GAMEDAY CENTRAL
Louisiana’s Ragin’ Cajuns (12-14, 9-5 SBC)
vs. Denver Pioneers (13-14, 9-5 SBC)
When: Thursday., Feb. 24, 2011
Time: 7:15 p.m. CT
Where: Lafayette, La.  (Cajundome, 11,550)
TV: none
Radio: KPEL ESPN 1420 AM/KHXT 107.9 FM 
Live Stats/Video: www.RaginCajuns.com

Gameday Storylines

• The red hot Cajuns look to extend their current win streak to 10 games as they play the last home game of the 2010-11 season against Denver on Thursday. The current streak of nine-straight wins is the longest since the 1999-2000 season when the Cajuns rattled off 10 straight victories.
• The nine-game win streak is currently tied for the second longest active streak in the nation, shared by Morehead State. George Mason’s 13-game streak tops the nation.
• Louisiana will honor three of it seniors on Thursday as Travis Bureau, Randell Daigle and La’Ryan Gary wrap up their careers at UL.
• Heading into Thursday, Randell Daigle ranks tied for 12th in the Sun Belt Conference’s record books with 222 three-pointers made in his career.
• The Cajuns led the series with Pioneers 17-7, but Denver has won the last two meetings. In the last five meetings at the Cajundome, UL has a perfect 5-0 record against DU, winning by an average of 7.0 ppg.
• During the nine-game stretch, UL is outscoring opponents 76.6 to 68.7 (?7.9) and out rebounding opponents by ?6.6 rpg (38.4-31.9).
• Since 2001-02, the Cajuns are 24-2 on the court when attendance is over 5,000 at the Cajundome (10 wins were later vacated due to NCAA sanctions). Saturday’s attendance of 7,071 was the 5th largest crowd at the Cajundome since 01-02.

Notes and Trends

Scouting the Pioneers

• Denver is currently tied with UL and Arkansas State in the Western Division with a 9-5 record in the league and a 13-14 overall record. Most recently, the Pioneers suffered their first SBC home loss as South Alabama rallied to steal a 48-47 win over DU.
• DU has lost four of its last six and its last four road games.
• Chase Hallam leds the Pioneers with 13.0 ppg and is scoring 13.3 in SBC contests. Brian Stafford is scoring 12.7 ppg and 13.0 in league games.
• As a team, DU is shooting 46.4 percent from the floor and .414 from three point range. The Pioneers average 8.1 three-pointers per game.
• Denver has struggled on teh glass, being outrebounded by an average of 5.7 rpg. For the season, DU averages 23.8 boards.

PLAYING TO THE CROWD

• Since 2001-02, the Cajuns are 24-2 on the court when attendance is over 5,000 at the Cajundome (10 wins were later vacated due to NCAA sanctions).
• Last Saturday’s crowd of 7,071 at the Cajundome was the fifth largest home crowd since 2001-02.

THE STREAK’S STATS

• The current nine-game winning streak is longest string of wins since 2002-03 and is tied for the eighth longest streak in school history.
• UL is averaging 76.6 ppg while holding opponents to 68.7 ppg – a ?7.9 scoring margin.
• The Cajuns are shooting .466 from the floor (237-509) in the last nine games and limiting the opposition to .420 (211-502). From three-point range, the Cajuns are hitting 37.4 percent (46-123) while opponents are shooting 30.4 percent (42-138).
• From the charity stripe, UL is knocking down .732 of their attempts (169-231), averaging 25.67 attempts per game
• On the glass, the Cajuns are out-rebounding teams 38.4 to 31.9 (?6.6 margin).
• Three players are averaging double-figure points over the streak. J.J. Thomas leads with 16.8 ppg and 7.6 rpg, Travis Bureau is chipping in 12.2 ppg and 9.1 rpg and La’Ryan Gary is averaging 13.8 ppg.
• Only twice have the opponents scored more than 70 points. La.-Monroe recorded 75 points and North Texas scored 88 points.
• The streak is currently tied for second in the nation.

ACTIVE WIN STREAKS as of 2/17/11

Longest Win Streaks In UL History

NO PLACE LIKE THE ‘DOME

• The Cajuns are currently 9-4 at home this season and 6-1 against SBC opponents.
• In the nine wins, UL has combined to shoot .476 from the floor (249-523) and have outscored opponents, 80.1 to 70.9 (?9.2).
• In all 13 games, UL is currently averaging 78.2 ppg compared to a 73.8 ppg average for the opponent.
• The Cajuns currently hold a 14-1 record against Sun Belt opponents on their home court, dating back to last season.
• Last season the Ragin’ Cajuns posted a 10-4 record in the Cajundome – the 15th consecutive season with a .500 mark or better.
• UL finished undefeated at the Cajundome in SBC play with a 9-0 mark last season. Only once before has UL posted a perfect record at the ‘Dome in the SBC (7-0 in 2001-02).
• In 23 of the previous 25 seasons, the Cajuns have recorded a winning record at home.

