Playing in the final game of her career, senior Robbie Brown sank a go-ahead 3-pointer with 1:16 remaining and added a steal in the closing seconds that lifted the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns women's basketball team to a 52-50 win over Siena College in the championship game of the 2015 Women's Basketball Invitational on Sunday at Earl K. Long Gym.
Keke Veal turned in an MVP performance for Louisiana (23-12), the No. 2 seed in the West Region, scoring a game-high 20 points while grabbing six rebounds. Jaylyn Gordon and Kia Wilridge, who were each named to the all-tournament team, scored seven and six points each for the Ragin' Cajuns, who built a 14-point lead in the second half before holding off Siena (22-13), the No. 3 seed in the East Region, in the end.
Louisiana led 44-30 with 12:15 remaining on a basket by Gabby Alexander before Siena scored 11 straight points to cut the lead to 44-41 at the 6:42 mark. Ida Krogh started the rally for the Saints with a 3-pointer before consecutive buckets by Meghan Donohue, a layup by Kollyns Scarbrough and a jumper by Symone Kelly cut the Cajuns lead to three.
Tehresa Coles would give Siena its first lead since the opening minute of the game when her two free throws gave the Saints a 48-47 lead with 1:44 remaining. But Brown, who played in a school-record 125 games in her Ragin' Cajuns career, gave Louisiana the lead for good on the ensuing possession as her 3-pointer from the right wing put the Ragin' Cajuns ahead, 50-48.
A layup by Krogh, after Veal made one of two free throws, cut the Louisiana lead to 51-50 with 13 seconds remaining and the Saints got a chance to win on the final possession after Gordon missed the front end of a 1-and-1.
Brown then knocked the ball away from Krogh and was fouled with 1.2 seconds left and made one of two free throws to seal the win.
The Ragin' Cajuns pulled away from a 5-4 lead in the first half, building a 20-8 advantage after a bucket by Alexander at the 9:36 mark. The Saints got as close as 30-22 after two free throws by Emia Willingham with 3:03 remaining, but a bucket by Wilridge would help give Louisiana a 34-24 lead at halftime.
Siena, which posted a 13-win improvement from last season and dressed nine players due to injuries, scored four straight points to open the second half as Donohue sank a pair of free throws and Coles added a bucket. Louisiana quickly pushed the lead back to double digits as two straight layups by Veal gave the Ragin' Cajuns a 38-28 lead with 16:07 left.
Louisiana, which forced 21 turnovers, collected 12 steals against Siena to finish with 48 in the four-game tournament. Wilridge, who had five steals in the game and finished the season with 100, became the fifth player overall and the first since Kim Perrot in 1989-90 to record 100 steals in a season.
The Ragin' Cajuns finished 19-for-45 (42.2 percent) from the floor, 3-for-12 (25.0 percent) from behind the 3-point line and 11-for-17 (64.7 percent) from the free throw line. Siena finished 17-for-44 (38.6 percent) from the floor, 2-for-10 (20.0 percent) from long range and 14-for-17 (82.4 percent) from the charity stripe.
Coles, who was named to the all-tournament team, and Donohue scored 13 points each to lead Siena. Margot Hetzke pulled down six rebounds to lead the Saints with Krogh adding eight points and five rebounds.
The Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns women's basketball will look to capture its first postseason championship in school history when it hosts Siena College in the championship game of the 2015 Women's Basketball Invitational at Earl K. Long Gym.
Tipoff is scheduled for 4 p.m. The game will be streamed live on RaginCajuns.com and can be heard in the Lafayette area on ESPN 1420-AM.
Tickets are $10 for the general public and $5 for students. Fans who attend the Louisiana-Arkansas State baseball game, scheduled for Sunday at M.L. "Tigue" Moore Field, can purchase a WBI ticket for $5 with a ticket stub from Sunday's game.
