LAFAYETTE – Jordan Brown scored a season-high 27 points to lead five players in double figures and the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns opened the game on a 14-0 run and led wire-to-wire in a 104-70 victory over Loyola of New Orleans on Tuesday at the Cajundome.
Terence Lewis posted his third double-double of the season with 12 points and a career-high 17 rebounds as Louisiana (6-1) made its first six shots enroute to a season-high 61 percent (42-for-69) performance from the floor.
Joe Charles scored a career-best 12 points on four 3-pointers for the Ragin’ Cajuns, who won six games in the month of November for the first time in school history, with Themus Fulks adding 11 points and nine assists with Michael Thomas adding a career-high 10 points.
Brown, who scored a season-low five points last Saturday at Drake, opened with a pair of buckets in the opening minute and finished 13-for-20 from the floor. A basket by Lewis at the 18:34 mark of the first half gave the Ragin’ Cajuns an 8-0 lead before Fulks and Thomas drained 3-pointers on consecutive trips down the floor.
Louisiana would build its lead to 37-18 on a bucket by Isaiah Richards with 9:31 remaining in the first half before Loyola would chip away at the lead.
Loyola, the defending NAIA National Champions who were playing their third exhibition game against a NCAA Division I opponent, then opened a 15-3 run with a layup and 3-pointer by Michael Harden. After Charles’ 3-pointer gave Louisiana a 40-23 lead, the Wolf Pack would score the next 10 points with Jalen Galloway’s jumper at the 5:00 mark closing the gap to 40-33.
Thomas would respond for Louisiana with a 3-pointer before Greg Williams, Jr., added a pair of free throws and Brown a layup to cap a 7-0 run for the Ragin’ Cajuns and push the lead back to double digits.
Williams, Fulks and Brown combined for a 6-0 run early in the second half for Louisiana after the Wolfpack closed to within 49-41 on Galloway’s three-point play with 19:43 remaining, and the Ragin’ Cajuns gradually pulled away, taking a 71-49 lead on Charles’ 3-pointer with 14:23 left.
Richards added a season-high nine points and grabbed five boards as Louisiana held a commanding 49-19 advantage on the glass while limiting Loyola to 4-for-21 from behind the 3-point line including 0-for-9 in the second half.
Harden led the Wolf Pack with 16 points with Galloway adding 15.
Louisiana will return to action on Saturday when it travels to face former Sun Belt Conference rival New Orleans in a 4 p.m. contest at Lakefront Arena. The game can be heard in the Lafayette area on KPEL-FM (96.5) and the Varsity Network with the game streamed live on ESPN+.
------------------------------------------------------------
Stay in touch with us anytime, anywhere.
To reach the newsroom or report a typo/correction, click HERE.
Sign up for newsletters emailed to your inbox. Select from these options: Breaking News, Evening News Headlines, Latest COVID-19 Headlines, Morning News Headlines, Special Offers