Cajuns To Face App State In First-Ever Meeting

Game 12 - Louisiana (8-3, 0-2 SBC) vs. Appalachian State (5-5, 0-1 SBC)
Monday, Jan. 5, 2014 • 4 p.m. (CT) • Boone, N.C. - Holmes Convocation Center (8,325)
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LAFAYETTE, La. – The Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns women's basketball team looks to snap a two-game losing skid Monday when the Cajuns face Appalachian State in the first-ever meeting between the two programs at 4 p.m. (CT) in Boone, North Carolina.

Last Time Out
- A 25-6 run for the Cajuns in a span of eight minutes erased a 19-point deficit and tied the game at 52 with Troy, but a late three-pointer by Rachel Reid lifted the Trojans to a 60-55 win Saturday at the Cajundome
- Senior guard Robbie Brown scored 14 of season-best 16 points in the final 9:28 to lead the Cajuns
- Junior guard Kia Wilridge added eight points and a team-high six boards while sophomore guard Jaylyn Gordon finished with eight points and a team-best three assists and three steals
- Louisiana was held to under 30 percent shooting for the second-straight game, finishing with a 29.0 percentage (18-of-62)
- The Cajuns defense made up for the team's cold shooting, forcing the Trojans to 21 turnovers and scoring 19 points off Troy's miscues. It was the sixth game this season Louisiana forced an opponent to commit at least 20 turnovers

A Look at the Mountaineers
- Appalachian State holds a 5-5 record and an 0-1 mark in their first season as a Sun Belt Conference member
- The Mountaineers opened up SBC action Saturday on the road, falling to league favorite Arkansas State by a score of 89-75
- App State, under the direction of first-year head coach Angel Elderkin, is led by senior forward Maryah Sydnor and senior guard Katie Mallow
- Sydnor. a SBC preseason first team selection, is averaging 18.1 points and 7.8 rebounds per game in a team-high 35.1 minutes to pace the Mountaineers
- Mallow is also averaging double figures with 13.0 points per game
- App State is first in the league in scoring with 73.5 points per contest, but ranks last in the conference in scoring defense, allowing 78.1 points this season
- The Mountaineers also lead the SBC in free-throw percentage, shooting 74.9 percent from the charity stripe

Series History
- Monday's contest will be the first meeting between the two programs

Up Next
- The Cajuns return home Thursday to host Georgia State in a 5 p.m. game at the Cajundome

Cajuns in the National Rankings
- As a team, the Cajuns defense has caused many problems for opponents this season, limiting teams to 57.0 points per game to tie for 44th in the nation
- The Cajuns have forced opponents to 20-plus turnovers on six different occasions as teams are averaging 21.1 turnovers per game this season
- In 10 of 11 games, a team has committed at least 15 turnovers with Louisiana Tech being the one exception (14)
- Junior guard Kia Wilridge's tenacious defense through the first 11 games of the season has her ranked among the best in the country
- Wilridge has totaled 30 steals on the season for an average of 2.7 per game to tie for 42nd in the nation

Nine-Game Start
- With an 8-1 non-conference record this season, the Cajuns matched their best nine-game start in program history
- After dropping their season opener to SMU in the 2005-06 season, the Cajuns reeled off eight-straight wins under former head coach J. Kelley Hall to also start the season 8-1

Cajuns Match Best Start in Program History
- After their win over Southern-New Orleans, the Cajuns matched their best start in program history at 6-0
- In 1983, the Cajuns started off the season 6-0 under first-year head coach Ross Cook, eventually recording the program's first 20-win season with a 22-6 record

Cajuns Picked Sixth in the Sun Belt
- After tying for seventh in the Sun Belt Conference a season ago, the league's 11 head coaches tabbed the Cajuns sixth with 64 points in the SBC Preseason Poll
- Arkansas State was picked first with 118 points, receiving nine of the 11 first-place votes, while UALR was a close second with 112 points and two first-place votes
- Texas State (93), Georgia State (82) and Troy (70) rounded out the top five in the poll

Veal, Wilridge Named All-SBC Preseason
- Junior guards Keke Veal and Kia Wilridge were selected to the All-Sun Belt Conference Preseason Team, voted on by the league's head coaches
- Veal was named to the second team while Wilridge earned a spot on the third team
- Louisiana was joined by Arkansas State, Georgia State, South Alabama, Texas State and UALR in placing a league-high two players on the preseason team

-- RaginCajuns.com --

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Players Mentioned

Robbie Brown

Jaylyn Gordon

Keke Veal

Kia Wilridge