Game 35 • Louisiana (22-12) vs. Siena (22-12)
Sunday, March 29 • 4 p.m. • Lafayette, La. • Earl K. Long Gym (1,121)
TV: None • Radio: ESPN 1420 AM • Talent: Steve Peloquin, PxP
Live Stats/Video: RaginCajuns.com/ • Twitter: @RaginCajunsWBB
Series History: First meeting • Last Meeting: n/a
THE COACHES
Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns
Head Coach: Garry Brodhead • Alma Mater: Louisiana, 1980
Record at UL: 46-49, 3rd season • Career Record: Same
Siena Saints
Head Coach: Ali Jaques • Alma Mater: NYU, 1998
Record at SC: 44-52, 3rd season • Career Record: Same
BY THE NUMBERS
2.8 - Average steals by Kia Wilridge in 2014-15 - the top average in the Sun Belt and 24th nationally.
4 - The number of 20-win seasons by Louisiana in women's basketball history. The Ragin' Cajuns won 25 games in 2006-07 and 22 in both 1983-84 and 2004-05.
5 - Louisiana is ranked fifth in the nation in turnover margin, forcing 7.1 more per game than recording.
36 - Steals recorded in three games by Louisiana during the 2015 Women's Basketball Invitational.
46 - Garry Brodhead's 46 wins are the most by a women's head coach in his first years at UL.
83.3 - Freshman Simone Fields has gone 10-for-12 (83.3 percent) from the free throw line during the Women's Basketball Invitational.
124 - Senior Robbie Brown will play in her 124th career game today - the most in school history.
GAME NOTES
Comeback Cajuns In WBI Championship
• Keke Veal and Jaylyn Gordon combined for 21 points in the final 8:58 and the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns erased a 19-point deficit in the first half to defeat Oral Roberts, 65-64, in the semifinals of the Women's Basketball Invitational on Thursday at Earl K. Long Gym.
• Louisiana trailed 34-15 with 3:35 remaining in the first half after a bucket by ORU's Faith Ihim before closing out the half with an 8-1 run that was capped by a bucket from Simone Fields.
• The Ragin' Cajuns outscored ORU (18-16), 42-29, in the second half as Veal and Gordon combined for 27 points in the final 20 minutes.
• A 3-pointer by Veal with 8:58 remaining – the first 3-pointer of the night for the Ragin' Cajuns – began a 26-15 run for Louisiana and cut the ORU lead to 49-42. The junior followed on the Ragin' Cajuns ensuing possession with a three-point play that cut the deficit to 49-45 at the 8:26 mark.
• Atoe' Jackson gave ORU a 64-62 lead with :54 seconds remaining before Veal drove the lane and found Fields for a three-point play that gave Louisiana the lead with 17.6 seconds remaining.
• ORU attempted the get off a last shot, but had the ball knocked away by a tenacious Ragin' Cajuns defense near midcourt with 3.9 seconds left. After a timeout, Dorrttya Balla's inbounds pass to Heather McIntyre was knocked away by Veal and Gordon came up with the loose ball to secure the win for Louisiana.
A Look At Siena
• The first women's basketball team in the MAAC's 33-year history to win three national postseason tournament games in one season, Siena (22-12), seeded third in the East Region, punched its ticket to the title game with a 65-54 win over fourth seeded Mercer in the Semifinals Wednesday night at the ARC. The Saints previously defeated Stony Brook 53-46 in the First Round and won 69-49 at Xavier in the Quarterfinals.
• Siena has posted a 13-win improvement from last season which is tied with UT-Arlington for second best nationally and the Saints' 12 road wins are tied for the third most in the country. This will be the first-ever meeting between the Saints and Ragin' Cajuns.
• Siena will be looking to become the second basketball team - men's or women's - in MAAC history to win a national postseason tournament championship. Just last season the Siena Men's Basketball team won the College Basketball Invitational.
Up Next
• Season complete for both teams.
The Series
• Today's game will be the first-ever meeting between the schools on the hardwood.
• The game will be the first for the Ragin' Cajuns against a member of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC).
Cajuns Set Home Wins Record
• Louisiana's 14 wins at home (10-5 at Cajundome, 4-0 at Earl K. Long) are the most in school history.
• The Ragin' Cajuns went a perfect 13-0 in the 2004-05 season and finished 12-1 in 2006-07.
And The Cajuns Are Perfect At EKL
• Due to scheduling conflicts with the Cajundome, the Ragin' Cajuns are playing their fourth consecutive game, and fifth of the season at Earl K. Long Gym, where they are 3-0 in 2014-15.
