2003-04 Lady Cajun's Basketball

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LOUISIANA La. — UL Lafayette’s women’s basketball squad played out of synch for 26 minutes against a team that hadn’t lost since mid-November, had more turnovers than a visiting South Alabama team that went 9-of-17 from three-point range, and didn’t get a perimeter basket from its top outside threat here Thursday night.

So, how were the Ragin’ Cajuns within two points in the last 90 seconds against the team generally regarded as the best in the Sun Belt Conference?

“We just played a heck of a second half,” said Cajun head coach J. Kelley Hall. “If only we hadn’t shot ourselves in the foot in the first half.”

The Lady Jags were there to take advantage early, taking as much as a 15-point lead, and then held on for dear life down the stretch in taking a 57-54 win at the Cajundome.

“We did just enough to win,” said USA boss Rick Pietri. “We had a good effort for 32 minutes, but the last eight we didn’t have any bounce and they (UL Lafayette) did.”

The Lady Jags (13-1, 2-0), now winners of 13 straight games and getting votes in this week’s AP poll, didn’t lock down their second league win until Tiffany Washington and Anna Petrakova missed back-to-back inside shots in the final 15 seconds and Bernette Tolston had a half-court heave fall short at the horn.

The misses were about the only things Petrakova and Washington did wrong in the last 14 minutes. Petrakova hit six of her eight shots in the second half on the way to a game-high 23, and Washington scored eight of her nine and got most of her 12 rebounds in that stretch.

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Dan McDonald
dmcdonald@lafayette.gannett.com

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UL faces key Sun Belt game versus New Orleans.

LOUISIANA La. — For Louisiana’s Lady Cajuns basketball squad, the disappointment of a close Thursday loss to the Sun Belt Conference’s best squad has to be put aside in a hurry.

The Lady Cajuns, who had a four-game win streak snapped Thursday in a 57-54 loss to league-leading South Alabama, host New Orleans today at 4:45 p.m. in a game that could have long-range repercussions for both squads.

Only four of the six teams in the West Division qualify for the league’s post-season tournament this year, and coach J. Kelley Hall’s Cajun squad doesn’t need back-to-back home losses.

“Every game you can win early, you can bank away,” Hall said. “The key is to win your home games.”

The Lady Cajuns (7-6, 1-1) won their league opener over Denver before Thursday’s loss to South Alabama, and now they’ll host a team that lost by only one point to USA on Monday and crushed preseason West favorite New Mexico State 76-54 at home Thursday.

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Dan McDonald
dmcdonald@lafayette.gannett.com

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Cajun women move to 8-6 after routing New Orleans

LOUISIANA La. - J. Kelley Hall made one thing clear on Saturday — his Louisiana squad had to jump on the New Orleans Privateers from the start and keep the pressure up all game.

By the time the Sun Belt Conference women’s game was over, the plan worked to perfection to produce a 68-49 Cajun victory at the Cajundome.

“I told them that the first five minutes of both halves were crucial for us,’’ said Hall, whose Cajuns improved to 8-6 overall and 2-1 in league action.

“However UNO’s press goes, that’s how their game goes. If you let them get going they could do it. But their pressure didn’t hurt us.’’

“They’re the type of team that will play harder and harder if they get off to a good start with their press,’’ Cajun guard Ashley Blanche said.

“It was important for us to get them down and keep them down.’’

Blanche was a pivotal figure in that effort, playing 34 minutes and finishing with 14 points, 7 assists, 6 rebounds and just a pair of turnovers.

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Bruce Brown
bbrown@theadvertiser.com

[NewsCopy]

LAS CRUCES, N.M. — An extended 10-game road trip to open the season should start to pay dividends tonight for Louisiana's Lady Cajuns.

Coach J. Kelley Hall’s squad, which was 5-5 in that demanding start, brings an 8-6 overall record into the Pan American Center for an 8:05 p.m. (Central time) Sun Belt Conference matchup with New Mexico State.

The Aggies of coach Darin Spence are 7-8 overall and 1-2 in Sun Belt action, while the visitors are off to a 2-1 mark in league play.

