University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
Monday, March 7
Pensacola, Fla.
6 p.m. (CT)
Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns
vs
Georgia State
No. 8 Louisiana Men's Basketball to Face No. 3 Georgia State in Sun Belt Championship Game
3/7/2022 7:30:00 AM | Men's Basketball
PENSACOLA, Fla. – No. 8 Louisiana Men's Basketball will take on No. 3 Georgia State in the Sun Belt Championship game 6 p.m. Monday at the Pensacola Bay Center. The contest will be broadcast nationally on ESPN2.
Â
Louisiana advanced to the title contest with victories over No. 9 UT Arlington, No. 1 Texas State and No. 4 Troy. The Ragin' Cajuns are the highest seed to advance to the championship in conference history.
Â
Monday will mark the ninth title game appearance for the program. Louisiana is 6-2 all-time winning the conference crown in 1992, 1994, 2000, 2004, 2005 and 2014.
Â
Junior guard Greg Williams, Jr. led Louisiana in the semifinals with 16 points and five rebounds. Averaging 5.9 points in the regular season, the Lafayette, La. native has scored 14.3 per game in the tournament run totaling 43 over the three victories.
Â
During the 2021-22 campaign, the Ragin' Cajuns have relied on the presence of sophomore forward Jordan Brown. Brown, a transfer from Arizona, is averaging 15.0 points and 8.6 rebounds a game. In the quarterfinal victory over Texas State, the sophomore scored 31 points and added eight rebounds.
Â
On Jan. 20, Brown tallied 21 points and 11 rebounds against South Alabama. He is one of just 41 players this season to have multiple outings of 15+ points and 15+ rebounds.
Â
Complimenting Brown is junior forward Theo Akwuba. Akwuba tallied 15 points and grabbed eight rebounds in Sunday's win over the Trojans. Defensively, the Montgomery, Ala. native is averaging 1.9 blocks per contest.
Â
Led by the pairing, the Ragin' Cajuns rank third in the Sun Belt with 4.33 blocks per game and second in the conference with 39.0 rebounds per contest.
Â
With a 16 point, 15 rebound performance by Akwuba against Arkansas State (Jan. 6) Louisiana became one of just seven teams in the nation with multiple 16+ point and 15+ rebound performers this season.
Â
Junior guard Jalen Dalcourt and Williams Jr. have elevated their offensive production as of late, Dalcourt has scored 11+ in five of the last eight contests while Williams Jr. has scored 12+ in four straight games.
Â
Louisiana clinched the eighth seed after finishing the regular season with a 13-14 record including an 8-8 mark against conference opponents.
Georgia State earned the tournament's No. 3 seed with a 15-10 record including a 9-5 mark against conference opponents. The Panthers are led by senior guard Corey Allen who averages 14.1 points and 3.7 rebounds this season. Last week, Allen was named Third-Team All-Sun Belt.
SERIES NOTES
The championship will mark the 23rd meeting between the two programs. The Ragin' Cajuns trail the all-time series 7-15. The teams faced off twice during the regular season with the Panthers taking both contests.
RISING IN THE RECORD BOOKS
On Sunday, Marlin earned his 446th victory. He currently ranks 30th on the career wins list among active NCAA Men's Basketball coaches.
Â
PENSACOLA'S OWN
As the head coach of Pensacola Junior College from 1990-95 Marlin compiled a 123-35 record and won the NJCAA National Championship in 1993. In 2007 he was inducted into the Florida Junior College Hall of Fame and in 2019 he was inducted into the Pensacola Junior College Hall of Fame.
LOUISIANA LEGACY
Louisiana's 2021-22 roster features two second-generation talents in Julien and Brown. Julien's father Wayne was with the program from 1976-81 and was a member of the 1977 Southland Conference championship team.
Dion Brown lettered for the Ragin' Cajuns from 1980-84 and finished his career as one of the top scorers and rebounders in school history. Brown, a 1984 graduate of UL, earned All-Southland Conference honors in 1982 and was a two-time All-Louisiana selection.
