MOBILE, Ala. — The South Alabama Louisiana-Lafayette men’s basketball game Thursday night gives the Jaguars a chance at a fourth consecutive victory, with tip-off set for 7:05 p.m. at the Mitchell Center.
South Alabama has matched its season-best three-game winning streak and has won six of its last seven games. The Jaguars are 14-9 overall and 11-4 in the Sun Belt Conference, good for second place in the league standings. The 11 conference wins are the most for the program since the 2007-08 season.
Close Wins Under Interim Coach Price
Interim head coach Jeff Price has guided the Jaguars through a stretch in which one player was dismissed from the program and another was sidelined by a broken collarbone. South Alabama’s last four victories have all been decided by four points or fewer.
The Jaguars rank second in the Sun Belt in both field goal percentage defense and 3-point percentage defense in conference games.
Ragin’ Cajuns Lead League in Scoring
Louisiana-Lafayette enters at 9-15 overall and 5-9 in Sun Belt play. The Ragin’ Cajuns lead the conference in scoring at 71.3 points per game and in 3-pointers made at 7.1 per game. They have averaged 97.5 points over their last two games.
Three Louisiana-Lafayette players rank among the Sun Belt’s top seven scorers. Shawn Long is third in the league at 15.8 points per game and leads the conference with 15 double-doubles. Elfrid Payton is sixth at 15.2 points per game, and Bryant Mbamalu is seventh at 14.8.
First Meeting Went to Double Overtime
South Alabama won the first meeting between the teams on Jan. 10 in Lafayette, La., in double overtime. Payton scored 26 points for the Ragin’ Cajuns in that game.
For the Jaguars, Augustine Rubit also scored 26 points, Dre Conner and Antoine Allen each added 19, and Mychal Ammons recorded a double-double off the bench.
