FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – In a game that featured eight ties and seven lead changes, the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns men's basketball team fell to Arkansas, 76-63 on Friday at Bud Walton Arena.

Junior guard Elfrid Payton led all scorers in the contest, scoring 27 points and playing 39 minutes for the Cajuns. His 27 points marks the second-highest total in his career, with his highest coming on Feb. 23 of last season against Western Kentucky.

Shawn Long and Elridge Moore both scored in double-digits for the Cajuns, with 12 and 10 points, respectively. Moore led the Cajuns on the glass, picking up eight rebounds.

"I thought we played a great first 35 minutes of basketball tonight," head coach Bob Marlin said. "We turned the ball over a lot in the second half and that made a difference in the game."


The Cajuns started the game fast hitting their first six shots before the media timeout, including a long 3-pointer from Kevin Brown. Payton led the early charge for Louisiana, scoring 12 points in the first 10:45.

The Cajuns took a 24-14 lead off of two free throws from Payton with 11:09 left in the half for their biggest lead of the game.

Arkansas came back to tie it with 7:45 left in the first half after back-to-back turnovers leading to points. The teams traded baskets while in the bonus for the final five minutes, going into the halftime break at 39-38 in favor of the Razorbacks.

Payton led all scorers after the first 20 minutes with 16 points, picking up two rebounds and two assists. The Razorbacks held Long in check with just six points while picking up one rebound.

The teams continued back and forth action in the second half, seeing the lead change hands four times in the first 13 minutes. Payton continued to pace the Cajuns, adding to an already impressive day.

Long hit a layup with 6:09 left in the game to give the Cajuns a 60-59 lead, eventually becoming their final lead of the game. Arkansas tied it up with a free throw 20 seconds later and pulled away, going on a 27-3 run, to finish the game.

Arkansas found success in the second half, forcing 15 Louisiana turnovers, and capitalized on them, scoring 15 points down the stretch, including 10 in the final seven minutes.

Alandis Harris led the Razorbacks offensively, scoring 19 points. He was joined in the double-digit club with Michael Qualls and Bobby Portis, with 16 and 14 points respectively.

The Cajuns finished the game shooting 40.4 percent (23-for-57) from the field, compared to 50.9 percent (27-for-53) for Arkansas.

"Arkansas played well tonight," Marlin added. They played like we thought they would. They played well enough to win the game."

The Cajuns will now travel to Waco, Texas to take on Baylor on Sunday at 4 p.m. The Cajuns will then travel to Conway, S.C., for the Maui Inland Invitational, where they will take on Oakland (Nov. 23) and either Coastal Carolina or St. Francis-Brooklyn (Nov. 24).

Louisiana returns home on Nov. 27 for a 7:05 game against Northwestern State before playing its next two games on the road, capped by a Dec. 7 contest at defending national champion Louisville.