MBB Game 36 Preview: CIT Quarterfinals (vs Evansville)

Game 36: Louisiana (22-13, 13-7 Sun Belt) vs Evansville (21-12, 9-9 Missouri Valley)
CollegeInsider.com Tournament - Quarterfinals (Tournament Schedule)
Thursday, March 26 • 7:30 p.m. (CT) • Blackham Coliseum (5,000) • Lafayette, La.
Game Notes: Louisiana | Evansville
Live Stats
Radio: KHXT 107.9 FM Video: CollegeInsider.com
Rosters: Louisiana | Evansville
Statistics: Louisiana | Evansville
Ragin' Cajuns Twitter: @ULRaginCajuns | @Cajunbasketball
Opponents Twitter: @EvansvilleBBall

THE COACHES
Louisiana: Bob Marlin (Mississippi State, 1981)
Career Record: 436-242 (22nd season) Record at Louisiana: 88-76 (5th season)

Evansville: Marty Simmons (Evansville, 1987)
Career Record: 221-206 (13th season) Record at Evansville: 123-134 (8th season)

FOR STARTERS
Louisiana has won nine of its last 10 games overall, including each of its first two in the CIT, and will turn the lights on at Blackham Coliseum for the first time since 2006 on Thursday when it hosts Evansville in the tournament quarterfinals.

THE LAST TIME OUT
Jay Wright hit a game-winning three-point shot with 0.9 seconds remaining and the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns pulled out a 71-70 win over Sam Houston State on Saturday afternoon at Bernard G. Johnson Coliseum in the second round of the CIT.

Wright finished with a game-high 19 points, but it was his only three-point try of the night that was the biggest shot of the game. The Bearkats, who trailed by nine points at halftime, took their final lead of the game at 70-68 when Aurimas Majauskas made a short jumper with just 7.9 seconds to play. But following a Cajun timeout, Wright never surrendered the ball and netted the game-winner from the right wing with less than a second to play for the win.

The Cajuns, who picked up the win in Bob Marlin's return to Huntsville where he is still the Bearkat's all-time winningest coach, will move on to the third round of the CIT to play an opponent that is still to be determined. Louisiana has now won its last five true road games and nine of its last 10 games overall.

Along with Wright, who was 7-for-10 overall from the field, Shawn Long (14), Devonta Walker (13) and Kasey Shepherd (11) all reached double figures in scoring. Bryce Washington also filled up the stat line, hitting 4-for-5 from the field for eight points, nine boards, two assists and two blocks in 33 minutes.

UP NEXT
The CollegeInsider.com Tournament is a 32-team tournament that utilizes the old NIT form with out a direct-advance bracket. With a win UL would move on to the semifinals of the CIT, with location, opponent and date all to be determined.

QUICK HITS
• Shawn Long needs 39 more rebounds to tie Roy Ebron as the all-time leading rebounder in school history. Should UL play three more games in the CIT, he would need to average 13.0 per game. Long, Ebron and Marcus Stokes are the only players in Ragin' Cajuns history to have totaled 1,000 rebounds during their playing career.

• Louisiana's CIT opening-round win at Incarnate Word was its first non-conference road win since beating Louisiana Tech, 89-80, on Dec. 4, 2013.

• UL's entry into the CIT is the program's 14th official appearance in postseason since beginning NCAA competition in the 1970-71 season.

• Louisiana had its seven-game win streak snapped in the SBC Tournament quarterfinal against Georgia State. The seven-game streak was the longest by any SBC team this season.

• UL's win over Incarnate Word was the first postseason win for the Cajuns since an 87-83 win over Oklahoma in the first round of the 1992 NCAA Tournament.

#GeauxCajuns

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Players Mentioned

Shawn Long

Kasey Shepherd

Devonta Walker

Bryce Washington

Jay Wright