IT’S 5:00 SOMEWHERE

• When leading with 5:00 to go in the game, the Cajuns are 11-0.
• When trailing with 5:00 to go, UL is 1-12. The sole victory was the 76-70 overtime win at South Alabama.
• In the 12 wins, UL is outscoring opponents 12.5 to 11.3 in the final 300 seconds
• The Cajuns have been adept at getting to the free throw line in the final five minutes, going 79-of-103 (.767) compared to the opponents 40-for-50 (.800).

THE SUN BELT FEARS THE BEARD

• After scoring 20 points in back-to-back games, J.J. Thomas was named the Sun Belt Conference Player of the Week (2/21).
• In the win over Arkansas State, Thomas led UL with 20 points on 46.7 percent shooting (7-15). He also knocked down a pair of crucial free throws with :06 left to seal the win.
• Against WKU, the true freshman put up 25 points, scoring 13 of the Cajuns’ first 19 points.
• Shot 50.0 percent from the floor for the week (17-34) and 76.9 from the free throw line (10-13)
• It is the first weekly honor from the league for Thomas and the first for the Cajuns this season.
• He was named the Louisiana Sports Writers Assoc. Player of the Week earlier this season (1/24).

FEAR THE BEARD

• J.J. Thomas is quickly becoming one of the top freshman in the Sun Belt this year.
• He has scored double figures in 10 of the last 13 games and is averaging 13.1 ppg in league contests.
• Thomas scored a game-high 20 points on 7-of-15 shooting in the win over Arkansas State and followed up with 25 more in the win over WKU.
• In the road win at South Alabama, Thomas set a career-high 28 points, knocking down 11 field goals while grabbing 13 rebounds. It was his fifth double-double this season and his fourth in the month of January.
• Earlier in January, he had back-to-back-to-back double-doubles against Centenary, Arkansas State and UALR. It was the first time a player had three-straight double-double since 2005-06 when Dwayne Mitchell accomplished the feat.
• At UALR, the freshman scored 11 points while dominating the glass with 16 rebounds. At the time, it was the most rebounds by a UL player since Valentino Hart had 17 against Tennessee in the 2006-07.
• Against Arkansas State he scored a game-high 16 points with a team-best 10 rebounds.
• In his first double-double against Texas College, the freshman guard scored 15 points and 11 rebounds in 30 minutes of action. All of his 15 points came in the second half where he was 5-for-8 from the floor.

FEELING FINE

• After sitting out all last season due to a gruesome injury suffered in the final game of the 2008- 09 season, La’Ryan Gary has begun to make a significant impact, scoring in double-figures in seven of the last nine games.
• During the Cajuns’ nine-game win streak, Gary is averaging 12.6 ppg and shooting .549 from the floor.
• Since facing ULM, he is 25-of-28 from the free throw line (.893).
• Overall this season he is averaging 9.3 ppg compared to his 6.9 2008-09 average.
• In the win over ULM, Gary scored 18 points including a perfect 6-for-6 showing at the free throw line.
• Versus the Blue Raiders, he posted a team-high 20 points on 6-of-9 shooting. The point total set a new season-high and tied his career best.

B.B.B. – BETTER BASKETBALL BUREAU

• Travis Bureau has scored and pulled down double-figures in the four of the last seven games.
• He is averaging 12.1 ppg and 9.1 boards during the nine-game winning streak.
• Against Arkansas State, Bureau posted 12 rebounds, grabbing 10 in the first half.
• At FIU, Bureau scored a game-high 18 pts.
• He scored a season-high 23 points including the game winning free throw with less than a second remaining against UALR. Also had 11 boards to rack up his fourth double-double.
• Against South Alabama, Bureau grabbed a career-high 20 boards. It was the first time a Cajun player has recorded 20 rebounds since Dwayne Mitchell in 2005-06.
• In the win over North Texas, he notched his third double-double with 15 pts and 10 rebs.
• In his 1st start since Dec. 12, Bureau scored a game-high 22 points in 93-91 win over Troy.
• As the Cajuns’ leading scorer against Troy, the senior forward connected on 8-of-11 from the floor, including 2-for-4 from 3-pt range. He also led the squad with seven rebounds in a team-high 34 minutes.
• Bureau tallied his 2nd career double-double at McNeese after scoring 17 pts and 10 rebs.
• Bureau posted his first career double-double in the win over Louisiana College (11/15). He also set a new career-best for rebounds in the 16-point, 14-board performance.

