NEW ORLEANS — The UL basketball team’s long climb begins on Thursday night at Lakefront Arena here.

Fifth-seeded UL (19-12) plays its opening game in the Sun Belt Conference Tournament at 5 p.m. Thursday against 16-16 No. 8 seed South Alabama, which advanced to New Orleans by beating No. 9 seed Arkansas State 75-67 in an on-campus play-in game Tuesday night in Mobile