University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
MBB Game 16 Preview: South Alabama
1/20/2016 9:47:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Cajuns set to open longest homestand since 1997
LAFAYETTE – The Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns men's basketball team returns home to the Cajundome for the first time in nearly three weeks on Thursday when it faces Sun Belt Conference rival South Alabama.
Tipoff is scheduled for 7:15 p.m. The game can be heard in the Lafayette area on Hot 107.9-FM and on the internet at RaginCajuns.com.
Louisiana (7-8, 3-3 SBC), which last played in the Cajundome on Jan. 2 against Appalachian State, capped off a four-game roadtrip with an 87-54 win over Georgia State – the Ragin' Cajuns largest margin of victory in a Sun Belt Conference road game since a 91-51 win at Louisiana in the 1993-94 season.
Shawn Long, who is second in the Sun Belt Conference in scoring (19.1) and leads the league in rebounds (13.0), posted his third straight 20-point, 15-rebound game after scoring 23 points and a season-high 18 rebounds against the Panthers. Kasey Shepherd scored 19 points and buried a career-high tying five 3-pointers for the Ragin' Cajuns with Hayward Register scoring a season-high 15 points with four 3-pointers.
Shepherd, the SBC leader in free-throw shooting (86.8 percent) and fourth in steals (1.8), is second on the team in scoring averaging 11.4 points per game with Jay Wright (9.3), Johnathan Stove (7.9), Register (6.5) and Bryce Washington (6.4) following.
Louisiana will open a five-game homestand – its longest since a period between Dec. 8-29, 1997. The Ragin' Cajuns will host Troy on Saturday (Jan. 23) in a game that will be televised on ESPN3. Tipoff is scheduled for 6:30 p.m.
GAME 16: Louisiana (7-8, 3-3 Sun Belt) vs. South Alabama (7-10, 2-4 Sun Belt)
January 21, 2016 | 7:15 p.m. | Lafayette, La. | Cajundome (11,550)
TV/Web: None
Radio: KHXT 107.9 FM | Talent: Jay Walker (PBP)
Video: RaginCajuns.com
Live Stats: RaginCajuns.com
Twitter Updates: @Cajunbasketball
Series: USA leads, 26-25 | In Lafayette: Series tied, 12-12 | In Mobile: USA leads, 12-11
THE COACHES
LOUISIANA
Head Coach: Bob Marlin (Mississippi State, 1981)
Career Record: 443-251 (23rd season), Record at UL: 95-85 (6th season)
SOUTH ALABAMA
Head Coach: Matthew Graves (Butler, 1998)
Career Record: 30-51 (3rd season), Record at USA: Same
STORY LINES
• Louisiana opens a season-long five-game homestand tonight as it faces South Alabama at the Cajundome. The five-game homestand is the Ragin' Cajuns longest since a period from Dec. 8-29, 1997 under then first-year coach Jessie Evans.
• Shawn Long is 13 points shy of becoming the sixth player in Ragin' Cajuns and Sun Belt Conference history to score 2,000 in a career.
• The Ragin' Cajuns are second in the Sun Belt Conference in scoring (80.9), field goal percentage (.444) and rebound margin (+7.6).
THE SERIES
Tonight's meeting is the 52nd between the schools with South Alabama holding a 26-25 lead. The Jaguars have won seven of the last 10 meetings, including a pair of come-from-behind victories last season. The series is tied at 12-12 in games played at the Cajundome.
THE OPPONENT
South Alabama snapped a two-game losing streak with an 88-85 overtime victory over UT Arlington on Saturday. The Jaguars are led in scoring by Ken Williams (14.6), who is 12th in the Sun Belt Conference. Georgi Boyanov (10.9) and Nick Stover (10.1) are next in scoring for South Alabama with Boyanov ranking sixth in the SBC with 7.8 rebounds per game.
UP NEXT
The Ragin' Cajuns will continue their homestand on Saturday (Jan. 23) against Troy in a game that will be televised on ESPN3. Tipoff is set for 6:30 p.m. Louisiana will remain at home next week with games against Texas State (Jan. 28) and UT Arlington (Jan. 30) before closing out the homestand on Feb. 2 against ULM.
QUICK HITS
• Louisiana's 33-point victory at Georgia State was its largest margin of victory in a Sun Belt Conference road game since a 91-51 win at Louisiana Tech on Feb. 26, 1994.
• Shawn Long is third among NCAA Division I players averaging 13.0 rebounds per game.
• Long leads all active NCAA players in double-doubles (63) and rebounds (1,231), is second in rebound average (10.6), third in both field goals made (748) and attempts (1,493), and is fourth in points (1,987).
• Bryce Washington (.692) and Shawn Long (.529) are the top two shooters in the Sun Belt Conference during league games.
