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Louisiana steps back into Sun Belt Conference play on Saturday, Jan. 3 against Denver at the CAJUNDOME. The game is set to begin at 5:06 p.m., and will be televised live on CST (cable ch. 37). It is also available on ESPN360.com.
? It?s Sun Belt play from here on out ? 16 of the final 17 games this season are league contests (lone non-conference game remaining is at UAB on Jan. 19).
? The Cajuns are playing on CST for the second time this week. Wednesday?s game at LSU was broadcast by CST.
? Louisiana is out to halt a four-game losing streak, overall. The Cajuns are also seeking to snap a two-game losing streak at the CAJUNDOME.
? Saturday?s game will be the second consecutive outing that the Cajuns have both Travis Bureau and Randell Daigle out on the floor together. The LSU game marked the first time all season (through 12 games) that the Cajuns? top scorer and top three-point threat played together in a game.
? This decade the Ragin? Cajuns are 8-1 in the first game held after New Year?s Day. UL began the New Year victorious in each of the last three seasons (2006-2008).
? Louisiana is 1-1 so far in the first round of play against the Sun Belt West Division.
? The magic point total for the Cajuns has been 70. Score above 70 and the team is 4-1. When failing to reach 70, Louisiana is 0-7.
<b> WELCOME BACK ?RADAR? </b>
? Randell Daigle, referred to as ?Radar? by the coaching staff, took the court for the first time this season on Monday at Tennessee. He scored a team-best 16 points in 20 minutes and dialed in four triples (4-of-6).
? Daigle missed the season?s first 10 games while he recovered from a hand injury.
? He is shooting 9-of-14 from three-point range (64 percent) in only two games since being cleared to play.
? At LSU, he scored 22 in the second half and made five treys in the final nine minutes.
<b> BUREAU?S BACK</b>
? Travis Bureau returned to game action on Wednesday at LSU. He had missed the previous two games with a groin injury.
? Bureau has scored in double figures in every game he?s played this season. Outside of Daigle (20.0 ppg in two games), he leads the team averaging 16.4 points per game.
<b> SEEKING CONSISTENCY</b>
? Now that Randell Daigle and Travis Bureau are back from injury the Cajuns have their top scorer and top three-point threat on the court at the same time for the first time this season.
? Now Louisiana can start to string together games with a consistent lineup.
? Fans caught a glimpse of how potent Louisiana can be with the duo on the court at the same time in the LSU game. Combined together they, shot 13-of-22 (8-of-15 from three-point range) and accounted for 37 points (47 percent of UL?s point total).
<b> McCOY FREEING UP DAIGLE</b>
? Junior point guard Ryan McCoy?s stability at point guard has allowed Louisiana to play Randell Daigle at shooting guard, a slot head coach Robert Lee feels Daigle needs to be.
? Daigle hasn?t let his coach down. At his new slot (was point guard last season) he?s buried nine 3-pointers in two games and is shooting 9-of-14 from downtown.
? Another plus is Daigle has experience at point guard (last year?s starter), so in essence at times the Cajuns have two point guards running the show.
<b> LOUISIANA REVEALS NEW UNIFORMS </b>
? At LSU the Cajuns sported new alternate road uniforms for the first time this season. UL was dressed in black with white letters and numbers accented with red trim.
? Head coach Robert Lee hasn?t determined whether they will become the ?new? road uniforms. UL normally wears red on the road.
<b> THE MILES WILL BEGIN TO PILE UP</b>
? The Ragin? Cajuns enjoyed the comforts of home through Christmas. UL left the State of Louisiana only twice and played eight of 10 games in the CAJUNDOME.
? Post-Christmas sees the Ragin? Cajuns finishing the 2008-09 regular season playing 12 of the final 19 games on the road.
? Monday?s game at Tennessee began a stretch in which UL plays eight of 11 games away from the CAJUNDOME through the end of January.
