MOBILE, Ala. - The University of South Alabama women's basketball team will close out its three-game home stand on Saturday when the Jaguar women host Louisiana-Lafayette. Tip-off versus the Ragin' Cajuns is set for 5:05 p.m. at the Mitchell Center.
Live stats and the web cast for the contest versus ULL can be accessed at www.usajaguars.com. Fans can view the web cast by purchasing a subscription to Jaguar Nation for $7.95 per month or an annual subscription for $69.95.
South Alabama comes into this weekend's match up with a 13-12 overall mark and sit in fourth-place in the East Division with an 8-6 record in the Sun Belt.After beginning conference play with a perfect 7-0 mark, USA has struggled recently, dropping six of its last seven games. In those seven games, USA has been outscored 71.1 to 56.7 by its opponents and are allowing opponents to shoot 45.5 percent (43 percent from three-point range), while hitting just 33.3 percent of its attempts and 24 percent from beyond the arc.
On Wednesday, the Jags dropped their third-straight game, falling 62-50 to Florida International in Mobile. USA held a four-point lead at the half, but allowed the Golden Panthers to shoot 50 percent in the second half and was outscored 33-17. FIU did most of its damage in the post as Elisa Carey recorded 18 of her career-high 26 points during the final 20 minutes of play and during a nine minute stretch, scored 14 consecutive points.Shakira Nettles' third 20-point outing of the season wasn't enough to help the Jags overcome the post game of Carey.
Nettles - who had recorded just 22 points over her last four games - had 20 points on 7-of-14 shooting. Nettles ranks second on the club in scoring with 10.7 points per game and is shooting 31.8 percent from beyond the arc. She also sits just five points shy of moving into 14th-place on the Jags' career scoring list.Junior forward Christian Shelter leads USA offensively with 11.0 ppg. The Mobile native is also pulling down 4.1 boards per game.
The Ragin' Cajuns enter action this weekend with an 8-17 mark and a 3-10 SBC record. Of ULL's last five losses, four have been by 11 points or less, including a seven-point decision to West Division leader UALR last Saturday.
"Frankly, most of the teams in the Sun Belt have a comparable level of talent and Louisiana-Lafayette's level of talent is clearly high enough," South Alabama head coach Rick Pietri said of Saturday's opponent. "They have a player in Mercedes Johnson who is coming off a big performance against FAU and Alexis Green who was an all-conference player last year. Louisiana-Lafayette has very capable players and has competed well in our league. Right now, the most important thing for us is to bring some competitiveness and passion to what we are doing. We'll just let the results take care of themselves."
Johnson led all scorers with a career-high 39 points on 16-of-35 shooting. It was her sixth double-figure scoring game in her last seven. Johnson nearly helped lead the ULL come-back as the sophomore forward recorded 25 of her 39 points in the second half.Green also finished in double-digits for the Cajuns, chipping in with 10 points.
Three-point shooting was the difference in ULL's 84-75 loss to Florida Atlantic on Wednesday. The Owls connected on nine of their 19 attempts from beyond the arc, while the Ragin' Cajuns were just 3-of-18 for 16.7 percent.
Johnson leads the club offensively this season, averaging 14.6 points per outing. She also paces the team on the glass, pulling down 6.1 boards per game.
Green - a third team all-SBC selection in 2008-09 - ranks second in scoring for the Ragin' Cajuns with 12.9 ppg. Green has also taken twice as many three-pointers as any other player on the ULL roster. Jasmine Barnes sits just outside of double figures at 9.2 points per game.
As a team, Louisiana-Lafayette is shooting 37.9 percent from the field and 24.6 percent from the arc, while allowing its opponents to shoot 44.2 percent and 31.7 percent from the three-point line.
For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).
NOTES: South Alabama holds a huge advantage in the all-time series, leading the Ragin' Cajuns 26-11. Under Pietri, the Jags have been just as dominant, holding a 13-3 mark and have won seven of the eight meetings in Mobile. Pietri and Louisiana-Lafayette head coach Errol Rogers have met three previous times throughout their head coaching careers with Pietri holding a 3-0 advantage in those meetings. When the Jaguar women and the Ragin' Cajuns square off on Saturday, USA assistant coach Eric Wise will not only be facing a school from his home state, but his alma mater as well. Wise is a 1992 graduate of Louisiana-Lafayette.
-- USA --
