Ragin' Cajuns Outlast McNeese In Historic 3OT Game
LAFAYETTE – It took three overtimes, the first triple overtime game in school history, but the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns women's basketball team outlasted the McNeese Cowgirls in the I-10 rivalry game to win 98-86 here at the Cajundome.

The win, which snaps a two-game losing streak for the Cajuns, improves their record to 3-5 while the Cowgirls' record falls to 3-4.

Senior Simone Fields lead the Cajuns in scoring with 25 points and seven rebounds while freshman Skyler Goodwin, playing essentially the entire game, put in a career high 24 points along with six steals to help the Cajuns finish things off in the end.

Seniors Kendra Howard (20 points) and Nekia Jones (17 points) rounded out the Cajuns four players in double-digits as the Cajuns shot 50 percent from the field while holding the Cowgirls to 40 percent shooting.

HOW IT HAPPENED (First Quarter): McNeese came out on fire taking an 8-4 lead early in the quarter, with Dede Sheppard scoring seven points within the first five minutes of the quarter. The score sat at 13-6 with 5:16 to go, but from there the Cajuns turned on the juice.

Powered by six points from Goodwin, on two three-pointers, and a perfect 3 for 3 shooting from Fields, Louisiana went on a tear. They finished the quarter on a 16-2 run to really put some distance in-between them and the Cowgirls as the quarter finished off.

On top of their great shooting in the run, the Cajuns defense was strong forcing five McNeese turnovers to help keep the momentum squarely on the Cajuns half of the court and they ended the first quarter with a seven-point lead and the score sitting at 22-15.

HOW IT HAPPENED (Second Quarter): Louisiana came out in the second quarter and padded their lead to nine with a quick 4-2 run to put the score at 26-17. But an 8-4 run from the Cowgirls midway through the quarter allowed for McNeese to get back into the game and they brought the score within three and the score sat at 30-27 with the clock sitting at 5:19.

McNeese kept chipping away at the Louisiana lead and they got within one point of the Cajuns, with the score at 31-32, at the 2:06 mark of the quarter. But Louisiana's defense was strong and they caused two turnovers over the last two minutes of the quarter to extend their lead to five points at the half.

Louisiana had another five turnovers in the quarter and they shot 46 percent in the quarter to enter the half with the score sitting at 36-31 in the Cajuns favor.

HOW IT HAPPENED (Third Quarter): McNeese cut the lead to four at the seven-minute mark of the quarter with a three-point shot from Keara Hudnall, but the Cajuns answered back with back-to-back baskets from Goodwin and sophomore Malachi-Seraphin Williams.

Things went back and forth through the middle of the quarter and after a scoring drought by both teams down the stretch McNeese tied it with a layup at the 24 second point of the quarter. But Goodwin quickly answered the Cowgirls with a layup under 10 seconds to go to give the Cajuns a 50-48 lead heading into the fourth quarter.

HOW IT HAPPENED (Fourth Quarter): As the quarter rolled along both teams again suffered a scoring drought which started after Howard nailed a three-pointer two minutes into the quarter. The drought came to an end with two free throws from Jones, which she followed up with a layup to put the Cajuns up by 10, 59-49.

But McNeese's Sheppard went on a tear, scoring eight of the final 10 points that McNeese scored down the stretch and with a layup from Sheppard with 47 seconds left in the game the game was tied for the fifth time.

Howard had a chance to finish things off but she missed two free throws, taken under 30 seconds left in the game, and with the score sitting at 62-62 the game went into the first overtime period.

HOW IT HAPPENED (First Overtime): One minute into the period the game was tied for the sixth time, 64-64, and a three-point shot by McNeese put the Cowgirls up by three, at the 3:35 mark.

But Louisiana answered with a 7-0 run to go up by four points, 71-64, with under one minute to go. But Sheppard again showed up for the Cowgirls with a steal and a layup, both under 20 seconds, to tie the game for the seventh time and things went into a second overtime with the score tied at 71-71.

HOW IT HAPPENED (Second Overtime): After McNeese took the lead with a three-point shot two minutes into the period, Louisiana jumped ahead by seven points with a 10-0 run fueled by two baskets from Fields and three rebounds by Louisiana.

