WBB Game 34 Preview: vs. Oral Roberts

LAFAYETTE – The Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns women's basketball team will continue play in the 2015 Women's Basketball Invitational (WBI) when it entertains Summit League opponent Oral Roberts in a semifinal contest on Thursday at Earl K. Long Gym.

Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. The game can be heard in the Lafayette area on ESPN 1420 AM and on-line at RaginCajuns.com.

Tickets are currently on sale at the Cajundome Box Office or on-line at RaginCajuns.com. For more information, contact the Cajundome Box Office at (800) 745-3000. General admission tickets are $10 for adults with the first 500 UL students, with a valid University I.D., admitted free, courtesy of Coca Cola – the official soft drink of the Ragin' Cajuns.

The winner between No. 2-seeded Louisiana (21-12) and No. 5-seeded ORU (18-15) will face East Region champion Siena (22-12), a 65-54 winner over Mercer on Wednesday, in the WBI Championship game.

ORU advanced to the WBI semifinals after posting wins on the road at No. 4-seeded Texas State (57-54) on March 18 and top-seeded New Mexico (63-61) on Monday.

Game 34 • Louisiana (21-12) vs. Oral Roberts (18-15)
Thursday, March 26 • 6 p.m. • Lafayette, La. • Earl K. Long Gym (1,121)
TV: None • Radio: ESPN 1420 AM • Talent: Steve Peloquin, PxP
Live Stats/Video: RaginCajuns.com/ • Twitter: @RaginCajunsWBB
Series History: First meeting

The Coaches
Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns (Sun Belt Conference)
Head Coach: Garry Brodhead • Alma Mater: Louisiana, 1980
Record at UL: 45-49, 3rd season • Career Record: Same

Oral Roberts Golden Eagles (Summit League)
Head Coach: Misti Cussen • Alma Mater: Southern Nazarene, 1993
Record at ORU: 44-48, 3rd season • Career Record: Same

BY THE NUMBERS
2.82 - Average steals by Kia Wilridge in 2014-15 - the top average in the Sun Belt and 24th nationally.
4 - The number of 20-win seasons by Louisiana in women's basketball history. The Ragin' Cajuns won 25 games in 2006-07 and 22 in both 1983-84 and 2004-05.
6 - Louisiana is ranked sixth in the nation in turnover margin, forcing 6.8 more per game than recording.
33 - Louisiana is ranked 33rd nationally in steals per game, averaging 10.4 per contest.
45 - Garry Brodhead's 45 wins are the most by a women's head coach in his first years at UL.
59.0 - Average points allowed by Louisiana this season, third in the Sun Belt Conference and 60th nationally.
123 - Number of games played by Robbie Brown at Louisiana, moving past Alicia McDaniels for the most in school history.
1,011 – Points scored by Keke Veal in her career, the 15th player in Ragin' Cajuns women's basketball history to score 1,000 career points

Cajuns Move On To WBI Semifinals
• The Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns advanced to the semifinals of the Women's Basketball Invitational for the first time after a thrilling 63-58 win over in-state rival McNeese State on Saturday at Earl K. Long Gym.
• Jaylyn Gordon hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with 51.8 seconds remaining.
• Keke Veal scored a career-high 29 points to become the 15th player in school history to record 1,000 points in a career.
• The win improved Louisiana to 21-12 on the season - one win shy of matching the 2004-05 squad that finished 22-9 on the season.
• Louisiana, which led by as many as 15 points in the second half, led for over 39 minutes in the game before sixth-seeded McNeese State (18-14) trimmed a 10-point deficit with 9:14 left and took its first lead of the game when Talisa Boyd scored on a jumper with 1:26 left for a 56-55 advantage.

A Look At ORU
• Vicky McIntyre leads ORU as she continues one of the most prolific defensive seasons ever as a Golden Eagle. McIntyre moved into 5th on the NCAA single-season rebound list with 522 boards and just 17 shy of Courtney Paris' 2006 record of 539.
• McIntyre was the lone Golden Eagle to be honored with the end of season awards by the Summit League. However, the senior was named Defensive Player of the Year and Newcomer of the Year as well as being tabbed to the All-League First Team.
• Entering Monday's game McIntyre continues to lead the nation in rebounding (15.9 rpg) and blocks (4.7 bpg) as her 27 double-doubles are second behind Jillian Alleyne of Oregon's 28.
• McIntyre has tallied a double-double in 14 straight games and 27 times this season. Her 13 consecutive double-doubles rank 13th best in NCAA history, while her 27 are 12th most in a season.
• McIntyre added seven blocks against New Mexico to push her season total to 156 blocks. It ties her with Louella Tomlinson, St. Mary's (Calif.) for 7th in the NCAA single-season record books.
• Senior Atoe' Jackson is averaging 12.5 points per game in the WBI while shooting a perfect 7-of-7 from the free throw line.

