.1) and 45th in scoring (20.1).

A FAST START: With a 6-2 record heading into the weekend, the Cajuns are off to their best start since going 7-2 to open the 1995-96 season. Last year, the Cajuns did not win their sixth game until Dec. 29th.

SCORING OFF THE GLASS: Shawn Long has made the most of his rebounding opportunities this year, scoring 22 baskets off his 33 offensive rebounds this season or an average of 5.5 points a game. Long ranks third in the Sun Belt averaging 4.1 offensive rebounds a game.

PAYTON NEARS ASSIST TOP 10: Despite a season-low two assists at Louisiana Tech, Elfrid Payton moved into 13th place on the Louisiana career assist list. Payton has 318 assists, passing Randal Smith (1985-88), who had 317. Payton needs 22 assists to catch 12th place Carl Jordan (330 assists from 1979-80) and 70 to pass 10th place Andrew Toney (387 from 1977-80).

PAYTON SHOWS IMPROVEMENT AT THE LINE: A career .611 shooter from the stripe entering the season, Elfrid Payton is intent on raising that figure further this year. Through eight games, Payton is shooting .707 from the line (53-75), including making all seven attempts in the opener against Louisiana College and going seven-for-eight at Louisiana Tech on Wednesday. The improvement is not a surprise as Payton shot .719 (41-57) during his three summer tours, including .900 (9-10) at the FIBA World Championship. Payton shot just .564 (75-134) as a freshman but came back to go 134-for-209 (.641) last year.

RIMMER EXPLODES: The one thing missing from the playing rotation in 2012-13 was an offensive spark off the bench. Although it took him five games to get going, junior Xavian Rimmer is quickly becoming that spark this year. Rimmer, a transfer from Pearl River C.C., averaged just 2.6 points in his first five games. In his last three however, Rimmer is averaged 18.7 points, shooting .615 from the field (16-26), .684 from three-point (13-19) and .800 from the line (8-10). He scored a career-high 21 points with seven rebounds in the title game victory in the EA Sports Maui on the Mainland and came back to add 20 points vs. Northwestern State and 15 at Louisiana Tech. In three games, Rimmer has gone from 2.6 points to 8.6 points a game

. . . AND SHEPHERD IS HEATING UP: Sophomore guard Kasey Shepherd is also in a zone, averaging 19.5 points over the last two games. Shepherd averaged just 2.7 points in his first six contests before scoring 17 points with six rebounds against Northwestern State. He came back on Wednesday to score a career-high 22 points with six rebounds at Louisiana Tech. Over the last two games, Shepherd is shooting .765 (13-17) from the field (13-17), .500 from three-point (2-4) and a perfect 11-for-11 from the foul line to raise his scoring average to 6.9 points per game.

LONG RECORDS QUICK DOUBLE-DOUBLES: After ranking sixth nationally last year with 18 double-doubles, sophomore Shawn Long has started the year with five double-doubles in the first eight games, achieving two before halftime. He scored 23 points with 14 rebounds in the season-opening win over Louisiana College. He needed just 18:07 to get his first double-double of the year, grabbing his 10th rebound of the night (to go with 14 points at the time) as part of an 18-point, 11-rebound effort in the first half. Against Northwestern State on Nov. 26, Long had 16 points and 12 rebounds at halftime, accomplishing the double-double with 2:51 to play. He finished with 22 points and 15 rebounds. Long did not have a double-double by halftime during the 2012-13 season.

. . . AND PAYTON ADDS HIS FIFTH: A 17-point, 10 rebounds effort at Louisiana Tech on Tuesday gave junior Elfrid Payton his fifth double-double of his career and second of the season. Payton has split them up, having three point-rebound double-doubles and two with points and assists. Payton registered his first double-double of the year in the season opener, scoring 21 points with a career-high matching 10 assists.

LONG STARTS YEAR ON A ROLL: Sophomore Shawn Long picked right up where he left off last spring, registering double-doubles in five of the first eight games to rank 10th nationally. He enters the Louisville game leading the Sun Belt in both rebounding (11.6) and offensive rebounding (7.5), ranked second in blocks (3.1) and offensive rebounds (4.1), third in scoring (20.1) and seventh in field goal percentage (.568).

LONG NAMED TOURNAMENT MVP: Sophomore forward Shawn Long was tabbed as the most valuable player of the EA Sports Maui on the Mainland after averaging 21.0 points, 12.0 rebounds and 4.0 blocks in the two games, shooting .667 from the field (14-for-21) and .600 from three-point (3-for-5). He scored 24 points with a career-high matching 17 rebounds and five blocks in the opening round comeback win over Oakland and came back to score all 18 of his points in the second half in the title game vs. Coastal Carolina.

. . . AND LONG RECEIVES FIRST LSWA HONOR: Shawn Long's strong start to his sophomore year has also led to him earning the first player of the week award from the Louisiana Sports Writers Association. The award covered the first month of the season, during which Long averaged 20.6 points, 11.6 rebounds and 3.1 blocks per game in helping the Cajuns to a 5-2 record and the team championship at the EA Sports Maui on the Mainland Classic.

