University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
Wednesday, March 5
Pensacola, Fla.
7:30 p.m.
Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns
12-21,8-10Sun Belt
49
vs
67
Old Dominion
13-19,8-10Sun Belt
1
2
F
Louisiana
23
26
49
Old Dominion
29
38
67
Offensive Effort by El Moutaouakkil and Thomas Not Enough Against ODU
3/5/2025 11:29:00 PM | Men's Basketball
The duo combined for 36 points on the night
PENSACOLA, Florida - Mostapha El Moutaouakkil and Michael Thomas once again shouldered the offensive load for the Louisiana men's basketball team but it wasn't enough as the team was eliminated from the Sun Belt Conference Championships in a 67-49 defeat against Old Dominion on Wednesday in the Pensacola Bay Center.
El Moutaouakkil finished the night with 22 points and four rebounds. The junior accounted for 41 percent of Louisiana's points, 50 of 122, in their two games in Pensacola. A night after scoring a career-high, Thomas finished with 14 points and tied a career-high with six rebounds. Kyran Ratliff was the team's next highest scorer with four points while Zeke Cook chipped in five rebounds.
Unlike last night, both offenses had it going early with the score tied at 10 by the first media timeout. The sides continued to trade blows until a three by Thomas gave Louisiana a 19-17 lead. The Monarchs answered with a three to retake the lead at the under-eight timeout. They stretched the lead to six, the difference heading into the half at 29-23.
Louisiana made a run in the second half. Cook scored his lone basket of the night on the opening possession and Thomas followed with a layup to get back within a score. ODU responded with a three but back-to-back buckets by El Moutaouakkil made it a one-point game at 32-31.
The Ragin' Cajuns tied the score after a pair of El Moutaouakkil free throws at 38, but the Monarchs responded with an 8-1 run. Thomas stopped the run with another three to make it 46-42 with 10:20 to go, but the Cajun offense went cold the rest of the way, only scoring seven points over the final 10 minutes and change.
FOLLOW THE RAGIN' CAJUNS
Fans are encouraged to stay engaged with the Ragin' Cajuns by downloading the #GeauxCajuns app. Click here for iOS/Apple platforms and here for Android platforms.
For the latest on Louisiana Men's Basketball, stay tuned to RaginCajuns.com and follow the team on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook (RaginCajunsMBB).
El Moutaouakkil finished the night with 22 points and four rebounds. The junior accounted for 41 percent of Louisiana's points, 50 of 122, in their two games in Pensacola. A night after scoring a career-high, Thomas finished with 14 points and tied a career-high with six rebounds. Kyran Ratliff was the team's next highest scorer with four points while Zeke Cook chipped in five rebounds.
Unlike last night, both offenses had it going early with the score tied at 10 by the first media timeout. The sides continued to trade blows until a three by Thomas gave Louisiana a 19-17 lead. The Monarchs answered with a three to retake the lead at the under-eight timeout. They stretched the lead to six, the difference heading into the half at 29-23.
Louisiana made a run in the second half. Cook scored his lone basket of the night on the opening possession and Thomas followed with a layup to get back within a score. ODU responded with a three but back-to-back buckets by El Moutaouakkil made it a one-point game at 32-31.
The Ragin' Cajuns tied the score after a pair of El Moutaouakkil free throws at 38, but the Monarchs responded with an 8-1 run. Thomas stopped the run with another three to make it 46-42 with 10:20 to go, but the Cajun offense went cold the rest of the way, only scoring seven points over the final 10 minutes and change.
FOLLOW THE RAGIN' CAJUNS
Fans are encouraged to stay engaged with the Ragin' Cajuns by downloading the #GeauxCajuns app. Click here for iOS/Apple platforms and here for Android platforms.
For the latest on Louisiana Men's Basketball, stay tuned to RaginCajuns.com and follow the team on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook (RaginCajunsMBB).
Team Stats
LA
ODU
FG%
.352
.464
3FG%
.111
.385
FT%
.692
.833
RB
24
43
TO
8
13
STL
7
4
Game Leaders
Pts
22
FGM
9
3FGM
0
FTM
4
Pts
14
FGM
5
3FGM
2
FTM
2
Pts
4
FGM
2
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Pts
3
FGM
1
3FGM
0
FTM
1
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's BasketballG
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