The Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns played for the first time this season and beat UT Dallas. On Wednesday night, they went west to play the Houston Cougars.
Houston got off to a slow start, but came on strong and beat Louisiana at home. With the 91–45 loss, the Cajuns are now 1-2 on the season.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
Early on, the defense played the best part of the game. In the first three minutes, both teams missed eight shots and turned the ball over four times. Houston got the first point of the game on a free throw by Ja’Vier Francis. J’Wan Roberts made the first basket with a put-back layup.
First, Kentrell Garnett made a three-pointer from the right side to start Louisiana’s 10-3 run. After Kyndall Davis’s basket, she made a layup and a midrange jump shot. Then Chancellor White made a high-arcing three-pointer over a Cougar defender. At 14:06, the Cajuns were ahead 10–6.
Houston then scored 14 points in just over four minutes. With a free throw and two three-pointers in a row, Emanuel Sharp scored the first seven points of the run.
There were also a few steals that led to Cougars points, and Mercy Miller capped the run with a three-pointer. With 10:31 left in the first half, Koron Davis made Louisiana’s third three-pointer.
It kept happening that the Cajuns turned the ball over and let the Cougars score more points. Miller got a steal, made a layup in transition, and then made a couple of free throws. Also, early in the second part of the first half, it came down to free throws as Houston grew their lead.
L.J. Cryer and Milos Uzan both hit threes to help the Cougars end the first half on a 15-2 run. The score at halftime was 51–25 for Louisiana.
Houston went on a 10–2 run to start the second half. Francis made a shot from long range, Roberts made a and–one layup, and Sharp scored a minute later after getting an offensive rebound.
Before Davis hit a free throw, there wasn’t a score in almost three minutes. Uzan then found Joseph Tugler for a dunk. With 13:46 left, the slam gave the Cougars a 65-28 lead.
It took another two and a half minutes for the next basket to come in. It was a layup by Ramon Walker after Mostapha El Moutaouakkil stole the ball.
With 10:08 left, El Moutaouakkil made a layup to end the Cajuns’ scoring streak. That was Louisiana’s first basket since the 31st minute, when Garnett made one.
Houston’s lead grew as the game went on. At 3:13 in the second half, they went on a 22-10 run. Aside from Mylik Wilson’s steal and dunk, Terrence Arceneaux scored 12 points during the run.
Christian Landry came in late and made the three-pointer with less than a minute left. Houston then dribbled out the time for the rest of the game after a miss. The Cajuns lost to the Cougars 91–45, bringing their record to 1-2.
BIG NUMBER: 23
Louisiana had a hard time all game because of Houston’s defense. The Cougars lost the ball 10 times, while the Cajuns lost it 23 times. Houston had 17 steals, which was more than the Vermilion and White had made field goals (19).
PLAYER OF THE GAME: Milos Uzan
Uzan did a lot of different things on Wednesday night as the Houston Cougars beat the Louisiana Cajuns 91-45. He scored 13 points on 5-9 shooting, grabbed four rebounds, and gave out five assists.