The Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns Women’s Basketball team was defeated by the James Madison Dukes 77-72 in overtime on Saturday afternoon inside the Atlantic Union Bank Center in Harrisonburg, Virginia. The loss means the Cajuns split the Virginia swing before going back on the road next week to face Troy and Arkansas State.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
Both teams began with hot shooting, as the score was already 12-12 at the first media timeout. Louisiana made five of their first seven shots, and the Dukes made five of their first eight.
The offense would continue, with the teams trading the lead often throughout the rest of the quarter. Destiny Rice made two free throws to give Louisiana a 20-17 lead near the end of the quarter, and the score would stay that way after one period of play.
The second quarter began with more offense, as the teams traded buckets and the lead once again. However, the Duked hit a cold stretch in the middle of the quarter, missing six consecutive field goals and allowing the Cajuns to put together a run that resulted in a 29-22 Louisiana lead.
However, the Dukes would put together an 11-4 run over the final few minutes of the half, tying our score at 33 at the break. Tamera Johnson led Louisiana in first half scoring with eight points, while Jalyn James continued her hot shooting and added seven points.
The Dukes came out with a focused effort early in the second half. It led to a 9-2 run before coach Garry Brodhead called timeout to stop the run. After trading baskets for a while, Louisiana got a lift from Brandi Williams, and closed the deficit. By the end of three, the lead was just 49-46 for JMU.
The fourth quarter was highly competitive, with defensive efforts ramping up on both ends. Johnson and Kozlova both picked up their fourth fouls, changing the way each team was able to play. Teams traded buckets, but Louisiana retook the lead with 4:43 left at 58-57. Johnson fouled out, but the Cajuns held the lead until JMU tied it at 61 with under a minute left. Rice had a look to win the game at the end of regulation, but it rolled out and we moved to overtime.
Overtime did not go the Cajuns’ way, as JMU jumped out to their largest lead of the game at 12 when it was 76-64. However, Louisiana did not quit, making several three-point shots and creating turnovers. They got it down to five at 77-72, and had another three-point look to potentially cut it to two with inside of five seconds left. It did not fall, and JMU held on for the 77-72 overtime win.
BIG NUMBER: 3
Despite JMU being the 3rd ranked rebounding team in the country coming in, they only out-rebounded Louisiana by three, 34-31. That kept the Cajuns in the game and gave them a chance to win it in the end.
PLAYER OF THE GAME: Kseniia Kozlova
Kozlova’s offense was what kept JMU around in the first half. She ended up with 20 points to go along with nine rebounds as the Dukes were able to stay unbeaten in Sun Belt Conference play.
UP NEXT: The Cajuns will continue their road trip, as Wednesday, January 10th they will be at Troy to face the Trojans.