MBB Game 3 Preview: vs. Savannah State

LAFAYETTE – Coming off an impressive 113-58 win over Louisiana College in its home opener, the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns men's basketball team returns to action on Friday when it plays host to Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference member Savannah State at the Cajundome.

Tipoff is scheduled for 4 p.m., with a free live stream available at RaginCajuns.com. The game can be heard in the Lafayette area on KHXT 107.9 FM, ESPN 1420 AM and on the RadioPup app.

Louisiana (1-1) evened its record after posting a 55-point win over Louisiana College as all 11 players who dressed got into the scoring column. P.J. Hardy set career-highs in points (19), rebounds (4), assists (5) and steal (3) as Louisiana won its 24th straight regular-season, non-conference game at home dating back to 2012.

JaKeenan Gant scored a career-best 17 points for the Ragin' Cajuns, who had six players score in double figures.

Johnathan Stove, who missed Tuesday's game (foot), leads the Ragin' Cajuns in scoring at 16.0 points per game with freshman Cedric Russell (15.0), Gant (13.5), Justin Miller (12.0) and Hardy (10.5) all averaging in double-figures.

GAME 3: Louisiana (1-1) vs. Savannah State (1-2)
Date / Time: November 17, 2017 / 4 p.m.
Site: Lafayette, La.
Arena: Cajundome (12,362)

Radio: KHXT 107.9 FM / ESPN 1420 AM
Talent: Jay Walker (pxp)

Video: RaginCajuns.com (FREE)
Live Stats: RaginCajuns.com
Twitter Updates: @RaginCajunsMBB

Series History: First meeting

THE COACHES
LOUISIANA
Head Coach: Bob Marlin (Mississippi State, 1981)
Record at Louisiana: 129-105 (8th season), Career Record: 477-271 (25th season)

SAVANNAH STATE
Head Coach: Horace Broadnax (Georgetown, 1986)
Record at SSU: 157-213 (13th season), Career Record: 199-301 (18th season)

STORY LINES
• Louisiana plays host to Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference member Savannah State in a Friday afternoon matinee at the Cajundome.
• The meeting is the first overall between the schools on the hardwood.
• Louisiana is 3-0 all-time against current members of the MEAC (2-0 vs. Bethune-Cookman; 1-0 vs. Delaware State).
• Louisiana has won its last 24 regular-season, non-conference games at home dating back to Dec. 18, 2012 (vs. Robert Morris).
• Senior Bryce Washington is 18 points shy of becoming the 45th player in Ragin' Cajuns history to reach the 1,000-point scoring mark.
• Washington is 10 rebounds shy of tying Elvin Ivory (1967-68) for seventh-place on the school's all-time list.
• Johnathan Stove enters tonight's game 196 points shy of reaching the 1,000-point mark.

QUICK HITS
• Louisiana led the Sun Belt Conference in scoring offense (81.9) and rebound margin (+5.8) during the 2016-17 season.
• The Ragin' Cajuns return 75.6 percent of its scoring and 79.1 percent of its rebounds from the 2016-17 season.
• Louisiana's 113-58 win over Louisiana College on Tuesday marked the 134th time in school history the Ragin' Cajuns eclipsed the 100-point mark. Louisiana is 131-3 overall when scoring 100 points or greater.
• Bryce Washington's 369 rebounds in 2016-17 were the fifth-most in a single-season in school history.
• Washington grabbed seven rebounds against Ole Miss, moving past Dion Rainey (749, 1977-80) into eighth-place on the school's all-time list (now at 758).
• In his first career start, Marcus Stroman posted career-highs in both points (12) and minutes played (34) in the Ragin' Cajuns season opener at Ole Miss. His previous highs (10 points/29 minutes) was set while at South Carolina.
• Louisiana went 7-5 last season in games decided by six points or less after going 0-6 in 2015-16. Under Bob Marlin, the Ragin' Cajuns are 41-41 overall in games decided by six points or less.

SCOUTING THE TIGERS
• Savannah State posted its first win of the season with a 114-80 win over Middle Georgia on Wednesday behind a game-high 26 points by Dexter McClanahan. Alante Fenner (16 points), Ty'lik Evans (15) and Jahr Cabeza (11) all scored in double figures for the Tigers, who opened the season with losses to nationally-ranked Cincinnati (107-77) and East Tennessee State (73-61).
• McClanahan (15.7 ppg.), Alante Fenner (12.0 ppg.) and Ty'lik Evans (11.7 ppg.) are the top scorers for SSU, which is averaging 84.0 points per game in its first three contests.
• SSU coach Horace Broadnax played for legendary coach John Thompson at Georgetown from 1982-86 and was a member of the Hoya's 1984 NCAA Division I national championship team.
•The Tigers went 13-16 last season with a non-conference win coming against Oregon State on Dec. 11, 2016.

UP NEXT
• Louisiana makes it second trip to the Caribbean this year, heading to George Town, Grand Cayman to play in the inaugural Cayman Islands Classic. The Ragin' Cajuns open play on Monday (11 a.m. CST) against Iowa before facing either Wyoming or South Dakota State on Tuesday (TBA).
• No. 12 Cincinnati, UAB, Richmond and Buffalo make up the other side of the eight-team bracket.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

JaKeenan Gant

P.J. Hardy

Justin Miller

Cedric Russell

Johnathan Stove

Marcus Stroman

Bryce Washington

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