Â
He finished his career with 1,412 points and 926 rebounds (then second in school history) and helped then-USL to the championship of the 1982 Great Alaskan Shootout where he was named to the All-Tournament team.
Â
Louisiana advanced to the title contest with victories over No. 9 UT Arlington, No. 1 Texas State and No. 4 Troy. The Ragin' Cajuns are the highest seed to advance to the championship in conference history.
Â
Monday will mark the ninth title game appearance for the program. Louisiana is 6-2 all-time winning the conference crown in 1992, 1994, 2000, 2004, 2005 and 2014.
Â
Junior guard Greg Williams, Jr. led Louisiana in the semifinals with 16 points and five rebounds. Averaging 5.9 points in the regular season, the Lafayette, La. native has scored 14.3 per game in the tournament run totaling 43 over the three victories.
Â
During the 2021-22 campaign, the Ragin' Cajuns have relied on the presence of sophomore forward Jordan Brown. Brown, a transfer from Arizona, is averaging 15.0 points and 8.6 rebounds a game. In the quarterfinal victory over Texas State, the sophomore scored 31 points and added eight rebounds.
Â
On Jan. 20, Brown tallied 21 points and 11 rebounds against South Alabama. He is one of just 41 players this season to have multiple outings of 15+ points and 15+ rebounds.
Â
Complimenting Brown is junior forward Theo Akwuba. Akwuba tallied 15 points and grabbed eight rebounds in Sunday's win over the Trojans. Defensively, the Montgomery, Ala. native is averaging 1.9 blocks per contest.
Â
Led by the pairing, the Ragin' Cajuns rank third in the Sun Belt with 4.33 blocks per game and second in the conference with 39.0 rebounds per contest.
Â
With a 16 point, 15 rebound performance by Akwuba against Arkansas State (Jan. 6) Louisiana became one of just seven teams in the nation with multiple 16+ point and 15+ rebound performers this season.
Â
Junior guard Jalen Dalcourt and Williams Jr. have elevated their offensive production as of late, Dalcourt has scored 11+ in five of the last eight contests while Williams Jr. has scored 12+ in four straight games.
Â
Louisiana clinched the eighth seed after finishing the regular season with a 13-14 record including an 8-8 mark against conference opponents.
Georgia State earned the tournament's No. 3 seed with a 15-10 record including a 9-5 mark against conference opponents. The Panthers are led by senior guard Corey Allen who averages 14.1 points and 3.7 rebounds this season. Last week, Allen was named Third-Team All-Sun Belt.
SERIES NOTES
The championship will mark the 23rd meeting between the two programs. The Ragin' Cajuns trail the all-time series 7-15. The teams faced off twice during the regular season with the Panthers taking both contests.
RISING IN THE RECORD BOOKS
On Sunday, Marlin earned his 446th victory. He currently ranks 30th on the career wins list among active NCAA Men's Basketball coaches.
Â
PENSACOLA'S OWN
As the head coach of Pensacola Junior College from 1990-95 Marlin compiled a 123-35 record and won the NJCAA National Championship in 1993. In 2007 he was inducted into the Florida Junior College Hall of Fame and in 2019 he was inducted into the Pensacola Junior College Hall of Fame.
LOUISIANA LEGACY
Louisiana's 2021-22 roster features two second-generation talents in Julien and Brown. Julien's father Wayne was with the program from 1976-81 and was a member of the 1977 Southland Conference championship team.
Dion Brown lettered for the Ragin' Cajuns from 1980-84 and finished his career as one of the top scorers and rebounders in school history. Brown, a 1984 graduate of UL, earned All-Southland Conference honors in 1982 and was a two-time All-Louisiana selection.
Â
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's BasketballQuannas White Media Availability (May 4, 2025)
Monday, May 05
Quannas White Introductory Press Conference
Sunday, March 16
Derrick Zimmerman Media Availability (Feb 24, 2025)
Monday, February 24
Derrick Zimmerman Media Availability (Feb 17, 2025)
Monday, February 17