“I’m familiar with him from junior college,” Hall said of Spence’s coaching style. “They will play us 40 minutes of man-to-man defense and will pressure us the whole game. They’re like South Alabama in that they’ll come with that pressure for the whole game.”

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PLAYER             FG-FGA  (Pct.) FT-FTA (Pct.) TP AVG



Anna Petrakova     102-184 (.554) 69-83 (.831)  285 20.4



Tiffany Washington  45-101 (.446) 11-18 (.611)  107 9.7



Bernette Tolston    40-118 (.339)  6-8  (.750)  117 8.4



Sharee Glenn        32-111 (.288) 43-61 (.705)  115 8.2



Ashley Blanche      33-76  (.434) 24-40 (.600)   97 6.9



Morgan Mayon        20-43  (.465)  7-14 (.500)   52 3.7



Kayla Edwards        8-24  (.333)  2-2  (1.000)  25 2.8



Nakita Scott        13-24  (.542)  4-8  (.500)   30 2.7



Trina Johnson        5-9   (.556)  7-12 (.583)   17 2.4



Alexandra Kotta      8-39  (.205)  0-2  (.000)   17 2.1



Dominique Williams   0-2   (.000)  0-0  (.000)  0 0.0



TOTALS            306-731  (.419) 173-248 (.698) 862 61.6



OPPONENTS         288-838  (.344) 128-217 (.590) 775 55.4

3-Point FG: Tolston 31-91 (.341), Petrakova 12-27 (.444), Glenn 8-42 (.190), Blanche 7-19 (.368), Edwards 7-20 (.350), Washington 6-20 (.300), Mayon 5-15 (.333), Kotta 1-20 (.050), Williams 0-1 (.000). UL 77-255 (.302), OPPONENTS 71-231 (.307).

REBOUNDS: Petrakova 157 (11.2), Washington 97 (8.8), Tolston 69 (4.9), Glenn 61 (4.4), Blanche 29 (2.1), Mayon 23 (1.6), Kotta 17 (2.1), Scott 17 (1.5), Johnson 14 (2.0), Edwards 3 (0.3), Williams 2 (1.0). UL 552 (39.4), OPPONENTS 505 (36.1).

ASSISTS: Blanche 49, Glenn 42, Mayon 34, Petrakova 27, Tolston 10, Washington 9, Edwards 5, Johnson 3, Kotta 2. UL 181, OPPONENTS 152.

BLOCKED SHOTS: Petrakova 32, Washington 15, Scott 4, Johnson 4, Tolston 2, Glenn 1, Mayon 1, Kotta 1. UL 60, OPPONENTS 24.

STEALS: Petrakova 14, Blanche 11, Mayon 10, Glenn 10, Washington 9, Kotta 8, Tolston 6, Scott 3. UL 71, OPPONENTS 108.

[NewsCopy]

LOUISIANA La. — The roller coaster that is Louisiana’s Lady Cajuns basketball team pulls back into the station for an extended stop beginning tonight.

The Lady Cajuns, coming off one of their best outings of the season last Saturday and one of their worst of the year Thursday night, host Florida International at 7 p.m. at Long Gym in the first of four straight home games.

It also opens an important stretch for a Cajun squad (8-7, 2-2) that is seeking consistency above all else. UL Lafayette is 2-1 at home in Sun Belt Conference play, with the only loss a last-minute 57-54 decision to West Division leader South Alabama.

However, the Lady Cajuns were embarrassed 59-44 at New Mexico State on Thursday in its first road game in league play.

“We have to get more mentally tough on the road,” said Cajun coach J. Kelley Hall. “We played defense well enough (at NMSU), but we just shot it horribly from the perimeter. New Mexico State took us out of everything we tried to do offensively,a nd we didn’t respond to their physical play.”

Louisiana can expect something similar from FIU (8-9, 2-2), which hasn’t played since a surprising 55-53 home loss to North Texas on Monday. The Golden Panthers lead the Sun Belt in rebounding and rank third in the league in field goal defense.

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Dan McDonald
dmcdonald@lafayette.gannett.com

[NewsCopy]

LOUISIANA La. — The Lady Cajuns of Louisiana have been climbing mountains all season, and scaled another one here Saturday night.