ANDREWS’ ASSISTS

• Raymone Andrews is known for his tenacious defense and pressure but over the Cajuns’ win streak he has stepped up on the offensive side of the ball.
• Over the past five games, Andrews has dished 15 assists while turning the ball over just nine times. He’s also picked up 11 steals since scoring a season-high 11 points against North Texas.
• At FIU, Andrews scored all eight of his points in the second half.
• He has also been deadly from the free throw line, going 28-of-32 (.875) during the streak, averaging 7.3 ppg.

ON THE ROAD AGAIN

• For the first time since 2005-06, the Cajuns claimed thier third straight road win with a 72-64 victory at FAU.
• The 72-68 win at FIU marked the first time the Cajuns have won back-to-back road wins since the 2007-08 season.
• The overtime win at South Alabama was the first road win in 365 days and covered 15 games away from the Cajundome. The last road win came exactly one year before at Louisiana-Monroe.

WELCOME TO THE 1,000 POINT CLUB

• At 6:04 in the first half against North Texas, Randell Daigle made history scoring his 1,001th career point.
• He is the 39th player in school history to reach the plateau and just the fourth since 2000.
• He currently sits at 1,050 points in 105 games and ranks 35th all-time. He’s five points shy of moving into 34th place and 10 points from 33rd.

BROWN IS BACK

• Josh Brown has been productive since missing four games from Jan. 8 – Jan. 19.
• Against the Hilltoppers, the junior transfer went 5-for-9 to finish with 11 points.
• In the win at FIU, Brown was 5-of-7 from the floor for 13 points.
• In the upset of North Texas, Brown scored 11 points, had four boards, two assists, a block and a steal.
• He had 12 points off the bench in the win over ULM.
• He has missed a total of eight games this season due to injury but in 12 games played he has reached double-figures nine times .
• After missing four games early in the season, Brown scored 20 points off the bench in the comeback win against Lamar. He was 8-of-14 from the floor, scoring 11 in the second half.

GLASS CLEANERS

• In nine games this season, UL has racked up at least 40 rebounds. In those games, the Cajuns are 4-9.
• Against UALR and South Alabama, UL grabbed at least 40 boards, tying a season-high of 49 at South Alabama.
• At New Mexico State, the Cajuns dominated the glass out-rebounding the Aggies, 48-23. On the offensive glass, UL pulled down 23 boards – the same number as the Aggies’ entire rebounding effort.
• Versus Texas College, UL recorded a season-high 49 rebounds compared to the Steers’ 29, including a 23-3 edge on the offensive glass.
• At Creighton, UL pulled down 45 boards compared to the Jays’ 46.
• Against Louisiana College, UL grabbed 46 boards, out-rebounding Wildcats by 15.

FREE FOR ALL

• For the fourth straight game, the Cajuns were hot from the charity stripe last Thursday.
• Starting with the FIU game through the Arkansas State game, in the last three minutes of the last three games, UL was a perfect 18-of-18. Against FIU and Arkansas State, the Cajuns were 26-of-26 in the second half alone.
• In the second half against Arkansas State, UL went 16-of-16 from the free throw line.
• At Florida Atlantic, the Cajuns were a perfect 16-of-16, extending a streak of 28 made free throws that dated back to the FIU game.
• UL hit 10-of-10 in the final two minutes at FIU to seal the win.
• UL made the second-most free throws of the season in the win over UALR. The Cajuns were 30-of-38 from the line (.789). The most crucial of the chip shots came with :00.6 remaining as Travis Bureau hit two to lift UL to a one-point win.
• In the overtime loss to Middle Tennessee, the Cajuns hit a season-high 32 free throws.

SILENT M

• Freshman Bryant Mbamalu has slowly worked himself into the starting rotation and is making the most of his increase in minutes.
• In 17 starts, he has reached double figures in five games
• Against Centenary, the freshman guard scored a career-high 20 points, including 16 in the second half, after going 10-of-14 from the floor.
• At Arkansas State, Mbamalu put up 11 points while grabbing 6 rebounds.
• Against Troy, the freshman guard had 11 points on a 4-of-6 effort.
• At New Mexico State, he led UL with a game-high 16 points on 7-of-11 shooting.
• Against Lamar, Mbamalu led the squad with 11 rebounds, his first double-digit effort.

Athletic Network Footnote: