University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
Saturday, January 18
Lafayette
7 p.m.
Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns
7-13,2-7Sun Bel
59
vs
68
Texas State
12-8,5-4Sun Bel
| Team | 1 | 2 | F |
|---|---|---|---|
| Texas State | 37 | 31 | 68 |
| Louisiana | 28 | 31 | 59 |
Valiant Effort By Ragin' Cajuns Comes Up Short Against Bobcats, 68-59
1/18/2020 10:04:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Short-handed Louisiana has week off until hosting ULM
LAFAYETTE – A short-handed Louisiana Men's Basketball team put up a valiant effort against Sun Belt Conference opponent Texas State, opening the second half with an 8-0 run to cut the lead to one, but the Ragin' Cajuns would run out of gas late and drop a 68-59 decision on Saturday at the Cajundome.
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Jalen Johnson scored 18 points to lead three players in double figures for Louisiana (7-13, 2-7 Sun Belt), which played without its second-leading scorer Cedric Russell (foot) and dressed nine players (seven on scholarship) for the fourth straight game.
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Texas State (12-8, 5-4 Sun Belt), which won its fourth straight game and fifth in its last six contests, never trailed after Nijal Pearson's 3-pointer with 15:46 remaining in the first half snapped a 6-6 tie. The Bobcats twice extended their lead to 10 points in the first half, the last on a bucket by Marlin Davis with 4:27 remaining, and led 37-28 at the break.
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Louisiana opened the second half on an 8-0 run that started when Tirus Smith got a putback basket off a miss by Johnson. Smith, who scored six of his eight points during the span, added a pair of free throws and followed up a Dou Gueye miss with a thunderous dunk that cut the Bobcat lead to 37-34.
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Gueye, who missed Thursday's game against UT Arlington due to the flu, cut the lead to 37-36 on the ensuing possession as he snagged a missed shot from Calvin Temple and scored a bucket in the lane at the 18:15 mark and prompting the Bobcats to call timeout.
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The Bobcats, who defeated the Ragin' Cajuns for the first time in Lafayette in seven meetings, would respond with a 10-0 run as Mason Harrell drained a 3-pointer before buckets by Isiah Small, Alonzo Sule and a 3-pointer by Pearson pushed the Texas State lead to 47-36.
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Louisiana would get as close as 49-42 when Johnson scored with 12:47 remaining, but Pearson would follow with a 3-pointer and Texas State would not let the Ragin' Cajuns get closer than eight points the rest of the way.
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Pearson, who entered the game as the Sun Belt's leading scorer (19.9) and had scored 20 or more points in six straight games, scored a team-high 18 points to lead Texas State. Harrell and Small added 12 points each for Texas State, which finished 26-for-61 (42.6 percent) from the floor and 8-for-8 from the free throw line.
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Gueye and P.J. Hardy scored 11 points each for Louisiana, which went 20-for-56 (35.7 percent) from the floor while finishing a perfect 13-for-13 from the free throw line. Smith grabbed nine rebounds for Louisiana, which held a 36-35 advantage on the glass including 12 offensive boards.
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Louisiana will return to action on Saturday (Jan. 25) when it hosts in-state opponent ULM in a Sun Belt Conference game at the Cajundome. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m., with fans treated to a halftime performance for the second consecutive year by Red Panda, one of the top national acts.Â
Red Panda has performed her unicycle-bowl-flipping act at halftime shows for more than two decades, and has amassed a cult following among diehard fans and sportswriters over the past two decades.
A fourth-generation acrobat, she has performed at numerous basketball venues across the country, both at the college and professional levels.
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Tickets are available by visiting the Louisiana Athletics Ticket Office at the Cajundome, by phone at (337) 265-2170 or on-line at RaginCajuns.com/MBBsingle.
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Follow the Ragin' Cajuns on Twitter (@RaginCajunsMBB), Facebook (RaginCajunsMBB) or Instagram (@RaginCajunsMBB) to stay up-to-date on all that is happening with Louisiana Men's Basketball.
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Jalen Johnson scored 18 points to lead three players in double figures for Louisiana (7-13, 2-7 Sun Belt), which played without its second-leading scorer Cedric Russell (foot) and dressed nine players (seven on scholarship) for the fourth straight game.
Â
Texas State (12-8, 5-4 Sun Belt), which won its fourth straight game and fifth in its last six contests, never trailed after Nijal Pearson's 3-pointer with 15:46 remaining in the first half snapped a 6-6 tie. The Bobcats twice extended their lead to 10 points in the first half, the last on a bucket by Marlin Davis with 4:27 remaining, and led 37-28 at the break.
Â
Louisiana opened the second half on an 8-0 run that started when Tirus Smith got a putback basket off a miss by Johnson. Smith, who scored six of his eight points during the span, added a pair of free throws and followed up a Dou Gueye miss with a thunderous dunk that cut the Bobcat lead to 37-34.
Â
Gueye, who missed Thursday's game against UT Arlington due to the flu, cut the lead to 37-36 on the ensuing possession as he snagged a missed shot from Calvin Temple and scored a bucket in the lane at the 18:15 mark and prompting the Bobcats to call timeout.
Â
The Bobcats, who defeated the Ragin' Cajuns for the first time in Lafayette in seven meetings, would respond with a 10-0 run as Mason Harrell drained a 3-pointer before buckets by Isiah Small, Alonzo Sule and a 3-pointer by Pearson pushed the Texas State lead to 47-36.
Â
Louisiana would get as close as 49-42 when Johnson scored with 12:47 remaining, but Pearson would follow with a 3-pointer and Texas State would not let the Ragin' Cajuns get closer than eight points the rest of the way.
Â
Pearson, who entered the game as the Sun Belt's leading scorer (19.9) and had scored 20 or more points in six straight games, scored a team-high 18 points to lead Texas State. Harrell and Small added 12 points each for Texas State, which finished 26-for-61 (42.6 percent) from the floor and 8-for-8 from the free throw line.
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Gueye and P.J. Hardy scored 11 points each for Louisiana, which went 20-for-56 (35.7 percent) from the floor while finishing a perfect 13-for-13 from the free throw line. Smith grabbed nine rebounds for Louisiana, which held a 36-35 advantage on the glass including 12 offensive boards.
Â
Louisiana will return to action on Saturday (Jan. 25) when it hosts in-state opponent ULM in a Sun Belt Conference game at the Cajundome. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m., with fans treated to a halftime performance for the second consecutive year by Red Panda, one of the top national acts.Â
Red Panda has performed her unicycle-bowl-flipping act at halftime shows for more than two decades, and has amassed a cult following among diehard fans and sportswriters over the past two decades.
A fourth-generation acrobat, she has performed at numerous basketball venues across the country, both at the college and professional levels.
Â
Tickets are available by visiting the Louisiana Athletics Ticket Office at the Cajundome, by phone at (337) 265-2170 or on-line at RaginCajuns.com/MBBsingle.
Â
Follow the Ragin' Cajuns on Twitter (@RaginCajunsMBB), Facebook (RaginCajunsMBB) or Instagram (@RaginCajunsMBB) to stay up-to-date on all that is happening with Louisiana Men's Basketball.
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Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's BasketballTeam Stats
TXST
LA
FG%
.426
.357
3FG%
.320
.316
FT%
1.000
1.000
RB
35
36
TO
13
16
STL
6
3
Game Leaders
Pts
18
FGM
7
3FGM
1
FTM
3
Pts
11
FGM
3
3FGM
3
FTM
2
Pts
11
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
4
Pts
8
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
2
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