LAFAYETTE – A step-back 3-pointer by Greg Williams Jr., sparked a 12-0 scoring run in the final minutes and gave Louisiana Men’s Basketball a 69-59 win over Sun Belt standings leader Troy Saturday night at the Cajundome. Louisiana will be back in action at 7 p.m. Thursday when it welcomes Georgia State to the Cajundome. The contest will be available to be live-streamed on ESPN+.
An animated Ragin’ Cajuns team was led by redshirt-freshman Kobe Julien who poured in 17 points and added four boards.
Junior guard Trajan Wesley totaled 12 points, grabbed four rebounds, and notched two steals in an all-around performance.
Returning to the starting lineup for the first time in five games, freshman guard Kentrell Garnett tallied 12 points behind a 3-4 performance from beyond the arc.
Senior Dou Gueye made his presence felt throughout the contest with 10 points, 7 rebounds, and two steals. Gueye was +14 in 19 minutes of action.
With the absence of leading scorer and rebounder Jordan Brown, Theo Akwuba solidified the paint with a team-high nine rebounds and five blocks.
Both teams came out aggressive to start the game. In a back-and-forth affair, a Trojans’ technical sparked a 6-0 run by the Ragin Cajuns that gave the home team an 18-13 advantage at the eight-and-a-half-minute mark.
Gueye scored five in the offensive charge that was bolstered by the conversion of a 3-point play.
Troy responded and the teams once again exchanged the lead down the stretch in the first half. A 3-pointer by Garnett and a dunk by Akwuba gave Louisiana a slim two-point advantage after the opening 20 minutes.
Returning to the floor, the Ragin’ Cajuns locked down defensively to start the second and forced six turnovers in the opening four minutes.
Louisiana converted on the suffocating defense as back-to-back shots from beyond the arc by Julien and Wesley aided a 9-0 scoring run that put Louisiana in front 39-30.
The Ragin’ Cajuns stayed in front for the subsequent seven minutes, but an 8-0 run by the visitors tied the contest at 47-47 with 7:16 remaining.
Each side searched for the momentum-controlling moment as the final minutes elapsed, with the shot clock winding down, Greg Williams Jr. sized up his defender, created space, and buried the pivotal shot at the 2:46 mark to launch the final run and seal the victory.
Louisiana will be back in action at 7 p.m. Thursday when it welcomes Georgia State to the Cajundome. The contest will be available to be live-streamed on ESPN+.
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