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LOUISIANA La. – Willie Lago hit a jump shot from the free throw with 19 seconds remaining to provide the winning points as Louisiana’s Ragin’ Cajuns men’s basketball team defeated New Orleans 67-64 here Saturday evening in the Cajundome.
Lago’s shot helped the Cajuns complete a game-ending rally which saw the Cajuns outscore UNO 25-9 in the final 10 minutes of the game to rally from a 55-42 deficit.
UNO pushed its lead to 64-61 with 1:51 remaining in the contest after Jamie McNeilly hit two free throws.
The Ragin’ Cajuns (6-17, 4-9 Sun Belt) got a leaning jumper from Ross Mouton on the baseline at 1:26 to cut the Privateers lead to 64-63. Bo McCalebb missed an inside shot on the ensuing possession and Courtney Wallace cleared the defensive rebound for the Cajuns.
UL nearly threw the ball away as a pass got away from David Dees with 30 second left. Mouton recovered in time and head coach Robert Lee called a timeout.
After the timeout, the inbounds pass went to Lago who retreated near the halfcourt line before driving into the lane and stopping to nail a jumper at the free throw line to put UL on top 65-64.
UNO (10-13, 6-6 Sun Belt) walked the ball up the court and McCalebb held for the last shot. His attempt hit the front of the rim and Dees grabbed the rebound and threw an outlet pass to Elijah Millsap for the finishing points on a dunk just before the clock ran out.
Louisiana-Lafayette defeated UNO for the 10th consecutive time in the Cajundome. The Ragin’ Cajuns won at home for the second straight outing and for the fourth time in the last five games.
Millsap led UL with 19 points off the bench. He was joined in double figures by Dees (12 points), Mouton (11 points) and Wallace (10 points).
UNO received a game-high 23 points from McNeilly who also made a game-high 10 field goals. McCalebb followed him up with 20 points.
The Ragin’ Cajuns, who were 4-of-16 from the floor in the second half with 10:25 remaining, converted on 11-of-16 (68 percent) in the final 10 minutes to complete the comeback.
The two teams traded baskets in the first two minutes and the game was knotted at 4-all. After a scoreless 17-minute mark McCalebb broke the tie at 16:51 with a three-pointer on the left wing giving the Privateers a 7-4 edge.
The Cajuns missed a three-pointer on the ensuing trip and UNO came down and found Asrangue Souleymane at the free throw line for a jumper making it 9-4.
The lead reached double figures only one minute after the first media timeout. A pair of UL turnovers led to two baskets from McNeilly and the Privateers lead grew to 14-4 at the 14:07 mark.
The Cajuns broke into the double digit lead getting three-point makes from Dees and Rhett Hebert at 13:05 and 12:23 that cut the UNO lead to 14-10.
When Millsap scored in the paint at 11:51 the Cajuns run reached eight points and UL was within two points 14-12. The Privateers answered quickly with a three-pointer in the right corner from Dusty Driggs at 11:37 that increased the lead to 17-12.
The Ragin’ Cajuns completed the comeback off the fingers of Millsap as the freshman accounted for eight straight UL points.
Trailing 19-14, Millsap hit two free throws at 10:34 cutting the deficit to 19-16. After a defensive stop it was Millsap burying a triple on the right wing at 9:38 to even the score at 19-all.
After McCalebb gave UNO the lead at 9:03, it was Millsap cutting into the paint and getting a layup to roll to draw another tie at the 8:51 mark.
After the seven-minute media timeout, Millsap made the second of a two-shot foul to give the Cajuns their first lead since the 18-minute mark at 22-21 with 7:52 remaining.
The Privateers drew even eight seconds later when McCalebb drew a foul and made one freebie.
A missed three-pointer by Lago and defensive rebound by James Parlow led to Shaun Reynolds knocking down a jumper at 7:05 to help UNO reclaim the lead 24-22. On the ensuing possession a turnover by Millsap led to a fastbreak layup for McCalebb at 6:35 and all of a sudden the Privateers were beginning to reopen their lead.
The Cajuns crept within three points at 28-25 by the 4:06 mark, but UNO took advantage of a pair of UL misses and a turnover to rattle off four unanswered points to take a 32-25 edge with 2:50 left in the opening stanza.
The second half was slow to develop with each team scoring only one basket through the first three minutes and the Privateers lead was 36-30.
Wallace was took a dish on a give-and-go at 16:36 and hit the layup to trim the UNO lead to 36-32. Patience on offense paid off for the Privateers who found Reynolds for a triple in the right wing at 16:04 that reestablished the seven point lead that UNO brought into the locker room at the half.
UL closed the deficit to 39-34 at the 15:07 mark before UNO scored four straight to take a nine-point lead. After a Millsap miss following a deadball rebound at 15:07, UNO pushed the basketball back up the court where Reynolds was found streaking in for the fastbreak basket at 14:51 to make it 41-34.
The Cajuns tried an alley-oop to Mouton on the ensuing possession, but Hebert’s pass was too long and Mouton saved the pass and tried a reverse layup which he missed. After a scramble for the basketball, McCalebb hit a shot over Hebert upping the Privateers advantage to 43-34 at the 13:55 mark.
The Cajuns got a free throw from Mouton to trim the lead to 43-35. McCalebb then pushed the Privateers advantage into double figures for the first time since the first half when he hit a driving layup as he was fouled at 13:25 and hit the free throw increasing the UNO lead to 46-35.
The lead got up to 13 points and two different occasions over the next minute. UL cut the lead to 10 points, 50-40, at 11:48 when Mouton curled around a screen and hit a triple at the top of the key. UNO reciprocated the points total and reclaimed a 13-points edge when McCalebb hit a three-pointer of his own at 11:10 making it 53-40.
Millsap jumpstarted a run that helped UL pull back within single digits. Trailing 55-42 at the 8:53 mark, Millsap hit one free throw and missed the second. On the rebound Millsap grabbed the loose ball and made a quick layup that made it 55-45.
Millsap then came up with a steal on the next UNO possession and it led to a long pass down the floor where Dees was found for a slam dunk that trimmed the UNO lead to 55-47 at 8:22.
After a UNO timeout, the Cajuns full-court press forced a UNO turnover and the result was an inside basket for Wallace that pulled the Cajuns within 55-49 at 8:05. UNO continued to spiral out of control on the ensuing possession as McCalebb was called for an offensive charge.
A pair of free throws from Dees after the charge made it 55-51 at 7:25. The Privateers continued to turnover over the ball and it led to an inside basket from Wallace at 5:55 that stretched the Cajuns run to 11-0 and cut the UNO lead to 55-53.
After trading baskets and creating a 57-55 game, it was McNeilly who hit a leaning three-pointer at the top of the key to stretch the UNO lead to 60-55.
UL came back with a string of six straight points capped off by an inside basket from Wallace at 3:10 that gave the Cajuns their first lead of the second stanza at 61-60.
The Privateers went back in front only 22 seconds later as McNeilly hit a fadeaway jumper in the lane giving UNO a 62-61 edge with 2:48 left in the contest.
The Ragin’ Cajuns return to action on Thursday, Feb. 8, as the squad visits Arkansas State for a 7:05 p.m., game at the Convocation Center in Jonesboro, Ark.
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