After a tough loss on Saturday night to Louisiana Tech, the Louisiana Ragin Cajuns (8-4) got back on the winning side of the column on Tuesday night when they took down McNeese State (3-8) 80-67.
How It Happened:
After an early back-and-forth, the Cajuns got out in front thanks to a 8-0 run highlighted by back-to-back three-pointers from Malik Marquetti to make it 13-8 with 13:34 left in the first half. Marquetti kept the Cajuns out in front for much of the first half with some solid shooting from beyond the arc and that helped them to hold a nine-point lead at the break.
The Cowboys got within three points with about 11 minutes left in the ballgame, but the Cajuns started to attack and kept them at bay. Marquetti continued to help with the offensive output and a three-pointer with 6:29 left was the proverbial dagger that led to a 13-point victory for the Louisiana Ragin Cajuns.
Big Number: 29
Malik Marquetti was the big story coming out of Tuesday night with JaKeenan Gant still recovering from an injury he suffered vs Louisiana Tech and he put the team on his back with 29 points, including a solid 7-of-11 from three-point range. That kind of performance was huge en route to the win on the road against McNeese.
Player of the Game: Marcus Stroman
While it would make sense to give the player of the game honors to Marquetti, but Stroman had a solid night as well. The senior stuffed the stat sheet with 20 points, seven boards, eight assists, one block, and three steals. Stroman, much like Marquetti’s performance was much needed with Gant not playing in Tuesday’s matchup.
Next Up: at Southeastern December 29th, Tipoff at 4 pm
-Clint Domingue