(UL Athletics)
LAFAYETTE – Jordan Brown scored 14 points of his 24 points in the second half as the Louisiana men’s basketball team secured a top-four spot, and more importantly a two-round bye, in next week’s Sun Belt Conference Championships. Brown added 12 rebounds for his second straight double-double in the team’s 85-74 win over Arkansas State Wednesday night in the Cajundome.
The win extended the Ragin’ Cajuns (22-7, 12-5 SBC) home winning streak to 14 and has them one win away from a perfect 2022-23 season at the Cajundome.
Brown scored six of the team’s first 10 points to open the game, but the Red Wolves (11-19, 3-14 SBC) kept with the Cajuns point for point early on. Themus Fulks then caught fire, score seven points as part of a 13-0 Louisiana run to take the lead. The visitor’s refused to got away, trimming the lead to seven, but a three-pointer by Greg Williams Jr. and a jumper by him on the following possession sent Cajuns into the locker room ahead, 41-29.
The Red Wolves came out shooting in the second half and cut the lead to just five. Williams Jr. responded with a 5-0 personal run before Brown’s layup with 15:51 to play made it a 12-point game again. Brown took over the game midway through the second half, scoring eight consecutive points for the Cajuns and kept the lead around double digits. The visitors fought back once again, cutting the Louisiana lead to seven, but a jumper by Themus Fulks and Terance Lewis II put the game out of reach.
Williams had a good night scoring with 18 points. Lewis II had 11 points, on 4-for-5 shooting, and eight rebounds in the effort while Fulks also finished the night with 11 points. Louisiana won the battle on the boards, outrebounding the Red Wolves 41-32. The team was also clutch at the charity stripe in the second half, going 12-of-15 from the free throw line.
UP NEXT FOR THE CAJUNS
The Ragin’ Cajuns welcome South Alabama to the Cajundome for the final game of the regular season. The game will tip-off at 8 p.m. on ESPN 2. The Cajuns look to finish the season undefeated at home with a win.