. . . AND LONG EARNS SECOND SUN BELT HONOR: Three weeks into the 2013-14 season, Shawn Long has already garnered a pair of Sun Belt Conference Player of the Week awards. Long earned the honor on Nov. 12 after scoring 23 points with 14 rebounds and four blocks in the season opener against Louisiana College. He came back on Nov. 26 to pick up the award again after being named the MVP of the EA Sports Maui on the Mainland.

PAYTON NAMED TO WOODEN AWARD PRESEASON TOP 50: Cajuns junior point guard Elfrid Payton earned a big preseason honor on Nov. 12 when he was named to the 2013-14 John R. Wooden Award preseason top 50 list by the Los Angeles Athletic Club. Named after the legendary UCLA head coach, the Wooden Award is the most prestigious individual honor in college basketball. It is bestowed upon the nation's best player at an institution of higher education who has proven to his or her university that he or she is making progress toward graduation.

. . . AND MORE HONORS FOR PAYTON: Being selected to the Wooden Award list is the latest in a long list of preseason awards for Elfrid Payton. Earlier in the fall, Payton was named to the preseason watch list for the Bob Cousy Award, which is presented to the nation's top point guard by the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame. In addition, Payton was named to the Mid-Major All-America first team by NBCSports.com and to the Lou Henson All-America team, which honors the nation's top mid-major players and is presented by CollegeInsider.com.

CAJUNS SNAP ROAD STREAK: The win at Coastal Carolina on Nov, 24 snapped a 19-game road losing streak against non-conference opponents that dated back to the end of the 2009-10 season. The win did not come easy as the basketball gods toyed with the Cajuns, nearly allowing Coastal Carolina to rally back from 15 points down with 5:13 left before Louisiana escaped with a 73-69 win. The Cajuns did that streak one better by winning at Louisiana Tech on Wednesday, giving them back-to-back road victories against non-conference opponents heading into the Louisville game.

CAJUNS SIGN THREE: The Louisiana coaching staff was busy this week, signing three players to national letters of intent during the early signing period. Signing with the Cajuns were:

Scott Plaisance (6-9, 210, F, New Orleans, La./Country Day): Was named the Louisiana Class 1A Player of the Year after averaging 15.8 points, 10.3 rebounds and 4.1 blocks per game and leading Country Day to a 26-11 record and the state title. Plaisance is rated the No. 6 player in Louisiana on the latest Times-Picayune Super 16.

Bryce Washington (6-6, 230, F, New Orleans, La./St. Augustine): Earned first team all-district 10-4A honors last year after averaging 13.0 points, 11.0 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game, helping lead his team to a 25-10 record. Ranked No. 13 on the Times-Picayune list of top players in Louisiana.

Johnathan Stove (6-4, 215, G-F, Baton Rouge, La./Christian Life Academy): First all-state choice after averaging 19.8 points as a junior. He was named to both the state Class A team and to the 11-man all-classes team by the Louisiana High School Basketball Coaches Association. A five-year regular, he played on state championship teams in both 8th & 10th grades and helped squad to a 27-6 record and the state semi-finals as a junior.

RAGIN' CAJUNS START THE NEXT 100 SEASONS: The Ragin' Cajuns have begun their 101st season of basketball. The first season was in 1911-12 when the Cajuns posted a 4-1 record. Louisiana has gone on to win 20 or more games 21 times since, entering the Louisville game with a 1,315-1,007 overall record. Louisiana did not have a team in either 1973-74 or 1974-75 because of NCAA sanctions. In the first 100 seasons, the Cajuns have advanced to postseason play 18 times, including 10 NCAA Tournament appearances, winning 16 conference titles. Eight Louisiana players have earned All-America honors with 96 being named all-conference.

PAYTON NEARS 1,000 POINT MARK: Averaging 19.9 points through the first eight games, junior guard Elfrid Payton is quickly closing in on the 1,000 point mark for his career. Payton enters the weekend with 912 points, needing 88 more to become the 40th player in school history to reach that plateau.

. . . AND LONG & MBAMALU ARE WITHIN REACH AS WELL: Elfrid Payton isn't the only Cajun closing in on the 1,000 point mark as senior Bryant Mbamalu (794) and sophomore Shawn Long (672) could each surpass the total this year. Mbamalu's quest for 1,000 will have to wait until he returns from a foot injury, but when he does, he will have just 206 points to go. Long scored 511 points last year and will need to equal his 15.5 points per game from last year to accomplish the feat.

PAYTON OPENS SEASON WTTH HOT HAND: Elfrid Payton started his junior campaign off on the right foot, scoring 20 points or more in each of the first five games before tallying just 13 on Nov. 24 vs. Coastal Carolina. Payton had 21 points in the opener vs. Louisiana College, 22 vs. McNeese State, 27 at Arkansas, 20 at Baylor and a career-high 32 vs.Oakland. He is second on the team and ranks fourth in the Sun Belt averaging 19.9 points a game. Payton is the first Cajuns player to score 20 points or more in five straight games since Michael Allen scored 20 points or more in 12 straight games early in the 1993-94 season.