The Ragin’ Cajuns had never beaten Florida International in the program’s history, were coming off their most disheartening loss of the year 48 hours earlier, had a banged-up point guard and had to play the final 9:19 without the Sun Belt Conference’s leading scorer and rebounder.

That made the 58-48 victory over the Golden Panthers even sweeter to Cajun coach J. Kelley Hall.

“This was a very good team,” Hall said of FIU, “and for us to come back after the way we played Thursday was huge. It’s going to take seven or eight wins to get into the tournament, and this was one we didn’t need to give away.”

All Hall had to do was turn to senior guard Sharee Glenn, who had 10 points in the first half on the way to a team-high 18. Glenn, who was only 1-for-7 from the field in the Cajuns’ 59-44 loss at New Mexico State Thursday, also had the game’s biggest basket with her jumper in the lane providing a 54-48 edge with 2:51 left.

“I needed to come out and play well, get the ball more,” said Glenn, who hit six of her nine shots including a late three-pointer. “I know I can score if I have to, but I have to slow down and play my game.”

FIU head coach Cindy Russo didn’t see Glenn slow down at all.

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Dan McDonald
dmcdonald@lafayette.gannett.com

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LOUISIANA La. — Now, it gets interesting.

Louisiana’s Ragin’ Cajuns are enjoying impressive seasons in both men’s and women’s basketball, with the Cajuns co-leaders in the Sun Belt Conference Western Division and the women tied atop their group, as well.

This week will help determine just how far the two campaigns will advance, however, as stiff competition looms on the horizon.

Coach Jessie Evans, whose team powered past Florida International 78-58 on the road last Saturday in Miami to improve to 4-1 in Sun Belt play and 9-5 overall, takes the Cajuns back on the road at Western Kentucky on Thursday and Middle Tennessee on Saturday.

WKU and Middle met in the 2003 Sun Belt Tournament finals last season, with the Hilltoppers earning an NCAA Tournament bid with a 64-52 victory, so this week gives the Cajuns a chance to measure themselves against the Sun Belt’s best from a year ago.

Cajun women’s coach J. Kelley Hall notched a first in the program’s history with Saturday’s eye-opening 58-48 victory over Florida International at Earl K. Long Gym, a win that vaulted his team to 9-7 overall and 3-2 in league action.

Like the men, Louisiana's Lady Cajuns will play WKU and Middle Tennessee this week. Also like the men, those two programs played in the Sun Belt Tournament championship game in 2003, with the Lady Toppers emerging triumphant.

One big difference for Hall is that his tests this week are at home — WKU at 7 p.m. on Thursday and Middle Tennessee at 2 p.m. on Saturday — in Long Gym.

There’s not a women’s coach in the Sun Belt who likes bringing her team into the echo chamber on the UL campus, as Denver’s Pam Tanner and FIU’s Cindy Russo can attest. UNO’s Joey Favaloro wasn’t fond of losing by 19 here, either, although that contest was in a Cajundome doubleheader with the men.

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Bruce Brown
bbrown@theadvertiser.com

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LOUISIANA La. — When the 2003-2004 season began, Sun Belt Conference women’s basketball teams had little to fear from Louisiana.

How else are you supposed to feel about a program still waiting for its first victory in Sun Belt Tournament play?

But that perception is slowly changing.

Coach J. Kelley Hall’s Cajuns surprised Florida International 58-48 last Saturday, improving to 9-7 overall and 3-2 in SBC action. It was the first time in history the Cajuns had bested FIU.

“Coming into the season, I think there were some teams that overlooked us,” Hall said. “Now I think they’re paying more attention to us.”

Junior center Anna Petrakova has commanded most of the attention for the Cajuns, with a pair of Player of the Week notices in the Sun Belt and one among Louisiana colleges.

Petrakova averages 19.4 points and 10.8 rebounds per game and is the focal point of everything UL does on offense, and yet the Cajuns posted their historic victory last weekend despite her fouling out with 9 minutes remaining.

