The Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns women’s basketball team were defeated by the James Madison Dukes 68-63 inside the Cajundome on Thursday night. The loss is the first in Sun Belt play for Louisiana.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
The Cajuns welcomed back several players from injury in this one, including Kamryn Jones and Nubia Benedith. It was also the Cajuns’ debut of Skylab Travis.
Louisiana welcomed those players back by beginning on an 8-0 run. Their lead would grow to as big as 13, and remain at 10 with a 20-10 mark after the first quarter.
The Sun Belt’s Preseason favorites, the Dukes would battle their way back into the game. Kseniia Kozlova proved difficult to defend on the inside, allowing JMU to close the gap. By the half, the lead was down to two at 35-33.
The third quarter was similar to the second, as JMU just slowly took an advantage. They got their first lead of the game and extended it, taking a 55-50 lead into the final period.
Down the stretch, Kozlova and the Dukes proved too much. The Cajuns were able to get stops, but unable to convert them into scores. A three from Erica Lafayette made it a five point game late, but that was as close as the Cajuns would get. They fell 68-63
BIG NUMBER: 9
Despite shooting just 31% as a team this year, the Dukes made nine threes in this one. They shot 47% out there, and that was the difference.
PLAYER OF THE GAME: Kseniia Kozlova
Kozlova had 24 points and eight rebounds. Her inside game was too much for the Cajuns to deal with in this one.
UP NEXT: The Cajuns will remain home to host Georgia State on Saturday, January 4th at 1:00 PM.
