The Book: Lady Cajuns 2004-05 Basketball Season

[DaddyCajun]

Looking for #11 hope it is against Denver Saturday night!!!!!!


Geaux Ladies!!!!

[NewsCopy]

Hall has Ragin' Cajun women thinking like winners

LAFAYETTE - Louisiana's Ragin' Cajuns are on target to accomplish something that hasn't been done at UL in women's basketball in 17 years.

It's early yet, with a full slate of 15 Sun Belt Conference games remaining to be played in the 2004-2005 campaign, but UL is 10-3 entering the new year and is on target for the program's first winning season since 1987-88.

That's nearly a lifetime ago for freshmen like Onna Charles and Alicia McDaniel, and too long in the past for any of the current players to have a clear recollection of the 18-11 mark forged in Wilo Colon's one year at the helm.

In fact, Ragin' Cajun women's basketball had been down so long, bottom started looking like up.

In the 1990's, UL was 44-226, an inept percentage of .163. In 33 previous seasons of play, the Cajuns managed a mere five winning records.

When the Cajuns spanked Arkansas-Pine Bluff 64-41 on the road last Dec. 30 to move to 10-3, it was only the 14th time a UL squad has ever had double-digits in wins.

"The first thing we had to do was make them believe they were good enough," said coach J. Kelley Hall, who is 31-37 in his third year and was 13-15 a year ago.

"The nucleus of the team - Anna Petrakova, Bernette Tolston and Ashley Blanche - none of those three started their first year. Now they're our nucleus. It's been a whole learning process, a building process.

"Now, the players play hard and they expect to win every time out on the court. Now, we're getting the leadership we've not had in the past."

A perfect example of the Cajuns' growth has been Petrakova, who arrived from Moscow expecting to finish high school but instead found she was qualified for college despite her tender age.

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Bruce Brown
bbrown@theadvertiser.com

[DaddyCajun]

Can our football program get going in time for us to get the invite to a more lucrative conference? If so, we might be able to hold on to coaches like Hall, Steph & Mike, Robe, Bustle either for good(till they retire) or alittle longer so not to have the mill going!!!

DaddyCajun out!!


Hall is the Bomb!!!!

[CajunRebel]

DaddyCajun, I don't think that the factor here is football. I beleive that the thing that has kept us out of bigger conferences is our budget, or should I say a serious lack of a budget.

I remember seeing a chart awhile back showing that we had the second worse budget out of all of the Sun Belt Conferene schools. Only ULM was worse. And I think that it is safe to assume that if we are one of the last in the Sun Belt, then we are also one of the last in D-IA.

And if you look closely at the financial side of college or professional athletics, you will see that the level of success that you acheive is directly related to your budget.

This is why the Yankees ($185 million payroll) always go deep into the playoffs and the Devil Rays ($24 million payroll) always come out dead last.

This is why LSU ($40 million budget) won a national championship in football last year while UL ($8 million budget) was ranked near the bottom of all 1A schools.

And finally, this is why UL has been and will continue to be overlooked by more prestigeous conferences.

So unless Dr. A. and those elected boneheads in Baton Rouge decide to give us a chance financially, we will remain in the Sun Belt.

[NewsCopy]

Lady Cajuns of Louisiana begin Sun Belt play against Denver today in Cajundome.

LOUISIANA La. - Two teams apparently headed in different directions clash today when Louisiana's Ragin' Cajun women host the Denver Pioneers at the Cajundome.

The 4:45 p.m. contest, the first half of a UL-Denver women's-men's doubleheader, pits coach J. Kelley Hall's 10-3 Cajuns against a 2-10 Denver squad of coach Pam Tanner in the Sun Belt Conference opener for both schools.

Louisiana is a perfect 6-0 at home this season and is on target for just the sixth winning season in school history.

