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Tyren Johnson scored a career-high 31 points, grabbed 14 rebounds and made 13 field goals to guide the Cajuns to victory Saturday afternoon at Sam Houston State. UL outscored the Bearkats 31-17 to erase a first half, double-digit deficit.
Louisiana's Ragin' Cajuns men's basketball team erased a first half, double-digit deficit by outscoring Sam Houston State 31-17 and went on to post a 95-85 triumph Saturday afternoon at Johnson Coliseum in Huntsville, Texas.
The run - which spanned the final 3:53 of the first half and first 7:24 of the second half - was finished off by a Randell Daigle three-pointer that pulled the Cajuns in front to stay at 61-58 with 12:36 left to play.
Daigle delivered the knockout punch with a triple at 4:26 that built an 80-71 lead and on the next possession Tyren Johnson hit a basket for two of his career-high 31 points and UL's first double-digit lead of the game.
Louisiana (2-4) was able to complete the comeback despite four players fouling out and a fifth one playing with four fouls in the final minutes. It marked the Cajuns first road win of the season and kept UL unbeaten (2-0) all-time at Johnson Coliseum.
Louisiana shot 65.4 percent (34-of-52) for the contest - above 50 percent each half - and were 19-of-25 (76 percent) in the decisive second half. UL picked up 30 assists on its 34 made field goals.
SHSU (5-3) was led by 26 points from Gilberto Clavell. The Bearkats, unlike the Cajuns, weren't able to shoot 50 percent in either half and shot only 43.3 percent (13-of-30) in the second half.
The 95 points scored by Louisiana tied for the highest output of the Robert Lee Era and it was the Cajuns' first 30-assist outing since Jan. 5, 2002 vs. New Orleans.
Tyren Johnson broke a 4-all tie - the second tie in the opening minutes -after he drove to the hoop and completed a three-point play. He hit a floater in the lane at 15:28 to return the lead to UL, 9-8.
Then after the media timeout a layup by Antuan Bootle began a string of seven unanswered points by the Bearkats that opened a 15-9 edge by 13:36.
Corey Allmond buried a 23-foot jumper on the left elbow at 12:37 that pushed the lead to 20-13.
Chris Gradnigo was good from three-point range in the left corner at 11:34 to draw the Cajuns within three points (21-18). Willie Lago had a chance to forge a tie after being fouled on a three-point attempt, but made only one free throw.
UL would get two consecutive defensive stops, but couldn't convert them into points. An offensive rebound and then a putback by Gilberto Clavell made it 23-19 with 9:58 on the clock.
SHSU followed with a 9-3 run capped off by a Clavell three-point play at 7:21 for the first double figure lead of the game, 32-22. The opportunity came about after an offensive rebound - the Bearkats' fifth of the half.
Turnovers, plus fouls which led to several free throw makes for the Bearkats began to hamper the Cajuns. As a result, the lowest the SHSU margin was cut to in the final seven minutes of the opening stanza was six points.
SHSU received 12 of its final 16 points in the half at the free throw line. The Bearkats finished the first half 18-of-27 from the charity stripe compared to 10-of-16 for Louisiana.
The Cajuns, who trailed 48-42 at halftime, scored baskets on their first two touches of the second half and dropped the deficit to 50-46 by the end of the 19-minute mark.
An Allmond jumper at 18:04 and free throw following a UL turnover returned the lead to six points by 17:14.
Back-to-back possessions during the 14-minute mark allowed UL to pull into a 56-all tie. Raymone Andrews collected a steal and combined with Lamar Roberson on a give-and-go that led to a Johnson dunk. After an SHSU miss, Daigle hit a triple in the right corner for the tie.
Daigle made his second triple of the half at 12:36 to give Louisiana the lead for good.
A week-long break from game action is in store for the Ragin' Cajuns as the University administers final exams Dec. 7-11. Louisiana returns to the hardwood on Saturday, Dec. 12 at the Cajundome against Florida Atlantic in the 2009-10 Sun Belt Conference opener. The Cajuns and Owls will tip at 1 p.m., in a game televised by the Sun Belt Network.
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