• The Ragin' Cajuns are 27th nationally in rebound margin (+7.6) and 35th in scoring (80.9).
Tipoff is scheduled for 7:15 p.m. The game can be heard in the Lafayette area on Hot 107.9-FM and on the internet at RaginCajuns.com.
Louisiana (7-8, 3-3 SBC), which last played in the Cajundome on Jan. 2 against Appalachian State, capped off a four-game roadtrip with an 87-54 win over Georgia State – the Ragin' Cajuns largest margin of victory in a Sun Belt Conference road game since a 91-51 win at Louisiana in the 1993-94 season.
Shawn Long, who is second in the Sun Belt Conference in scoring (19.1) and leads the league in rebounds (13.0), posted his third straight 20-point, 15-rebound game after scoring 23 points and a season-high 18 rebounds against the Panthers. Kasey Shepherd scored 19 points and buried a career-high tying five 3-pointers for the Ragin' Cajuns with Hayward Register scoring a season-high 15 points with four 3-pointers.
Shepherd, the SBC leader in free-throw shooting (86.8 percent) and fourth in steals (1.8), is second on the team in scoring averaging 11.4 points per game with Jay Wright (9.3), Johnathan Stove (7.9), Register (6.5) and Bryce Washington (6.4) following.
Louisiana will open a five-game homestand – its longest since a period between Dec. 8-29, 1997. The Ragin' Cajuns will host Troy on Saturday (Jan. 23) in a game that will be televised on ESPN3. Tipoff is scheduled for 6:30 p.m.
GAME 16: Louisiana (7-8, 3-3 Sun Belt) vs. South Alabama (7-10, 2-4 Sun Belt)
January 21, 2016 | 7:15 p.m. | Lafayette, La. | Cajundome (11,550)
TV/Web: None
Radio: KHXT 107.9 FM | Talent: Jay Walker (PBP)
Video: RaginCajuns.com
Live Stats: RaginCajuns.com
Twitter Updates: @Cajunbasketball
Series: USA leads, 26-25 | In Lafayette: Series tied, 12-12 | In Mobile: USA leads, 12-11
THE COACHES
LOUISIANA
Head Coach: Bob Marlin (Mississippi State, 1981)
Career Record: 443-251 (23rd season), Record at UL: 95-85 (6th season)
SOUTH ALABAMA
Head Coach: Matthew Graves (Butler, 1998)
Career Record: 30-51 (3rd season), Record at USA: Same
STORY LINES
• Louisiana opens a season-long five-game homestand tonight as it faces South Alabama at the Cajundome. The five-game homestand is the Ragin' Cajuns longest since a period from Dec. 8-29, 1997 under then first-year coach Jessie Evans.
• Shawn Long is 13 points shy of becoming the sixth player in Ragin' Cajuns and Sun Belt Conference history to score 2,000 in a career.
• The Ragin' Cajuns are second in the Sun Belt Conference in scoring (80.9), field goal percentage (.444) and rebound margin (+7.6).
THE SERIES
Tonight's meeting is the 52nd between the schools with South Alabama holding a 26-25 lead. The Jaguars have won seven of the last 10 meetings, including a pair of come-from-behind victories last season. The series is tied at 12-12 in games played at the Cajundome.
THE OPPONENT
South Alabama snapped a two-game losing streak with an 88-85 overtime victory over UT Arlington on Saturday. The Jaguars are led in scoring by Ken Williams (14.6), who is 12th in the Sun Belt Conference. Georgi Boyanov (10.9) and Nick Stover (10.1) are next in scoring for South Alabama with Boyanov ranking sixth in the SBC with 7.8 rebounds per game.
UP NEXT
The Ragin' Cajuns will continue their homestand on Saturday (Jan. 23) against Troy in a game that will be televised on ESPN3. Tipoff is set for 6:30 p.m. Louisiana will remain at home next week with games against Texas State (Jan. 28) and UT Arlington (Jan. 30) before closing out the homestand on Feb. 2 against ULM.
QUICK HITS
• Louisiana's 33-point victory at Georgia State was its largest margin of victory in a Sun Belt Conference road game since a 91-51 win at Louisiana Tech on Feb. 26, 1994.
• Shawn Long is third among NCAA Division I players averaging 13.0 rebounds per game.
• Long leads all active NCAA players in double-doubles (63) and rebounds (1,231), is second in rebound average (10.6), third in both field goals made (748) and attempts (1,493), and is fourth in points (1,987).
• Bryce Washington (.692) and Shawn Long (.529) are the top two shooters in the Sun Belt Conference during league games.
• The Ragin' Cajuns are 27th nationally in rebound margin (+7.6) and 35th in scoring (80.9).
Players Mentioned
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