The Cajuns bashed Arkansas-Pine Bluff 64-41 on Dec. 30 in their final pre-Sun Belt outing, and have been focused on practice since then, while the Pioneers dropped a 67-47 decision at Colorado State in their last tuneup on Tuesday.

"We beat them by 23 last year (80-57) at Earl K. Long Gym," Hall said. "Then when we played them in Denver, we lost by 24 (73-49). Our kids remember that, and they're focused for this game.

"We've been working on some of the different things Denver does in practice. I know they will be physical, and that they'll push the ball up the floor in transition."

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Bruce Brown
bbrown@theadvertiser.com

[NewsCopy]

LOUISIANA La. - Louisiana's Ragin' Cajun women opened the Sun Belt Conference campaign in style last Saturday with a 69-54 victory at home over the Denver Pioneers.

More impressively, coach J. Kelley Hall's 11-3 squad got the eighth double-digit win of the season while playing at less than full strength.

Starting point guard Ashley Blanche banged her head on the Cajundome court late in the first half, Alexandra Kotta did not play at all after getting an elbow to the sternum in practice and standout center Anna Petrakova was ineffective after picking up three fouls in the first half.

"It was nice to get that first conference win out of the way," said Hall, whose squad hosts winless New Orleans on Thursday at Earl K. Long Gym. "It was good that some of the younger kids came through for us."

Freshman point guard Toby Buford was one reason the Cajuns kept humming, as she stepped in for Blanche in the second half and ran the UL offense.

"Toby came in at the end of the first half, and then ended up playing 12 or 13 minutes," Hall said. "She's a tough, hard-nosed kid who comes from a good program at Hackberry.

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Bruce Brown
bbrown@theadvertiser.com

[NewsCopy]

Ragin' Cajun fans have no more excuses

LOUISIANA La. - So what's the excuse now?

For so many years the Louisiana Lady Cajun basketball program has been a very unsuccessful one with an unimpressive winning percentage of .330 (275-556) coming into the 2004-2005 season.

And because of their lack of success fans didn't really support the program, using the Ragin' Cajuns' inability to win as a reason not to attend their games.

And that's fine.

The easy thing to say at the time was "if they begin to win consistently, then people will go and watch".

Basically what they were saying was, "build a winner and we will come."

But that hasn't been the case.

In his third year at the helm, J. Kelley Hall has transformed the Ragin' Cajuns women's program into not only a competitive team, but also into a contender for the Sun Belt Championship.

Last year, the Ragin' Cajuns went 13-15 overall, placed second in the West Division at 7-8, and also qualified for the conference tournament for the first time.

And while the 2003-2004 season was successful, some naysayers still weren't ready to buy into what Hall and his Cajuns are building.

Instead of complaining, all the Ragin' Cajun women have done this year, is win the Radisson Inn Classic and place second at the Great Alaska Shootout after losing to Stanford (ranked sixth in the country) en route to an impressive 11-3 record for the season.

But, again the fans still aren't showing their support.

So what's the excuse now?

Not only is this team winning, but it also has talent.

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Eric Narcisse
enarcisse@theadvertiser.com

[DaddyCajun]

I will be there!

[NewsCopy]

UL point guard's efficiency has helped bring success on court

LOUISIANA La. - Ashley Blanche can be happy kicking back and watching TV. In fact, that's where to find her in her leisure hours.

But Blanche is getting quite comfortable lately as the point guard for a winning basketball team.

The junior from Cabrini High in New Orleans is the floor leader for Louisiana's Ragin' Cajun women, who bring a lofty 11-3 record into tonight's Sun Belt Conference game against New Orleans at Earl K. Long Gym.

Blanche is one big reason for the Cajuns' newfound success, taking big steps forward in her third year under coach J. Kelley Hall with 92 assists and just 37 turnovers in 14 games.

"That's what I've been working on," Blanche said. "The point guard definitely has to be good at passing the ball. I need to get it to our shooters so they can catch the ball and shoot it.

"That's something our perimeter players have been doing. And, we have great shooters."

