University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns
South Alabama
Players Mentioned
MBB Game 21 Preview: at South Alabama
1/28/2015 2:15:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Thursday, Jan. 29 • 7:05 p.m. (CST) • Mitchell Center (10,000) • Mobile, Ala.
Game Notes: Louisiana | Georgia State
Live Stats
Radio: KHXT 107.9 FM Video: USAJaguars.com
Rosters: Louisiana | South Alabama
Statistics: Louisiana | South Alabama
Ragin' Cajuns Twitter: @ULRaginCajuns | @Cajunbasketball
Opponents Twitter: @SouthAlaMBK
THE COACHES
Louisiana: Bob Marlin (Mississippi State, 1981)
Career Record: 425-238 (22nd season) Record at Louisiana: 77-72 (5th season)
South Alabama: Matthew Graves (Butler, 1998)
Career Record: 81-123 (7th season) Record at South Alabama: Same
FOR STARTERS
Still just 1.5 games out of first place, the Ragin' Cajuns will hit the midway point of the Sun Belt Conference slate on Thursday when they travel to Mobile for an evening game against upstart South Alabama.
THE LAST TIME OUT
A turnover-plagued first half dug too deep of a hole for the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns to climb out of on Saturday at the GSU Sports Arena as the Georgia State Panthers picked up a 75-64 win.
Louisiana turned the ball over 13 times and shot just 5-for-20 from the floor in the opening half, digging itself a 14-point deficit that it was never able to erase. The Cajuns trailed by as much as 22 points early in the second period, but were never able to get any closer than nine in the final minutes. Shawn Long turned in his seventh double-double of the season with 21 points and 16 rebounds, and Jay Wright had 14 points – all in the second half – to lead UL
But the Panthers shot 51.9 percent from the floor got 19 points from Ryan Harrow and another 13 from R.J. Hunter on a night that saw him become the all-time leading scorer in GSU history. The win avenged an 84-80 loss to the Cajuns on Jan. 8 in Lafayette.
Turnovers and cold shooting plagued the Cajuns throughout the first half, with Harrow pumping in 15 of his 19 points in the opening 20 minutes for the Panthers.
Long started the Cajuns off well with a contested three as the shot clock expired on the game's opening possession, but the Cajuns were able to find two more field goals in the next nine minutes and were down 17-10 just over midway through the half.
UP NEXTThe Cajuns will travel to Texas State for its first meeting with the Bobcats on Saturday in San Marcos before returning to the Cajundome for a pair of games next week. That home swing will open against Appalachian State, followed by a Saturday matinee against UT Arlington which will air on ESPN2.
• Shawn Long's 22-point, 22-rebound game against South Alabama was the first 20/20 game by a Cajun since Dan Gay had 21 points and 20 rebounds against McNeese State on March 7, 1981.
• Sophomore Hayward Register erupted for a career-high 19 points against Arkansas State, including 17 in the second half. He hit four threes and scored 14 consecutive Cajun points within a span of four minutes of the second half.
• After 13 turnovers in the first half on Saturday vs Georgia State, the Cajuns took extra care of the basketball in the second half with just two turnovers, a season low for a half this season and the lowest by a UL team in a half since just one turnover vs GSU in the SBC Tournament title game last year.
• UL hit 14 of 22 three-point baskets in Thursday's win against Arkansas State, a mark that is the second-highest percentage (.636) from the arc among Sun Belt teams this year.
• Shawn Long hit 5-for-5 from three-point range on Thursday, surpassing his previous single game high of three triples which he had done seven times previously.
#GeauxCajuns
