MBB: Louisiana Closes Road Slate at Southern Miss
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Louisiana men's basketball heads to Hattiesburg, Mississippi to face Southern Miss in their final road game of the regular season on Saturday at Reed Green Coliseum.
The Ragin' Cajuns look to hold onto one of the top four seeds, and more importantly a double bye, in the Sun Belt Conference Tournament. They enter Saturday's action tied with Arkansas State for that fourth spot and own the tiebreaker while holding a one-game lead over the Golden Eagles.
Last time out the Cajun offense struggled to get going against ULM, falling 66-59 on Thursday in Monroe. Hosana Kitenge continued his strong stretch of play with 16 points and nine rebounds to lead the way. Kobe Julien added 13 points while Brandon Hardy tied a career-high 13 points. Joe Charles had a big game on the glass with 16 rebounds.
The Golden Eagles are 2-5 in their last seven SBC contests, including an 83-64 loss at the hands of South Alabama on Thursday. Preseason Player of the Year Austin Crowley leads the SBC in scoring during conference play at 17.7 points per game. He's one of four Golden Eagles who average double figures including Victor Hart (13.2), Donovan Ivory (13.1), and Andre Curbelo (12.0). They've battled injuries, forcing them to start nine different players this season. Head coach Jay Ladner has been away from the team for the last five games due to medical reasons, the team has gone 3-2 under Juan Cardona in his place.
Story Lines
• Head coach Bob Marlin looks to become the first coach in Sun Belt Conference history with 150 wins in Sun Belt action. Thursday's game against ULM was Marlin's 250th SBC contest.
• Louisiana's seven wins away from home are the second most in the SBC, trailing only James Madison (10) and App State (9).
• Hosana Kitenge has been a difference-maker for the Cajuns in conference action. The junior has four double-doubles against conference foes and is the only player in conference play to be ranked in the top 10 in scoring (14.5) and rebounds (8.0).
• Louisiana leads the nation in three-point field goal defense, holding teams to just .266 percent from deep.
• The Ragin' Cajuns lead the SBC with 18 double-doubles on the year. They are 1 of 18 teams to record that many, and one of 17 schools with two players with five or more double-doubles this season.
• This is the first rematch of the defending SBC Tournament Champion and the defending SBC Regular Season Champion. Louisiana and Southern Miss split their meetings last season, with the home side winning each time. Both teams finished last year undefeated on their home court.
GAME 29 PREVIEW – Louisiana (17-10, 9-6 SBC) vs. Southern Miss (15-13, 8-7 SBC)
Date/Time: February 24, 2024 / 6 p.m. CT
Site: Hattiesburg, Mississippi
Arena: Reed Green Coliseum (8,095)
RADIO/TV
TV: ESPN+
??Talent: Clay Sweet (pxp), Larry Boy (analyst)
Radio: KPEL-FM 96.5 / The Varsity Network
Talent: Jay Walker (pxp)
LIVE STATS/SOCIAL MEDIA
Live Stats: Cajunstats.com
Twitter Updates: @RaginCajunsMBB | #GeauxCajuns
SERIES HISTORY
Overall: Southern Miss leads, 33-26
In Lafayette: Louisiana leads, 18-11
In Hattiesburg: Southern Miss leads, 22-7
At Neutral Sites: Louisiana leads, 1-0
Streak: Southern Miss +1