With at least 15 more games remaining, Blanche is on target to climb the UL single-season charts for assists. No. 10 on that list is Lisa Merritt with 111, while Cajun legend Kim Perrot set the school record of 191 in the 1986-87 campaign.

But the assists-to-turnovers ratio is just as important for Hall's program to succeed.

"I also try to take better care of the ball," Blanche said. "I want to have fewer careless turnovers. I'm getting better at that. I used to think about it a lot, but now I'm more experienced and it's just something I do."

Blanche is scoring 8.1 points per game on a Cajun squad that has only one player - Anna Petrakova at 16.6 - in double figures. While she can provide balance for the attact, the focus is more on what she can do for others and to keep the Cajuns rolling.

"It's a whole different level of play," said Blanche, who was an All-Metro performer at Cabrini. "The offense is totally different. In high school, it was more my show. Now it's more controlled.

"I've learned when to speed up and when to slow down. I wouldn't say I was out of control in high school, but it was just fast, fast. I understand the offense better now. Now I know how to get the team involved."

Blanche went from 55 assists and 44 turnovers as a freshman to 77 and 72 last year, so this season's figures represent a dramatic improvement in efficiency.

The rest of the story

Bruce Brown
bbrown@theadvertiser.com

[NewsCopy]

LOUISIANA La. - Louisiana's Lady Cajuns have been picked to challenge South Alabama for the Western Division title in this year's Sun Belt Conference basketball race, and their first shot at USA comes this Saturday in Mobile.

But first, the Cajuns host New Orleans at 7 p.m. today at Earl K. Long Gym on campus.

Coach J. Kelley Hall's UL squad is 11-3 on the year and 1-0 in Sun Belt play after last Saturday's 69-54 thrashing of visiting Denver, while UNO stumbles into town with a 0-12, 0-1 mark after a 53-29 loss at South Alabama.

Although it's an apparent mismatch, and a tempting opportunity to look ahead to USA, tonight's game will still get the Cajuns' attention.

"Ashley Blanche is from New Orleans, and she will keep that from happening," Hall said of his junior point guard from Cabrini High. "The UNO game is one we always look forward to. It won't bother them (the Cajuns) what their record is.

"It's also a Sun Belt game and we're playing at home."

Blanche entered the 2004-2005 campaign with a plus-16 assists-to-turnovers ratio in 55 games. In one mark of her maturing game, she has 92 assists and 37 turnovers (plus 55) in 14 games this season.

New Orleans leads the all-time series between the two in-state rivals 44-17, but Hall's Cajuns swept the Privateers with a 68-49 home victory and a 61-51 decision at the Lakefront Arena.

The Cajuns' Anna Petrakova had 23 points and 10 rebounds in the first win, and 25 and 7 in the return bout. She is on target to become the 10th player in Cajun history to score 1,000 points, needing 31 more points for that coveted plateau.

Petrakova also has 37 blocked shots this year and needs 12 to become the school's career leader. Former teammate Sarah Richey is the leader with 163.

The rest of the story

[NewsCopy]

LOUISIANA La. -- ULL's Lady Cajuns host the University of New Orleans at 7:05 p.m. today in a conference game set for Earl K. Long gymnasium.

ULL's women are 11-3 overall and 1-0 in the SBC, while UNO is winless after 12 games and 0-1 in the league.

The Lady Cajuns are 7-0 in home games. ULL beat Denver's Lady Pioneers (69-54) to open conference play Saturday night at the Cajundome.

Anna Petrakova is the Lady Cajuns scoring and rebounding leader (16.6 ppg, 10.5).

ULL's projected starting lineup includes Onna Charles (9.8 ppg), Bernette Tolston (9.4), Tiffany Washington (8.7, 6.1) and Ashley Blanche (8.1 ppg).

UNO's probable starting lineup includes three freshman including leading scorer Le Della English (9.1 ppg).