Up Next
• The winner of tonight's game will advance to the WBI Championship Game and will face Siena (22-12), a 65-54 winner over Mercer on Wednesday in the East Region final.
• A win by Louisiana would guarantee the Ragin' Cajuns hosting the WBI Championship game that would be scheduled for Sunday (March 29) at 4 p.m.
• A win by Oral Roberts would send the Golden Eagles to face Siena in the WBI Championship game in Loudonville, N.Y.
• Siena entered the 16-team tournament as the No. 3 seed in the East Region.

The Series
• Tonight's meeting is the first-ever between the schools on the hardwood.
• Louisiana is 9-20 all-time against the current members of the Summitt League, posting 2-1 record against Omaha and a 7-19 mark against former Sun Belt Conference member Denver.

At Home In The Dome ...
• Louisiana completed its 2014-15 home schedule with an 11-5 mark, the third-most home wins in school history.
• The Ragin' Cajuns went a perfect 13-0 in the 2004-05 season and finished 12-1 in 2006-07.

And The Cajuns Are Perfect At EKL
• Due to scheduling conflicts with the Cajundome, the Ragin' Cajuns are playing their third consecutive game, and fourth of the season at Earl K. Long Gym, where they are 2-0 in 2014-15.
• Louisiana earned a 58-55 victory over Louisiana Tech on Nov. 22, 2014, before a 78-56 win over UT Pan American in the first round of the Women's Basketball Invitational (WBI).

Veal, Wilridge Named All-Sun Belt
• After helping the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns women's basketball team to its best season since 2006-07, Keke Veal and Kia Wilridge were each honored as the duo was named to the All-Sun Belt Conference Basketball Team.
• Both players were named to the third team, marking the first time since 2005 a pair of Ragin' Cajuns were named to the postseason team.

Veal Named To SBC All-Tourney Team
• Junior Keke Veal was named to the Sun Belt Conference All-Tournament Team after helping lead Louisiana to the semifinals of last week's event in New Orleans.
• Veal averaged 19.0 points, 5.5 rebounds and 4.5 assists in two games in the tournament, helping the Ragin' Cajuns earn an upset against No. 3-seeded Troy before falling to second-seeded Arkansas State, 63-61.

Veal Gets To 1K
• Keke Veal's 29 points against McNeese State on Saturday increased her career scoring total to 1,011 points, making her the 15th player in school history to eclipse the 1,000-point mark.
• Veal became the first player to achieve the mark since Mercedes Johnson (1,263 points, 2008-12).
• With 11 points against Oral Roberts, Veal would pass Shaunda Johnson-Bedel (1,021 points, 1986-91) for 14th place on the school's all-time scoring list.

20/20 Vision For Cajuns Basketball
• Louisiana's 78-56 win over UT Pan American in the Women's Basketball Invitational was its 20th of the season - making the Ragin' Cajuns the only team in the Sun Belt Conference and state of Louisiana to have both basketball teams win 20+ games in a season.
• Louisiana is currently one of 39 schools in the country where both basketball teams have won 20 or more games in a season.
• The Ragin' Cajuns men's team, currently 22-13 on the season, will face Evansville on Thursday in the third round of the CollegeInsider.com Tournament.
• The men's game, which tips off at 7:30 p.m., will be played at Blackham Coliseum - the former home of the Ragin' Cajuns from 1950-84.

Cajuns Reach 100 Sun Belt Wins
• With a 64-41 victory over Texas State at the Cajundome on Feb. 19, Louisiana reached the 100-win mark in Sun Belt Conference victories.
• Since joining the league in the 1991-92 season, the Ragin' Cajuns have posted a 101-281 record.
• Louisiana's 10 wins in 2014-15 marks the third time the Ragin' Cajuns have reached double digits (10, 2004-05; 14, 2006-07).

Stifling Defense
• As a team, the Cajuns defense has caused many problems for opponents this season, limiting teams to 59.0 points per game for 60th in the nation.
• The Cajuns have forced opponents to 20-plus turnovers on 18 different occasions as teams are committing 21.1 turnovers per game this season. In 31 of 33 games, a team has committed at least 15 turnovers with Louisiana Tech (14) and UT Arlington (10) being the only exceptions.
• Louisiana ranks sixth nationally in turnover margin with teams recording 6.8 more turnovers per game than the Cajuns
• Louisiana is 33rd in the country in steals per game, averaging 10.4 on the season.
• Junior guard Kia Wilridge's tenacious defense this season has her ranked among the best in the country.
• Wilridge has totaled 93 steals on the season for an average of 2.8 per game for first in the Sun Belt Conference and 24th in the country.

