LAFAYETTE, La. - Elizabeth Torres scored a
career-high 18 points, but it was Louisiana-Lafayette who held off the ULM
women's basketball team in an overtime thriller on Saturday afternoon to claim
a 69-67 Sun Belt Conference victory inside Earl K. Long Gymnasium.
Torres was the go-to player for ULM down the stretch,
as she scored all 18 points from the first half on, including four in overtime.
At the end of regulation, she caught an inbounds pass and drove straight to
bucket for a layup to send the contest into overtime.
Louisiana-Lafayette (9-19, 4-12) was able to
capture the extra session victory by knocking down 8-of-16 free throws. ULM
(9-18, 3-14) knocked down 4-of-5 foul shots in overtime, but finished just
2-of-9 from the field. The Warhawks had one last attempt to steal a win, but
was unable to get a shot attempt off.
Torres finished 6-of-16 from the floor,
including 6-of-7 at the charity stripe. She also grabbed six rebounds and stole
a pair of passes for the Warhawks. Sannisha Williams concluded the game with
the fourth double-double, 10 points and 17 rebounds, of the season and seventh
of her career. She was one rebound shy of tying her rebounding career high.
Priscilla Mbiandja also had a stellar effort for
ULM with 19 points, eight rebounds, four assists, and two steals. She was also
7-for-8 at the charity stripe.
Alexis Green led Louisiana-Lafayette with 18
points, including three 3-pointers, and seven rebounds. Mercedes Johnson and
Jasmine Barnes each scored 17 points for the Ragin' Cajuns, while Johnson
recorded 10 rebounds.
The Ragin' Cajuns used a 9-4 scoring run to own
an 11-6 advantage with just over 15 minutes remaining in the opening half. Barnes
had a hand in all four field goals for Louisiana-Lafayette, as she scored twice
and assisted on a Green triple and Johnson layup.
ULM cut its deficit to within a point on
several occasions, but a Lyndra Bell 3-pointer to end the half gave
Louisiana-Lafayette a 35-31 lead at the break. In the first 20 minutes, the
Warhawks held a 12-rebound advantage (26-14), but they committed 15 turnovers
compared to the Ragin' Cajuns four errors.
Green led all scorers at the intermission
with 15 points, including three triples, while Jesse Carrier and Williams each
scored eight points for ULM.
Louisiana-Lafayette took control of the
contest with a 12-0 scoring run over a 4:20 stretch to begin the second period.
During the run ULM missed 10 field goals and turned the ball over three times,
as Louisiana-Lafayette went ahead 52-37.
Torres went on a scoring run of her own over
the final eight minutes of the contest, scoring 12 points to help ULM push the
game into overtime. Trailing 56-41, the Warhawks held the Ragin' Cajuns to
three field goals during the run.
Following a timeout with 16.3 seconds
remaining, Torres caught the ball off the inbounds pass and drove straight to
the bucket for the layup. Louisiana-Lafayette made one last attempt to steal
the game with a 27-foot heave from near half-court, but it bounced off the back
of the rim.
Head coach Mona Martin falls to 8-7 all-time
in overtime contests.
ULM returns home for the regular season
finale next Saturday (Feb. 27) against North Texas. The contest will tip-off at
3:30 p.m. and is the second part of a doubleheader with the men's program
inside Fant-Ewing Coliseum.
