BATON ROUGE – The Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns Women’s Basketball team played No. 7-ranked LSU to an even draw in the opening half before the Tigers pulled away in the second stanza and took an 83-53 decision on Sunday, December 10 at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center.
The Ragin’ Cajuns (3-3) out-performed the Tigers (9-1) in the game’s first 20 minutes, shooting 46 percent (13-of-28) and limiting the hosts to 32 percent (8-of-25) in battling to a 28-all tie at the break.
UL led by as many as six points in the first quarter recovered to regain the lead in the second quarter, and was either leading or tied the final 6:28 of the opening stanza.
LSU flipped the script in the second half, producing 55 points on 62 percent shooting (18-of-29) and limiting the Cajuns to 25 points on 30 percent shooting (9-of-30). The result was the Tigers overcoming the hustle and determination of the visitors to collect the victory.
The loss snapped Louisiana’s two-game winning streak. For the Tigers, it was their ninth straight victory since a season-opening defeat to now-No. 8 Colorado.
The Cajuns were the first team to play LSU even in the first half of a game at the PMAC this season, forcing the Tigers to generate a big second half to protect their now 23-game home-court win streak. The 28-point output was the lowest-scoring first half of the season for LSU.
LEADING THE RAGIN’ CAJUNS
Brandi Williams scored a team-high 14 points on 6-of-12 shooting, including a 2-for-4 showing beyond the arc. Williams also paced the Cajuns with five rebounds.
Tamera Johnson was UL’s other double-figure scorer as she produced 13 points on 5-of-9 shooting which included a triple and was 2-of-3 at the free throw line.
Johnson along with Tamiah Robinson and Destiny Rice each collected two steals in leading the Cajuns to a 12-9 advantage over the Tigers in the category.
Johnson with three boards along with Robinson, Alicia Blanton and Wilnie Joseph who each had a pair were the other Cajuns in multiple rebounds.
Lanay Wheaton and freshman Uniyah Franklin, who made her collegiate debut, were the leading scorers off the bench with four points apiece.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Cajuns were the aggressors from the opening tip, with Williams hitting a jump shot and Robinson scoring a running layup for a 4-0 lead before the first minute of play expired.
Williams’ second bucket of the first quarter came at 5:09 and capped off a second 4-0 run by UL and upped the advantage to 8-2.
LSU closed out the opening quarter with an 11-0 spurt, but Louisiana pushed back right away in the second quarter beginning with a Wheaton jumper at 9:42 and a three-point play from Rice at 8:41 which trimmed the LSU lead to 15-13.
Makes from Johnson on the next two possessions followed, the first evening the score and second giving UL a 17-16 lead at the 7:53 mark. An LSU free throw a minute later forged a tie, however it was short-lived as Williams drained a corner triple at 6:28 making it 20-17.
The Cajuns defense continued to make the going tough for the Tigers, not yielding a field goal make until a pair of scores from Aneesah Morrow in the final 1:30 created the halftime stalemate.
UL got a quick spark out of the locker room from Wheaton who hit a pull-up jumper at 9:40 to provide the lead again at 30-28. About a minute later, though, Angel Reese scored the equalizer and began what turned out to be a 15-0 Tigers’ run that also included three baskets from Morrow and opened a 43-30 lead by the 4:42 mark of the third quarter.
Aasia Sam, making her Cajuns debut, hit a bank shot at 4:21 to stop the LSU spurt. However, the Cajuns wouldn’t be able to return the deficit to single digits as Morrow hit a pair of free throws on the ensuing possession and that was followed by a Reese basket at 3:27 that extended the lead out to 47-32.
UP NEXT FOR LOUISIANA
The Ragin' Cajuns finish out the month of December at home in the Cajundome with a four-game homestand that begins on Wednesday, December 13 vs. Lamar and runs through Saturday, December 30 with the Sun Belt opener against App State.
The homestand opener with Lamar tips at 5:00 p.m., kicking off a doubleheader with the Cajuns men who meet Eastern Kentucky in the nightcap.
Before the Christmas holiday break, Louisiana meets North Texas at 4:00 p.m. on Sunday, December 17 and LSU-Shreveport at 11:00 a.m. on Tuesday, December 19 in the annual Education Game.
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