University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns
Georgia Southern
Players Mentioned
MBB Game 29 Preview: Georgia Southern
2/27/2015 10:53:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Saturday, Feb. 28 • 7:15 p.m. (CST) • Cajundome (11,500) • Lafayette, La.
Game Notes: Louisiana | Georgia Southern
Live Stats
Radio: KHXT 107.9 FM Video: RaginCajuns.com
Rosters: Louisiana | Georgia Southern
Statistics: Louisiana | Georgia Southern
Ragin' Cajuns Twitter: @ULRaginCajuns | @Cajunbasketball
Opponents Twitter: @GSAthletics
THE COACHES
Louisiana: Bob Marlin (Mississippi State, 1981)
Career Record: 430-241 (22nd season) Record at Louisiana: 82-75 (5th season)
Georgia Southern: Mark Byington (UNC Wilmington, 1998)
Career Record: 41-29 (4th season) Record at Georgia Southern: 35-25 (2nd season)
FOR STARTERS
The Cajuns will carry a three-game win streak into Saturday against co-SBC leader Georgia Southern. It is the longest win streak since winning four in a row to open up SBC play. A win over the Eagles would put the Cajuns one step closer to securing a top-4 seed in the SBC Tournament, a poll position that comes with at least one tournament bye.
THE LAST TIME OUT
Hayward Register connected on five first-half threes and Shawn Long went for 21 points and 15 rebounds as the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns moved into sole possession of fourth place in the Sun Belt Conference with a 81-70 win over UT Arlington on Saturday night at the College Park Center.
The Cajuns won their third straight game behind not only Register and Long, but a near triple-double from point guard Jay Wright who finished with 15 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists on the night.
Just two days after its best defensive performance of the season against Texas State, the Cajuns carried that over to Saturday night, holding the Mavericks to just 5-for-29 shooting in the first half and 33.8 percent for the game.
Louisiana finished the night shooting 49.1 percent from the field and hit eight three-point buckets, needing all of them to negate a tough 15-for-29 night from the foul line. The Mavs, on the other hand, finished 21-for-29 from the line but were just 5-for-9 in the second half.
Kasey Shepherd also finished with 11 points for the Cajuns, while Bryce Washington and Johnathan Stove had seven apiece.
UP NEXT
College basketball and the Cajuns turn the calendar to March next week with UL taking on the state's Arkansas duo for its final two games on the slate. The Ragin' Cajuns will host UALR on Thursday before closing out the regular season on Saturday at Arkansas State. The SBC Tournament begins March 12 in New Orleans with UL still looking to secure a first-round bye.
• Shawn Long is one of only two players in the country averaging at least 17.0 ppg and 10.0 rpg, joined by Desharick Guidry (McNeese State).
• Against UTA, the Cajuns put out a starting lineup that did not include a senior on the roster for the fifth time this season. Xavian Rimmer (5 minutes) was the only Cajun senior to play vs the Mavs.
• The Cajuns held UTA to just 5-for-29 shooting in the first half on Saturday, a .172 shooting percentage. It is the lowest opponent's shooting percentage in a single half for the Ragin' Cajuns since they held Denver to just .130 (3-for-23) shooting on Feb. 4, 2006.
• UL has amped up its defense in its last two games, allowing Texas State and UT Arlington to shoot a combined .331 from the field in those games.
• UL held Texas State without a made three-point basket in it's latest win over the Bobcats. It's the first time a UL opponent has been without a triple since Feb. 6, 2010 when UALR went 0-for-13 from three.
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