MAKING THE GRADE: One thing that head coach Bob Marlin has emphasized in his three seasons at Louisiana is the necessity that his players give 100-percent both on and off the court. This demand has led to positive results in the classroom. During the spring 2013 semester, the Ragin' Cajuns set a program record with a 2.904 grade point average for the team. It was the fifth time in six semesters that the team had a GPA of better than 2.50, which had never been done before. The last five semesters account for four of the top seven terms for the basketball team during that time.

PAYTON IS ON PACE FOR ANOTHER 15, 5, 5 & 2: Elfrid Payton was the only player in Division I last year to average 15 points, five rebounds, five assists and two steals a game last year and he has done it again through six games this season. Payton enters the weekend averaging 19.9 points, 6.3 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 2.5 steals a game. Last year, he averaged 15.9 points, 5.6 rebounds, 5.5 assists and 2.5 steals.

SIX GAMES TO BE TELEVISED: The Ragin' Cajuns will garner a little more attention nationally this year as six games will be televised during the regular season. The Nov. 12 game McNeese State vs. was televised throughout Louisiana by the Ragin' Cajuns Network. The Sun Belt Network will pick up home games vs. Texas State (Jan. 13) and South Alabama (March 2) and the road meeting with Georgia State (Feb. 22). The Nov. 17 contest at Baylor was featured on Fox Sports Southwest while the Dec. 7 game at defending national champion Louisville will be shown on ESPN3. In addition, the home games vs. WKU (Jan. 25) and Arkansas State (Feb. 15) could both be picked up by one of the ESPN channels.

WELCOME BACK KEVIN: The Louisiana College game marked the return to the court for Kevin Brown, who missed most of last season after suffering a foot injury in the eighth game of the year. Brown averaged 4.8 points and shot .421 from three-point (8-21) last year, scoring a career-high 14 points at Michigan State. In eight games, Brown is averaging 6.8 points and 1.6 rebounds a game, scoring six or more points six times, including a season-high 10 points at Louisiana Tech.

MOORE LIKES OPENERS: Elridge Moore must love season openers. After all, the senior forward had scored in double figures just four times in his first season with the Cajuns. Last November, Moore went six-for-seven from the floor en route to setting career highs for points (15) and steals (5) in the season-opening win over Oakland. In the 2013-14 opener vs. Louisiana College, Moore scored seven of his 11 points in the second half, going four-for-five from the field and making all three free throws. Last year, Moore went on to average 4.8 points and 3.7 rebounds a game, finishing second on the team with 33 steals and 51 assists and third with 17 blocks.

MOORE SETS CAREER HIGHS: Elridge Moore's confidence on the court was evident in the win over McNeese State on Nov. 13 when the senior set career highs for points (16) and rebounds (9), going 6-for-9 from the floor and making all four free throws. He added 10 points and eight rebounds at Arkansas, his third double-figure scoring effort of the year. In eight games, Moore is averaging 7.1 points and 4.9 rebounds a game, shooting .477 from the field (21-for-38) and .789 from the line (15-19).

HOW ELFRID SPENT HIS SUMMER: Elfrid Payton had quite a summer, traveling mo1111re than 40,000 miles to play 20 basketball games in three different countries as part of three different teams. The journey started with an eight-game, 18-day (May 11-28) tour of the Far East and China with Reach USA, during which he averaged 21.7 points, 7.1 rebounds, 5.7 assists and 3.0 steals a game in helping Reach USA to a 4-2-1 record. After returning to the states, Payton headed to Colorado Springs, Colo. where he not only earned a spot on the USA Basketball U19 team for the FIBA World Championship (June 26-July 7) in Prague, Czech Republic, but a starting spot as well. Payton helped lead Team USA to a 9-0 record and the gold medal. One month later, Payton travelled with his Cajuns teammates to Spain, winning all four games during a goodwill tour.

. . . ALL BECAUSE OF A PASSPORT & CHRIS PAUL SAID NO: Elfrid Payton's emergence over the summer all happened because he was both denied admission to the Chris Paul Elite Gaurd Camp and went on a goodwill tour to China. With Payton playing in China and the Cajuns coaching staff trying in vane to get him an invite to the Paul camp, the coaches changed the focus to Team USA, which was interested in Louisiana's rising junior. When Bob Marlin spoke with Team USA head coach Billy Donovan, Donovan noted that Payton could only attend the tryout if he already had a passport, which he had obtained in the weeks before leaving for China. Payton and his passport, traveled to Colorado Springs for the tryout camp, and the rest is history.

NEXT UP: The Cajuns take a short break to take final exams for the fall semester this week before returning home to host Houston on Dec. 14 and Centenary on Dec. 17. Both games will tip at 7:05 p.m.

Cajuns Face Defending National Champion Louisville

Next Event

Footer

University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics