Troy University Athletics
Louisiana-Lafayette Turns Back Troy, 69-62
1/20/2007 12:00:00 AM | Basketball (M)
LAFAYETTE, La. - Louisiana-Lafayette broke a 48-48 tie with eight minutes left by outscoring Troy 21-14 over the remaining time to defeat the Trojans 69-62 Saturday night at the Cajundome. Richard Chaney led the Trojans with 19 points, while Cedric Jackson added 16.
Boo Ramsey also hit double figures for Troy (8-12, 3-6)..Ross Mouton led the Ragin' Cajuns (4-15, 2-7) with 21 points, including 19 in the second half. Elijah Milsap had nine of his 13 points in the opening period.
Troy led by six, 40-34, after Chaney hit a free throw with 14:22 remaining, but Mouton took charge from there. He scored 17 straight points for the Ragin' Cajuns, including makes on five straight three-pointers. The last of those put ULL back in the lead as it broke a 48-48 tie. The run continued until the Cajuns built a seven-point lead, 60-53 with 3:44 left, before Ramsey hit a three.
Jackson scored again as Troy closed to within two, 60-58, with 2:17 to play. He tallied 14 of his points in the second half, including 11 in a seven-minute span, to keep the Trojans close
But after that, Mouton hit a pair of free throws to start a 8-0 run that preserved the victory. The Cajuns hit seven straight free throws in the final 1:22.
Neither team was overly impressive in the opening period. Troy held a 30-29 lead at the break despite shooting just 37.5 percent from the field. The Trojans fell behind by nine twice in the period, the last at 20-11 with 9:40 left in the period.
After missing 13 of their first 18 shots, the Trojans started to rally. Bassett hit a jumper to start a 10-2 run, capped by Ramsey's three that cut the margin to one, 22-21 at the four-minute mark. Troy trailed 26-23 with 2:54 to play when it scored seven straight points to build a four-point lead, 30-26. The run, which totaled 19-6 between the teams' biggest leads, ended when Matt Hebert hit a three-pointer with two seconds.
Louisiana-Lafayette stayed close at the free throw line, hitting eight of nine attempts. But Troy forced eight turnovers, while committing only three on its part.
It was a game of spurts and the last 10 minutes Mouton came through,” Head Coach Don Maestri said. We tried to just catch back up every time and just couldn't in the end. (ULL) did a good job when they have been struggling.”
Troy returns home to face Denver Thursday at 7:30 in the back end of a doubleheader.