With the clock sitting at 36 seconds the Cajuns were up 81-74 but the Cowgirls didn't go away. In their final possession and the Cajuns with a three-point lead, 82-79, Sheppard went up for a three and was fouled. She then went to the free throw line with a chance to tie the game. Sheppard drained all three shots to tie things up for the eighth time in the game, and things went into a third overtime with the score sitting at 82-82.

HOW IT HAPPENED (Third Overtime): Louisiana came out and took the reins of the final overtime period going on a 16-4 run through the period, with most of those points coming from the free throw line. They went 10 for 13 from the line down the stretch to finally pull away from the Cowgirls for good, and they finished off the game with those clutch free throws to come away with the marathon win, 98-86.

NOTEWORTHY: Goodwin's 24 points and six steals are both career highs; Fields' 25 points is a season high for the senior forward; Howard's 20 points and eight rebounds are both career highs.

Louisiana outscored the Cowgirls 50-40 with points in the paint; Louisiana outscored the Cowgirls bench 48-10; The 98 points are the most the Cajuns have scored in a game since scoring 90 points at Centenary on Dec. 12, 2010; It's the ninth highest points total in school history.

UP NEXT FOR THE CAJUNS: For the first time since 2005, the Cajuns will take on the Auburn Tigers on Friday, Dec. 8 with tip scheduled for 7 p.m. It's the third of what will be four SEC teams the Cajuns have played this season.

It's only the second time the Cajuns have ever faced off against the Tigers and it's the first time that Auburn has made the trip to Lafayette to face the Cajuns.

SIX PANTHERS SCORE DOUBLE DIGITS IN BIG WIN
ATLANTA - Scoring more than 100 points for the first time since 2014, Georgia State's women's basketball team took care of business Sunday, beating Allen 101-56 at the GSU Sports Arena.

Shay Fluker was one of six Panthers that scored double digits Sunday, finishing with a team-leading 24 on 10-of-16 shooting. Fluker also led the team in rebounds with six. Kierra Henry recorded her first career double-double with 12 points and 14 assists. She finished just two assists shy of the Georgia State single-game record. K.K. Williams (15), Deja Mitchell (14), Rakeah Williams (12) and Janessa Murphy (11) joined Fluker and Henry in double-digits.

As a team, the Panthers shot 58% from the field and held Allen to 28% shooting. GSU finished with 29 assists as a team and had 14 steals.

Allen started the game on a 9-0 run, but after a GSU timeout, the tide turned in favor of the Panthers. GSU went on a 9-0 run of their own to tie the game and did not surrender the lead. GSU outscored Allen 32-12 in the second period and 28-11 in the final 10 minutes to finish the job.

Georgia State last scored 100 points back in 2014 when the Panthers put up 101 points in a win over Thomas. The 45-point win is the third largest margin of victory under head coach Sharon Baldwin.

Georgia State is at home again next Sunday against North Greenville.

SOUTH ALABAMA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL FALLS SHORT AGAINST JACKSONVILLE
MOBILE, Ala. – The South Alabama women's basketball team (5-2) had a four-game winning streak snapped in a heartbreaking loss to the Jacksonville Dolphins (5-4), 60-58. This was the Jags first loss since Nov. 17 at North Carolina State.

USA trailed by two points, 58-56, with 46 seconds left after Antoinette Lewis went 1-for-2 at the free throw line. After a stop and a Genesis Perrymond rebound, the Jags advanced the ball beyond half-court on a timeout with 33 ticks remaining on the scoreboard.

Chyna Ellis took the Perrymond inbound pass and drained a jumper with 31 seconds left. Jacksonville's Jasmyn Brown grabbed an offensive rebound and laid it in to give the Dolphins a 70-68 lead, and drew a foul with three seconds on the scoreboard.

Brown nullified the free-throw attempt on a lane violation, giving South Alabama a chance to tie it with a two or take the lead at other end. Savannah Jones put up a desperation three-pointer, but the attempt fell short, hitting the front of the rim as time expired.

