MONROE, La. ? Senior Lance Brasher had his third-straight double-double against Louisiana-Lafayette but a heavily guarded three by Chris Gradnigo ended the ULM men's basketball home court win streak, 68-67 on Sunday afternoon.
“They made some tough shots when they needed to make them,” ULM head coach Orlando Early said. “It's a tough pill to swallow for our guys. We made plays down the stretch to put us in position to win the game, but they made the play at the end.”
After freshman Raphelle Turner converted on a three-point play to put the Warhawks ahead 67-65, Gradingo hit a shot in the corner with 11 seconds remaining to snap ULM's 16-game home court win streak. Gradingo went 4-for-4 from behind the arc in the second half to finish with a team-high 15 points off the bench.
ULM (4-6, 0-1 Sun Belt) raced out to a 30-21 first half lead behind seven points from senior Jordan Payne. The Warhawks defense limited the Ragin' Cajuns to just under 30 percent shooting to hold the halftime lead.
ULL (2-6, 1-0 Sun Belt) came roaring back in the second half, connecting on 56 percent of its shots including five of their seven shots from the field in the final four minutes.
The Ragin' Cajuns tied the game for the first time since the opening tip at 60-60 with 3:04 remaining in the game after Travis Bureau sank a deep three from the wing. Senior Jonas Brown sliced through the defenders for a diving lay-up to retake the lead with just over two minutes left in the game.
With 42.5 seconds remaining Gradingo gave Louisiana-Lafayette its first lead at 65-64. ULM once again answered, scoring the put-back and free throw from Turner to set up the game's final flurry of action.
Junior Tony Hooper's jumper with four seconds left rebounded long and Brasher's tip-in attempt from 13 feet hit off the front of the iron as time expired sealed the game.
Payne finished with a game-high 16 points, including a 5-for-5 performance from the line to extend his made free-throws streak to 22 in the effort. Brown finished as the lone other Warhawk in double-digits, scoring 10 points.
For the Ragin' Cajuns four players finished with double-digit points including reserves Gradnigo (15), Bureau (11), and Randell Daigle (12). La'Ryan Gary finished as the long ULL starter in double figure points, scoring 12 before fouling out with 4:41 remaining.
ULM will look to snap its two-game skid on Wednesday, Dec. 19 when they take on Louisiana College at 7 p.m.
“We just have to get in and keep our head up,” Early said. “One game does not make or break a season. We have 17 more to go in this league. The team who wins our side will probably have six losses. We just have to keep improving every time out.”
