Opposites collide {i-camera}

[NewsCopy]

Cajuns flying high, Jaguars on losing skid.

LOUISIANA La. — Two teams going in opposite directions will meet tonight at the 10,000-seat Mitchell Center when Louisiana invades South Alabama in Mobile.

Coach Jessie Evans’ Ragin’ Cajuns (13-5, 8-1 in Sun Belt Conference play) have won seven straight games since losing to USA’s Jaguars 76-73 in the Cajundome on Jan. 15.

The Jaguars of coach John Pelphrey, on the other hand, are 9-12 and 3-6 as a result of four straight defeats and setbacks in five of their last six contests.

And, while UL has outscored its last seven foes by an average of 15.1 points per game, USA has been humbled by 14.2 points in each of its five recent losses including an 86-53 embarrassment at Arkansas-Little Rock.

Only a 62-51 home win over Spring Hill has gone the Jaguars’ way.

All the Cajuns need to know, though, is that South Alabama came back from 70-60 behind in the last 5:38 on Jan. 15, forcing 20 turnovers on the night.

“South Alabama is one of the few teams that has been able to come into the Cajundome and beat us,” Evans said. “Their style keeps you on your toes. We definitely have to do a better job of taking care of the ball, and do a better job defensively.

“And, Mobile is a tough place to play.”

The 20 turnovers against South Alabama was a season high for the Cajuns, and it was enough to wake them up. They haven’t lost since, and remain one of the few teams in the nation with more assists (310) than turnovers (264) this season.

Considering the feverish pace at which the Cajuns sometimes play, that’s no small achievement.

“We pride ourselves in taking care of the basketball,” Evans said. “We’ve done enough running in practice because of turnovers to realize how important it is. It feels good to have that kind of statistic.

“That’s something we’re going to need to keep doing if we’re going to go where we need to go. And, we need to shoot our free throws.”

The Cajuns are hitting 72.2 percent at the line, with Chris Cameron (81.6), Laurie Bridges (81.4) and Brad Boyd (80.0) all over 80 percent. Previously, the best an Evans team has done on free throws was the 66.5 percent in his first year, 1997-98.

UL is coming off an impressive pair of home victories over Sun Belt Western Division rivals, stunning North Texas 94-81 with an aggressive second half of defense last Thursday and running away from Denver 94-74 on Saturday.

“If you don’t have to play them,” said UNT coach Johnny Jones, “they’re a fun team to watch.”

The rest of the story

Bruce Brown
bbrown@theadvertiser.com

[NewsCopy]

Road swing can place Cajuns in total command.

LOUISIANA La. — Don’t think of it as a five-game journey.

It is true that Louisiana has embarked on a stretch of five games in five towns in 11 days, starting tonight in Mobile against South Alabama and ending Feb. 23 at North Texas in Denton, but coach Jessie Evans prefers a shorter focus.

“I don’t look at it as a five-game road trip,” Evans said. “We’ve got South Alabama and New Orleans (Saturday) this week, then we’ll think about the other games.”

The Cajuns visit New Mexico State next Wednesday, then step out of Sun Belt Conference play to face Rice in Houston for ESPN’s Bracket Buster Saturday on Feb. 21, and then complete their tour at UNT.

Of course, Evans’ team has proved it is comfortable on the road as the only Sun Belt squad that is unbeaten (4-0) away from home.

That’s one reason the Cajuns have a three-game lead over any other school in the race for the SBC regular-season crown.

Denver, UNO and North Texas are 5-4 in the West behind the Cajuns, while Western Kentucky and Arkansas-Little Rock are 5-4 atop the East race — just ahead of Middle Tennessee (4-4) and Arkansas State (5-5).

“The key is to keep playing solid,” said senior Brad Boyd. “We need to play the same way we have been playing — rebound, get the fast break and when we get an open shot, take it. We’re the away team now.”

UL finishes the regular season at home against Arkansas State Feb. 26 and UALR on the 28th.

If they are successful at all on the upcoming road swing, the Cajuns should cruise to Evans’ first unshared season crown.

How much have the Cajuns improved since Orien Greene hit the court?

In the Sun Belt opener at Denver, Antoine Landry’s last-second jumper provided the difference in an 83-81 comeback win for the Cajuns.

When the two staged a rematch last Saturday at the Cajundome, UL won going away, 94-74 behind Landry’s 18-point night.

The rest of the story

Bruce Brown
bbrown@theadvertiser.com