• Louisiana earned a 58-55 victory over Louisiana Tech on Nov. 22, 2014, before wins over UT Pan American (78-56), McNeese State (63-58) and Oral Roberts (65-64) the Women's Basketball Invitational (WBI).
Veal, Wilridge Named All-Sun Belt
• After helping the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns women's basketball team to its best season since 2006-07, Keke Veal and Kia Wilridge were each honored as the duo was named to the All-Sun Belt Conference Basketball Team.
• Both players were named to the third team, marking the first time since 2005 a pair of Ragin' Cajuns were named to the postseason team.
Veal Named To SBC All-Tourney Team
• Junior Keke Veal was named to the Sun Belt Conference All-Tournament Team after helping lead Louisiana to the semifinals of last week's event in New Orleans.
• Veal averaged 19.0 points, 5.5 rebounds and 4.5 assists in two games in the tournament, helping the Ragin' Cajuns earn an upset against No. 3-seeded Troy before falling to second-seeded Arkansas State, 63-61.
Veal 1K
• Keke Veal's 29 points against McNeese State last Saturday increased her career scoring total to 1,011 points, making her the 15th player in school history to eclipse the 1,000-point mark.
• Veal became the first player to achieve the mark since Mercedes Johnson (1,263 points, 2008-12).
• With 23 points against Oral Roberts, Veal increased her career total to 1,034 points and moved past Shaunda Johnson-Bedel (1,021 points, 1986-91) and Sonora Edwards (1,028, 2004-08) for 13th place on the school's all-time scoring list.
• Veal can pass Onna Charles (1,047 points, 2004-08) for 12th place with 14 points and Charlotte Green (1,059, 1999-03) for 11th place with 26 points.
20/20 Vision For Cajuns Basketball
• Louisiana's 78-56 win over UT Pan American in the Women's Basketball Invitational was its 20th of the season - making the Ragin' Cajuns the only team in the Sun Belt Conference and state of Louisiana to have both basketball teams win 20+ games in a season.
• Louisiana is currently one of 39 schools in the country where both basketball teams have won 20 or more games in a season.
• The Ragin' Cajuns men's team, currently 22-13 on the season, will face Evansville on Thursday in the third round of the CollegeInsider.com Tournament.
• The men's game, which tips off at 7:30 p.m., will be played at Blackham Coliseum - the former home of the Ragin' Cajuns from 1950-84.
Cajuns Reach 100 Sun Belt Wins
• With a 64-41 victory over Texas State at the Cajundome on Feb. 19, Louisiana reached the 100-win mark in Sun Belt Conference victories.
• Since joining the league in the 1991-92 season, the Ragin' Cajuns have posted a 101-281 record.
• Louisiana's 10 wins in 2014-15 marks the third time the Ragin' Cajuns have reached double digits (10, 2004-05; 14, 2006-07).
Stifling Defense
• As a team, the Cajuns defense has caused many problems for opponents this season, limiting teams to 59.1 points per game for 61st in the nation.
• The Cajuns have forced opponents to 20-plus turnovers on 19 different occasions as teams are committing 21.1 turnovers per game this season. In 32 of 34 games, a team has committed at least 15 turnovers with Louisiana Tech (14) and UT Arlington (10) being the only exceptions.
• Louisiana ranks fifth nationally in turnover margin with teams recording 7.1 more turnovers per game than the Cajuns
• Louisiana is 31st in the country in steals per game, averaging 10.6 on the season.
• Junior guard Kia Wilridge's tenacious defense this season has her ranked among the best in the country.
• Wilridge has totaled 95 steals on the season for an average of 2.8 per game for first in the Sun Belt Conference and 24th in the country.
Louisiana Among Sun Belt Schools
• Defense is what has stood out this season for the Cajuns, and their numbers have placed them near the top in the Sun Belt in several categories.
• Among Sun Belt schools, Louisiana ranks first in turnover margin (+7.1), second in steals (10.6) and opponent turnovers per game (21.1), and third in scoring defense (59.1).
• During league play, the Cajuns led the conference in turnover margin (+7.5), and were second in both opponent turnovers per game (21.6) and steals per game (10.6). The Cajuns held teams to 60.9 points per game to rank third behind UALR (47.8) and UT Arlington (55.2).