GAME FACTS
- The Jags started the game on a 6-0 run during the first 2:15.
- Candice Williams ended an 0-for-8 from the field run and 2:31 scoring drought for the Jags at the end of the first.
- The Dolphins took a two-point lead with 6:18 left in the second and did not trail from that point on.
- USA had three double-digit scorers, Ellis with a game-high 17, Perrymond with 14 and Erin Autio with 10.
- Ellis shot 7-of-8 from the free-throw line, while grabbing a game-high 8 rebounds and handing out three rejections.
- Perrymond shot 5-of-11 from the field, including 4-of-8 from three-point range, and Autio shot 4-of-6 from the field and 2-of-3 from deep.
- The Jags converted 15 point off of 16 Jacksonville turnovers, while only giving up 10 points off 14 turnovers.
- USA shot 38 percent from the field, while JU shot 36.1 percent, but the Dolphins were 43.5 percent from three-point range and made four more threes than the Jags.
- South Alabama was outrebound 33-44, and the Dolphins converted 11 second-chance points off 14 offensive rebounds to USA's two points on six offensive boards.
- Jacksonville had three double-digit scorers and were led by Brown who had 14 on 6-of-13 from the field.
- LaKaris Salter and Brandi Buie had 11 and 13, respectively. Salter shot 50 percent from the field, 3-of-5 on three-pointers and Buie went 5-of-8 from the field, including 3-of-4 from behind the arc.

NOTES
- Ellis had her sixth double-digit scoring game of the season.
- LaNeetra Guillory tied a career-high with three blocks, the fifth three-block effort of her career.
- Autio and Perrymond each had their second-double digit scoring effort of the season.
- Perrymond's 37 minutes on the court is the most played by a Jag this season.
- The largest lead for both teams was six points.
- This was the Jags first home loss of the season.

THEY SAID IT
Head Coach Terry Fowler
Opening statement: "We knew it was going to be a tough, hard-fought game against Jacksonville. It just felt like we didn't have the energy to start the game. To our credit, we did come back and fight to put ourselves in a position to win the game. Offensive boards were a killer for us. We just never got in a rhythm offensively, never played with the type of pace we wanted to play with. Those are things that just really hindered us today."

On getting back into the game: "I thought we got some stops and we got some transition. We got the ball up the floor a little quicker, and we were able to get the ball inside from that point as well."

On upperclassmen carrying the load in the game: "Chyna [Ellis] really got it going inside. Genesis [Perrymond] had some great shots to keep us in the ball game. Erin [Autio] got us off to a good start and got us going. It's good for our seniors to be able to will us a little bit."

UP NEXT
The Jaguars look to get back on the winning end against Ole Miss on Saturday. Opening tip is scheduled for 1 p.m. (C.T.) in Oxford, Miss.

ULM Again Plagued by Turnovers in Loss to NSU, 70-48
MONROE, La. – The ULM women's basketball team shot 39 percent (17-of-44) from the field and committed 25 turnovers in a 70-48 loss to Northwestern State on Sunday, Dec. 3 in Fant-Ewing Coliseum. The Lady Demons parlayed those turnovers into 25 points.

ULM opened the scoring on a layup by Arsula Clark 17 seconds into the game, but Northwestern State scored the next eight points. The Warhawks struggled offensively in the first quarter, hitting just 29 percent (4-of-14) from the floor including 0-for-3 from three-point range, and trailed 12-9 after the first 10 minutes. ULM went 5:08 without a field goal in the first quarter.

NSU (4-3) put together an 11-3 run to open the second quarter and took an 11-point lead at 23-12 on a layup by Jasmyn Johnson with 5:02 left. ULM responded with a 6-2 spurt and cut its deficit to 25-18 as Tan Walker converted 1-of-2 free throws with 3:17 to play in the first half. The Lady Demons took a double-digit lead into the locker room at 31-21, thanks to a layup by Leah Barnes with 4 seconds left in the second quarter. Johnson and Libba Gilliam (nine points each) combined to score 18 first-half points.

The Lady Demons broke the game open with a 15-2 spurt in the third quarter. Nautica Grant's third three-pointer during the decisive run gave NSU its largest lead at 50-27. ULM scored the last nine points of the third quarter and pulled to within 50-36 on a jumper by Breanna Stephens. The Warhawks hit 6-of-12 field-goal attempts (.500) in the third quarter but eight turnovers hindered the comeback bid.

ULM (2-4) cut its deficit to 12 at 50-38 on a layup by Diamond Brooks with 9:19 remaining in the fourth quarter, but NSU answered with an 11-3 run to push the lead back to 20 at 61-41 on Gilliam's jumper with 5:20 left in the game.