Louisiana Among Sun Belt Schools
• Defense is what has stood out this season for the Cajuns, and their numbers have placed them near the top in the Sun Belt in several categories.
• Among Sun Belt schools, Louisiana ranks first in turnover margin (+6.8), second in steals (10.4) and opponent turnovers per game (21.1), and third in scoring defense (59.0).
• During league play, the Cajuns lead the conference in turnover margin (+7.5), and are second in both opponent turnovers per game (21.6) and steals per game (10.6). The Cajuns have held teams to 60.9 points per game to rank third behind UALR (47.8) and UT Arlington (55.2).

Guards in the Sun Belt Rankings
• Guards Jaylyn Gordon, Keke Veal and Kia Wilridge are making several appearances in the SBC top-10 individual rankings.
• Gordon comes in third in three-pointers per game (2.3), seventh in free-throw percentage (78.4%), seventh in minutes played (33.0), eighth in steals (1.9), 10th in scoring (13.7 ppg), and 14th in 3-point field goal percentage (.284).
• Veal ranks sixth with 2.2 steals per game but is fourth overall in SBC play with 2.5 per game. She is seventh in the SBC with 3.3 assists per game and eighth with a 1.0 assist-to-turnover ratio.
• Wilridge appears three times in the SBC rankings, coming in first in steals (3.0 spg), 13th in assists (2.4 apg) and 13th in scoring (12.3 ppg).

Cajuns Climbing the Record Books
• As the season progresses, several Cajuns are ranked in or nearing the top 10 in the career record books:
• With an appearance today, Robbie Brown will play in her 123rd career game, passing Alicia McDaniel (122, 2005-08) for the all-time school record.
• With one steal against McNeese State, Kia Wilridge increased her career total to 187 and moved to within 14 of tying Charlotte Green (201, 1999-03) for third-place on the school's all-time list.
• Wilridge is ranked ninth in school history with 227 assists, needing 11 more to tie Charlotte Green (238, 1999-03) for eighth.
• Keke Veal's 180 steals is currently the sixth-highest total in school history - seven behind teammate Kia Wilridge and two behind Shaunda Johnson-Bedel (182, 1986-91) for fifth-place.
• Jaylyn Gordon is the final Cajun that ranked in the career top 10 list as her 106 made 3-pointers are the ninth-best total in school history. She is four shy of tying Charlotte Green (110, 1999-03) for eighth place on the school's all-time list.

Cajuns In The Season Record Books
• Jaylyn Gordon's 69 made 3-pointers in 2014-15 are the seventh-best single-season total in school history.
• Gordon's single-season 77.8 average from the free throw line is the fifth-highest total in school history.
• Kia Wilridge's 93 steals in 2014-15 are the sixth-best total in a single-season. She is five steals shy of tying Mary Douglas (98, 1983-84) for fifth place.
• Wilridge's 2.8 steals per game average is tied with Monique Melancon (1993-94) for 11th-place on the single-season list.

Brodhead Enters Elite Company
• With a 78-56 win over UT Pan American in the first round of the WBI, head coach Garry Brodhead became the winningest coach in his first three years in UL history.
• Currently with 44 victories, Brodhead surpassed Ross Cook (43 wins, 1983-86) and J. Kelley Hall (43 wins, 2002-05) for the most wins in a three-year period in school history.

Working Overtime Under Brodhead
• Under Gary Brodhead, the Ragin' Cajuns have thrived in games that have gone past the traditional 40 minutes, including games that reach a sixth period.
• Under Brodhead, Louisiana has posted a 7-4 record in overtime games, including a 3-0 mark in games that have gone to double OT.
• The Ragin' Cajuns have gone 3-1 in overtime games this season - including double overtime wins at Texas State (1/31) and ULM (2/12).
• Before Brodhead's arrival, the Ragin' Cajuns were 0-4 all-time in games that reached double overtime.

Cajuns Record Historic Win Over LaTech
• In 39 meetings, the Ragin' Cajuns had always come up short in knocking off Louisiana Tech, one of the nation's most decorated women's college basketball programs.
• However, the 40th meeting on Saturday, Nov. 22, 2014 was one exception.
• The Cajuns led from the beginning as they claimed a 58-55 victory over the Lady Techsters to snap their 39-game losing streak to Louisiana Tech.
• Kia Wilridge led all scorers with 18 points and a team-high five assists while Jaylyn Gordon added 15 points, shooting 3-of-6 from long range, and six boards to help Louisiana to a historic win.
• The Cajuns dominated the paint, outscoring the Lady Techsters 30-16 down low. Louisiana Tech earned nearly half of its points from the outside, shooting 8-of-25 from behind the arc.

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Players Mentioned

Robbie Brown

Jaylyn Gordon

Keke Veal

Kia Wilridge

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