LAFAYETTE, La. - UL-Lafayette rallied past ULM 84-75 Saturday inside
the Cajundome.
The Ragin' Cajuns closed the game on a 10-2 run sparked by its defense
to earn the victory. ULM (6-15, 1-6 SBC) made just 7 of 16 shots from the
free-throw line marking the Warhawks' worst shooting performance from the
charity stripe all season.
Senior forward Tommie Sykes netted a team-high 21 points to pace four
Warhawk players in double figures scoring. Freshman guard Marcelis Hansberry
chipped in a career-high 15 points, while senior forward Lawrence Gilbert and
junior guard Fred Brown each had 12 points. Brown was limited to just 29
minutes after fouling out with 11 minutes to play.
J.J. Thomas put the game away on a dunk in transition to cap a 10-2
spurt for the Ragin' Cajuns. Thomas led UL-Lafayette with 22 points and nine
rebounds, while La'Ryan Gary added 18 points.
The Warhawks got to within one at 74-73 on a Steven McClellan 3-pointer
with 2:37 to play, but UL-Lafayette answered with six straight points to take a
seven point advantage.
ULM shot 49.2 percent from the field and made 8-of-13 from 3-point
range. UL-Lafayette finished the game shooting 45.0 percent from the field,
including 10-of-21 from beyond 3-point range.
The Ragin' Cajuns (5-14, 2-5 SBC) broke a 61-all tie with five quick
points to take its largest advantage at that point with 6:32 remaining in the
game. After the two teams swapped a pair of baskets, J.J. Thomas scored on a
layup to give UL-Lafayette a 73-66 lead.
Gilbert hit a 3 then drove in for a layup on consecutive possessions to
give the Warhawks its largest advantage of the second half a 58-54 lead with
9:53 to play.
UL-Lafayette used a 12-5 run to close the first half and grab a 38-37
lead at the break. The Warhawks held a 29-23 lead with just under five minutes
left in the opening half before UL-Lafayette rallied to take its first lead at
33-32 advantage at the 1:36 mark.
Brown and Sykes each had 12 points in the half to lead the Warhawks. Brown
connected on a 3-pointer to give ULM its largest advantage at 18-9 with 13:03
left to play in the first half.
The Warhawks continue a two-game road trip at Arkansas State Thursday
at 7 p.m. inside the Convocation Center.