<b> TURNAROUNDS UNDER ROBERT LEE</b>
? The Cajuns are off to a slow start at 4-8, but Robert Lee?s determination to see his program succeed has seen him create several turnarounds during his tenure.
? In his second season, UL was 5-14 at the end of January. His team ended the regular season 7-1 in February and advanced to the semifinals of the Sun Belt Tournament.
? Just last season, UL began 1-6 and rebounded to win 14 of the final 22 games to end the regular season 15-14 and claim the Sun Belt West Division championship.
<b> LSU LEFTOVERS</b>
? The game marked Louisiana?s third against an SEC opponent in December.
? The Cajuns lost their 10th straight game to an SEC team and are now 2-15 vs. the SEC since the 1998-99 season.
? Randell Daigle scored a career-high 24 points. He scored 14 points during the Cajuns 26-14 spurt to end the game.
? Louisiana made a season-high 11 triples and shot 44 percent from beyond the arc (11-of-25). Daigle tied his career high with five 3-pointers made.
? Chris Gradnigo scored a season-high 13 points. He was one of four UL players in double figures; Daigle (24), Travis Bureau (13) and La?Ryan Gary (11) were the others.
? At least six players grabbed three rebounds. The Cajuns outboarded the Tigers 34-31.
? UL scored a season-high 48 points in the second half and shot 58 percent (14-of-24).
? Courtney Wallace saw his first extended action since the McNeese game (Dec. 2); played 15 minutes, scored 5 points, was 3-of-4 from the free throw line and had a block.
<b> LAST TIME VS. DENVER </b>
(March 1, 2008 in Lafayette ? UL won 58-51)
? Victory guaranteed UL a share of the Sun Belt West Division crown.
? Louisiana opened with a 7-0 run in the first half. The Pioneers responded with an 11-2 run. The Cajuns eventually regained a five-point cushion at the 6:16 mark, 21-16.
? The Pioneers concluded the first half on a 12-6 run to take a 28-27 lead at the break. Early in the second half, UL outscored DU 11-2 to go up 38-32 by the 14:41 mark.
? After DU tied the game at 40-all, teams exchanged baskets over the next nine minutes. Joe Jackson made a 15-footer to tie the game for the eighth time with 5:44 remaining.
? Randell Daigle made two freebies at 3:34 to break the tie and Louisiana never trailed.
? Nate Rohnert?s jumper at 2:25 made it 53-51 and that would be the Pioneers final basket. Courtney Wallace gave UL 55-51 lead with 1:59 left.
<b> SERIES HISTORY</b>
(Louisiana leads 15-5 overall; UL leads 8-1 in CAJUNDOME)
? Louisiana won the first eight series meetings before Denver upset the Ragin? Cajuns 72-68 at the 2003 Sun Belt Conference Tournament in Bowling Green, Ky.
? Louisiana is 8-1 all-time at the CAJUNDOME against the Pioneers. Louisiana won the first five games at the ?DOME before Denver won 72-66 on Jan. 8, 2005.
? Low-scoring affairs have been the theme as of late. The winning team in each of the past five meetings has scored no more than 67 points. UL is 4-1 vs. DU in the stretch.
? The Cajuns? defense has held DU to 50.2 points per game in the last five meetings.
? UL has held the Pioneers below 70 points 12 times in 20 meetings.
<b> UP NEXT FOR LOUISIANA</b>
The Ragin' Cajuns take to the road for the first time in Sun Belt play. Louisiana visits New Orleans on Thursday, Jan. 8 for a 7 p.m., tipoff at UNO's Lakefront Arena. It will be the first time the Cajuns and Privateers meet in Lakefront Arena since the 2004-05 season (arena was closed the past three seasons for renovations following Hurricane Katrina).
After the UNO game, the Cajuns venture to Troy, Ala., to meet the Trojans at 7:30 p.m., on Saturday, Jan. 10. It will be the first of two meetings with Troy, the only Sun Belt East Division team UL meets twice this season.
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