Guards in the Sun Belt Rankings
• Guards Jaylyn Gordon, Keke Veal and Kia Wilridge are making several appearances in the SBC top-10 individual rankings.
• Gordon comes in fourth in three-pointers per game (2.2), ninth in free-throw percentage (77.8%), eighth in minutes played (32.6), eighth in steals (1.9), ninth in scoring (13.5 ppg), and 13th in 3-point field goal percentage (.290).
• Veal ranks fifth with 2.3 steals per game. She is sixth in the SBC with 3.4 assists per game and eighth with a 1.0 assist-to-turnover ratio.
• Wilridge appears three times in the SBC rankings, coming in first in steals (2.8 spg), 13th in assists (2.4 apg) and 13th in scoring (12.5 ppg).
Cajuns Climbing the Record Books
• As the season progresses, several Cajuns are ranked in or nearing the top 10 in the career record books:
• With an appearance today, Robbie Brown will play in her school-record 124th career game.
• With two steals against Oral Roberts, Kia Wilridge increased her career total to 189 and moved to within 12 of tying Charlotte Green (201, 1999-03) for third-place on the school's all-time list.
• Wilridge is ranked ninth in school history with 229 assists, needing nine more to tie Charlotte Green (238, 1999-03) for eighth.
• Keke Veal's 185 steals is currently the sixth-highest total in school history - four behind teammate Kia Wilridge for fourth-place.
• Jaylyn Gordon is the final Cajun that ranked in the career top 10 list as her 109 made 3-pointers are the ninth-best total in school history. She is one shy of tying Charlotte Green (110, 1999-03) for eighth place on the school's all-time list.
Cajuns In The Season Record Books
• Jaylyn Gordon's 72 made 3-pointers in 2014-15 are the sixth-best single-season total in school history.
• Gordon's single-season 77.8 average from the free throw line is the fifth-highest total in school history.
• Kia Wilridge's 95 steals in 2014-15 are the sixth-best total in a single-season. She is three steals shy of tying Mary Douglas (98, 1983-84) for fifth place.
• Wilridge's 2.8 steals per game average is tied with Monique Melancon (1993-94) for 11th-place on the single-season list.
Brodhead Enters Elite Company
• With a 78-56 win over UT Pan American in the first round of the WBI, head coach Garry Brodhead became the winningest coach in his first three years in UL history.
• Currently with 46 victories, Brodhead surpassed Ross Cook (43 wins, 1983-86) and J. Kelley Hall (43 wins, 2002-05) for the most wins in a three-year period in school history.
Working Overtime Under Brodhead
• Under Gary Brodhead, the Ragin' Cajuns have thrived in games that have gone past the traditional 40 minutes, including games that reach a sixth period.
• Under Brodhead, Louisiana has posted a 7-4 record in overtime games, including a 3-0 mark in games that have gone to double OT.
• The Ragin' Cajuns have gone 3-1 in overtime games this season - including double overtime wins at Texas State (1/31) and ULM (2/12).
• Before Brodhead's arrival, the Ragin' Cajuns were 0-4 all-time in games that reached double overtime.
Cajuns Record Historic Win Over LaTech
• In 39 meetings, the Ragin' Cajuns had always come up short in knocking off Louisiana Tech, one of the nation's most decorated women's college basketball programs.
• However, the 40th meeting on Saturday, Nov. 22, 2014 was one exception.
• The Cajuns led from the beginning as they claimed a 58-55 victory over the Lady Techsters to snap their 39-game losing streak to Louisiana Tech.
• Kia Wilridge led all scorers with 18 points and a team-high five assists while Jaylyn Gordon added 15 points, shooting 3-of-6 from long range, and six boards to help Louisiana to a historic win.
• The Cajuns dominated the paint, outscoring the Lady Techsters 30-16 down low. Louisiana Tech earned nearly half of its points from the outside, shooting 8-of-25 from behind the arc.
~<~ Web Links UL Basketball ~>~ ~<~ Google Ad (v) 160x600 ~>~ ~<~ Google Ad (v) 160x600 ~>~