“It was huge for us to show that we can play well without Anna,” Hall said. “I’ve seen coaches call two timeouts between a (key) player getting a third and fourth foul, but I’ve seen a lot of teams squander a lead between that third and fourth foul.

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Bruce Brown
bbrown@theadvertiser.com

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The Streak is Over: Cajuns Defeat Western Kentucky 80-72

LOUISIANA LA. - Louisiana's Lady Cajuns ended a 21-year, 26-game losing streak to Western Kentucky with an 80-72 win over the Lady Toppers on Thursday night in Lafayette.

The Lady Cajuns first win over the Lady Toppers in school history helps UL to a 10-7 (4-2) mark, while WKU falls to 9-10 (3-2).

True freshman Morgan Mayon, by her own admittance, hit the biggest shot of her career. With WKU down four, but surging, Mayon hit a long, arched three-pointer as the shot clock expired to give the Lady Cajuns a 75-68 lead at the 1:00 mark.

From there, Mayon and Sharee Glenn would add two free throws apiece and Anna Petrakova another to hold off the Lady Toppers.

Petrakova led all players with 23 points. The junior center added nine rebounds and a career high seven blocks and six assists. Glenn and Bernette Tolston each added 15 points. Tiffany Washington contributed 11 points and eight rebounds.

Tied at the half, the Cajuns started the second frame with a 13-4 jaunt led by two triples from Tolston, two baskets from Petrakova and a three-point play by Glenn.

As quickly as the Cajuns stormed out in front, the Lady Toppers came back quicker to take the lead. Down nine points, WKU used a 13-3 spurt in 3:02 to grab their first lead of the second half.

After four from the stripe by Leslie Logsdon, the Cajuns used a 9-0 run to take a 62-57 lead. Tolston buried a three before Glenn made two baskets around two free throws by Petrakova.

The Lady Toppers closed the gap to two-points, but UL Lafayette responded with terrific defense and six unanswered points to take a 68-60 lead with 4:31 remaining.

Petrakova scored four points on the run and added to her total with two more free throws with 2:49 to play, giving the Cajuns a 72-64 lead.

A free throw by Logsdon, before a three-point play by Camryn Whitaker closed WKU to 72-68 with 1:32 on the clock, setting-up Mayon's three-pointer.

Despite allowing 72 points, the Cajuns held WKU to 38.5 percent shooting and only four three-pointers. UL Lafayette shot 52.8 percent and made nine of 20 three-point shots. The Cajuns had more total rebounds, 39-30, blocks, 8-1, and assists 16-11.

A 10-0 run by WKU helped the visitors jettison to an 18-7 lead just 4:30 into the contest. The game turned into a long-range contest for the next
three minutes.

A triple by Alexandra Kotta stopped the WKU run. Whitaker answered for the Lady Toppers only to see another from long range shot by Kotta. Logsdon hit a three, before Tolston responded for the Cajuns.

A basket from Washington preceded more from long distance by Kotta and Tolston. The two three-pointers pulled the Cajuns within four, 28-24, with 8:10 left in the first half.

The Cajuns burst continued. After two from the stripe by Logsdon, a 10-2 run helped UL Lafayette take a 34-32 lead with 3:36 remaining.

Two baskets each by Washington and Petrakova, as well as a jumper by Ashley Blanche contributed to the run.

WKU came back to grab a 36-34 edge, but Washington's bucket at 1:45 was the final of the half to pull the teams even.

LOUISIANA SI

[lcitsh]

Although the mens' victory is important, this is BY FAR, way more important. This is a combination of the rest of the Sun Belt coming back to the pack and the tremendous effort of J. Kelley Hall, Bill Damuth, Rosalynn Landes and the Lady Cajun basketball team to rise to the level of the teams in this conference. This is the type of game you point to and say "This is a foundation game in the legitimizing of our program." This is what we will point to when we say that we have turned the corner in building our program in to one that can contend in this conference. We still have a long way to go and much to prove, but this one is sweet like you cannot imagine. I am so proud of this team. Get on board, people. Be at Earl K. Long Gym this Saturday afternoon 2:00 and support these women. They deserve it.

[RedBug58]

Congrats Lady Cajuns





You Have Arrived!!