Game 16 - at Louisiana-Lafayette Game Notes (.pdf)

MOBILE, Ala. – Coming off a pair of victories over Sun Belt West Division co-leaders Denver and North Texas, the University of South Alabama women’s basketball team will face its third-straight member from the division Wednesday night when the Lady Jags travel to take on Louisiana-Lafayette.

Tip-off between the Lady Jags and the Ragin’ Cajuns is set for 7 p.m. at Earl K. Long Gym.  Live stats and web streaming for the contest can be accessed at www.usajaguars.com.  

South Alabama (9-6, 2-1 SBC) comes into their second Sun Belt road game looking to build on the momentum of two big league wins last week, after picking up wins over co-West Division leaders North Texas and Denver.  On Saturday, USA rallied from a 10-point halftime deficit to defeat the Pioneers 57-51 in the Sun Belt Network’s game of the week.

The road has not been kind to the Lady Jags this season as USA is just 2-6 away from the Mitchell Center and 1-6 in true road games.

“For us the biggest chore at t his point is to find a way to win a road game regardless of the opponent,” South Alabama head coach Rick Pietri said.  “At this point, we have only won one true road game all year and obviously in conference play, you’ve got to find a way to win some road games.  We weren’t able to do that at a high rate during the non-conference portion of our schedule, so we’ve got to figure out a way to win a road game at Louisiana-Lafayette.  No road conference game is easy to win and this one won’t be easy either.”

Against DU, USA placed three players in double figures, led by Camille Reynolds’ 13 off the bench.  With the game tied at 48-48 and less than two minutes to play, Reynolds knocked down two-straight jumpers to give USA the lead for good.  Reynolds currently ranks second on the club with 10.7 points per game.  She is also fourth in the league in three-point shooting, having hit 38.1 percent of her attempts from outside the arc.

Mansa El - who has scored double digits in nine of her last 12 outings - leads the team and is tied for 16th in the SBC in scoring with 10.9 ppg.  

Over the last three games Sun Belt games though, two other players for the Jaguars have really stepped up.  Junior guard Mary Nixon - who is averaging 7.0 ppg this season has been the main offensive weapon in league action as she has averaged 12.3 points per game during that stretch.  Senior forward Taylor Ammons ranks fourth in the conference in rebounding with 8.2 boards per game, but in Sun Belt play, the Vicksburg, Miss., native is pulling down 11.3 per contest.

South Alabama, as it has done for much of the season, has continued to ride its defense.  USA currently ranks first in the Sun Belt in scoring defense, allowing just 56.4 points per outing to the opposition.  The Lady Jags also top the league in field-goal percentage defense (.365) and are limiting opponents to just 28.4 percent shooting behind the three-point line.  USA is second the conference in turnover margin (+3.93) and three-pointers per game (6.3).

Louisiana-Lafayette enters the midweek match up with a 5-10 overall record and a 0-3 mark in the Sun Belt.  On Saturday, East Division leader Middle Tennessee placed five players in double figures and shot 51.3 percent from the floor, as the Ragin’ Cajuns fell 104-53 to the Blue Raiders in Murfreesboro.   

Like the Lady Jags, ULL has been hit by injury as first-team all-Sun Belt selection Mercedes Johnson (illness) 6-4 senior center Kemi Rotibi (knee) both will miss the rest of the 2011-12 campaign. Johnson (9.3 ppg) and Rotibi (8.9 ppg) were the second and third leading scorers for the Ragin’ Cajuns, respectively.  The duo also led the team with a combined 13.3 rebounds per outing - Rotibi (7.2) and Johnson (6.1).  Rotibi, who was having a career-year, was shooting 51.7 percent from the field - which still ranks fourth-best in the SBC.

Despite the two key injuries, Louisiana-Lafayette does still have leading scorer Krystal Motley.  Motley comes into the contest ranked 13th in the league in scoring with 12.7 points per game.  The senior guard has been even better in conference play as through ULL’s first three games, she is averaging 15.0 ppg and shooting 40.4 percent from the field.   

Four other players have tried to fill in the offensive void left by the loss of Johnson and Rotibi.  Michelle Brunker, Olivia Nino, Robbie Brown and Josie West have all raised their averages since the start of Sun Belt action.  Brown is tied for 11th in the league in steals, recording 1.8 per game.  

As a team, ULL is averaging 53.6 ppg, while allowing its opposition 67.3 ppg.  Opponents are also shooting 40.5 percent from the floor against the Ragin’ Cajun defense.  

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: The meeting between South Alabama and Louisiana-Lafayette will be the 42ndin the all-time series.  South Alabama holds a huge advantage in the all-time series, leading the Ragin’ Cajuns 31-10.  Under head coach Rick Pietri, the Lady Jags have been just as dominant, holding a 17-3 mark and have won seven-straight in the series. Last season, USA picked up a pair of victories, including a 58-53 win in the first round of the Sun Belt tournament. The meeting between Pietri and Louisiana-Lafayette head coach Errol Rogers will be the eighth between the two coaches.  Pietri holds a 7-0 advantage in those meetings and all seven have come at both coach’s present schools.
 

-- USA --