Louisiana's women's basketball team held UALR scoreless for over an 11-minutes span, but it was not enough as the Trojans were able to claim a 56-49 win at E.K. Long Gym on Saturday. UL battled all afternoon with the Trojans, trailing by just three points, with less than two minutes remaining.

The Cajuns are now 8-16 this season and 3-9 in the Sun Belt. UALR sits atop the western division of the Sun Belt with a mark of 11-1 and is 18-5 overall.

The Cajuns found themselves down by as much as nine points early on, before closing the gap to three points, 11-14 at the 13:39 mark.

UALR would jump back out to a 21-13 lead with 7:40 remaining, but UL tightened up on defense, holding the Trojans scoreless for the remainder of the half. With the defensive effort, the Cajuns were able to rally back to claim a 23-21 lead at the break. Alexis Green was responsible for 16 points of the Cajuns' first half total.

UL came out hot in the second half, opening with a 7-0 run, before UALR would hit two free throws at 17:28 mark. UALR would finally hit a field goal with 16:27 remaining, breaking a drought that spanned over 11 minutes. But the Cajuns would still have the advantage at 32-25 with 15:41 remaining.

Multiple turnovers for the Cajuns would result in empty trips down the court, allowing UALR to comeback to tie the game at 33-33 with 12:10 left in the half.

Green would draw her fifth foul with 7:27 remaining, allowing UALR to take a 40-38 lead after converting a three-point play.

The Cajuns would hang close, only being down by two points, 46-48 with 3:14 remaining.

But UALR would finish the game on an 8-3 run to secure the win.

Mercedes Johnson finished with a team-high 20 points with 19 coming in the second half. Green finished with 16, failing to hit a basket in the second half.

UALR was lead by Chastity Reed who finished with 15 points and nine rebounds.

The Cajuns shot 36.5 percent (19-52) on the afternoon, while UALR hit 38.9 percent (21-54) from the floor.

UALR edged out UL on the glass, grabbing 36 rebounds to the Cajuns' 35.

Next up for the Cajuns will be a trip to Boca Raton, Fla., on Wednesday to take on FAU. Tip-off is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. CT.

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