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By BOBBY ARDOIN
Special to The Advocate

[NewsCopy]

UL starts slow, then routs UNO


LOUISIANA La. - Louisiana's Lady Cajuns are starting to make believers out of basketball fans.

The Cajuns moved to 2-0 in the Sun Belt Conference for the first time in school history and improved to 12-3 on the season with Thursday's 89-50 thrashing of New Orleans before 501 fans at Earl K. Long Gym.

It was a contest for much of the first half as struggling UNO (now 0-13, 0-2) fought to keep the home team in check, but the score was 38-29 at halftime and the Privateers were held to just 21 points after the break.

"We started making our shots in the second half," said UL coach J. Kelley Hall, whose team was 20-of-38 in the final 20 minutes.

"We wanted to wear into them in the first half, wear them down. They have some good, young players, but what's hurting them is a lack of depth. Once they got tired, they couldn't defend us."

UNO also ran out of steam on offense, with a 9-of-32 effort from the field in the second half.

"That's what we do," Hall said. "We hold teams in the 50's."

Senior Anna Petrakova led all scorers with 22 points, hitting 10-of-18 from the field and getting 18 of those points after intermission, while freshman Onna Charles of New Iberia had her second straight 20-point night in as many Sun Belt games.

"It was very exciting," said Charles, who drew thunderous cheers from numerous New Iberia fans on hand. Former NISH teammate Andrea Williams (8 points) of UNO drew similar response from the crowd.

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Bruce Brown
bbrown@theadvertiser.com

[DaddyCajun]

Would love to be able to get one of those "Be the Reason" Shirts!

[NewsCopy]

Among senior players in the Acadiana area, Teurlings Catholic senior point guard Blair Brodhead stands at the top of the list.

"Blair is a pretty complete player," Lady Rebels coach Garry Brodhead said. "One thing I think people overlook is that she can defend. But she has worked hard for what she has."

Brodhead, who has signed with the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns, entered her senior season averaging 18 points for her career. She has been named to the Class 3A All-state team, the Daily Advertiser/Coca-Cola All-Acadiana and All-Parish first teams all three seasons including earning MVP honors for All-Parish as a junior.

This year, Brodhead has helped lead the Lady Rebels to a 21-5 overall record en route to garnering the state's No. 1 ranking in Class 3A over the defending state champion Franklin Lady Hornets.

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Eric Narcisse

[NewsCopy]

LOUISIANA La. - J. Kelley Hall demands a lot of Anna Petrakova, but he knows she's the type of player who's capable of responding with special performances.

Louisiana's Ragin' Cajuns dropped a 57-56 contest at South Alabama last Saturday, their first Sun Belt Conference defeat after a 2-0 start, but Petrakova turned in a dominating effort.

The 6-foot-3 senior hit 13-of-18 shots and scored 28 points to become the 10th player in school history to surpass the 1,000-point plateau.

With 1,019 points, she is two away from ninth-place Shaunda Bedel-Johnson's 1,021, and 40 shy of former teammate Charlotte Green's 1,059.

The Moscow native also pulled down 18 rebounds, moving into fourth place on that career list with 641 and within 16 of No. 3 Bernadette Griffin's 657.

She also has 42 blocked shots this season and 156 for her career, closing in on former teammate Sarah Richey's career-record 163 rejections.

"Anna stepped up and had a big game," Hall said. "I was hard on her at the start of the game, but I expect a lot out of her.

"It's a shame that she had to reach 1,000 points in a game we lose by one point. It's a big milestone for her and she did it against a very good team. She also had 18 rebounds.

"I'm hoping she's going to put in some dominating performances."

Petrakova, the reigning Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year, is averaging 17.7 points and 10.6 rebounds for the 12-4, 2-1 Cajuns. Her numbers are even more remarkable considering the constant attention she receives from opposing defenders, some of which isn't legal.

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Bruce Brown
bbrown@theadvertiser.com