"It was a disappointing effort all the way around," ULM head coach Jeff Dow said. "We committed 25 turnovers this afternoon, so they continue to be a problem. It's no coincidence that the final margin nearly matches Northwestern State's points off turnovers. Some of the turnovers are inexcusable because we made bad decisions or put our teammates in poor positions to receive the ball.

"Defensively, we allowed Northwestern State to shoot 47 percent from the field. Give Northwestern State a lot of credit because it shot better than 40 percent in all four quarters. The players moved the ball and really shared it well. On a lot of possessions, we played well for about 20 seconds, then we'd have some type of breakdown or miscommunication and allow a layup or wide open three.

"I understand our youth and inexperience sometime lead to up-and-down effort, but we're a better team than that. We're gaining tons of experience during our non-conference schedule, and we'll continue to stress improving offensively, defensively and rebounding."

Ten different ULM players scored, but Clark became the only Warhawk to reach double figures with 12 points. Clark also led the team with six boards as the Warhawks outrebounded NSU, 31-30.

"Arsula Clark is a proactive, aggressive offensive player," Dow said. "She can make a lot of plays off the dribble. It's hard to live with five turnovers, but she can drive and create foul pressure on the defense."

The Lady Demons placed four players in double digits, led by Gilliam who finished with a game-high 14 points.

ULM will take an extended break for final exams before returning to action on Monday, Dec. 11 at Louisiana Tech (6:30 p.m. tipoff).

App State Holds UNC to Season Low 56 Points in Loss
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - Appalachian State women's basketball (1-7) suffered a 56-43 decision to North Carolina (6-2) in a defensive battle on Sunday afternoon in Carmichael Arena.

The Mountaineers' near flawless defense was their best performance on that end this season, holding the Tar Heels to a season-worst in points. UNC came into the game averaging 82.9 points per game, which was 24th in the nation, while it shot a season-low 29.8 percent from the floor. UNC came into today's contest shooting 49.1 percent from the field for the season, the 13th highest in the country.

UNC did outscore Appalachian 14-1 from the free throw line and 24-12 from 3-point land.

All eight players who came into the game scored with LaPresha Stanley posting a team-high nine points. The freshman added career-highs in rebounds (8) and assists (6) to cap off a solid all-around performance. Nicola Mathews scored eight points with a pair of trifectas, and Maya Calder turned in her best game of the season with a personal-high eight points and six rebounds. Calder paced an App State bench unit that outscored the Tar Heels' reserves, 15-3.

Bayley Plummer dominated the glass with a game-high 15 rebounds while playing stellar defense against one of the top freshmen in the ACC in Janelle Bailey, who came into the game leading the team in shooting percentage at 57.5 percent and came off a 25-point, 13-rebound performance in their last outing. Bailey was held to just 1-of-10 from the floor with three turnovers. The sophomore for App played an integral part in the Tar Heels scoring only six points in the paint.

Mathews started the game with a corner trifecta that gave App a 3-0 lead before UNC pieced together an 8-0 run to take a five-point lead. Appalachian responded by eventually tying up the game in the opening frame, 12-12 when Wilson came up with a steal and fed Calder in transition with a nice layup to complete the fastbreak. Paris Kea came back on the ensuing possession with a 3-pointer to give the hosts a 15-12 edge going into the second period.

The Tar Heels delivered their punch in the opening minutes of the second quarter as they went up by 10 (22-12) with 7:29 left in the frame. However, the Black and Gold showed some grit as they answered with a 14-2 run over the next 5:22 to capture a 26-24 advantage. Tierra Wilson and Stanley sparked the surge with four straight buckets while Appalachian shot 60 percent (6-of-10) from the floor during the stretch capped off by a Stanley 3-pointer that swung the momentum entirely in App's favor.

Jamie Cherry's 3-pointer with 29 seconds left in the opening half gave UNC the 27-26 lead going into the break. App's defense held UNC to 2-for-11 over the last 7:49 of the stanza including a scoring drought of 3:55 during the comeback. The 27 points scored in the first half by UNC is the lowest in any half this season.

App and UNC didn't score for the first 3:13 of the third period until Taylor Koenen pushed the Tar Heels to a 29-26 edge. Appalachian wasn't going away as a free throw from Plummer followed by Mathews having a hand in back-to-back field goals with a jumper and an assist to Calder pushed Appalachian in front, 33-31. But the Heels ended the quarter on a 7-0 run that carried over into the final quarter while holding App to a 4:29 scoreless stretch that helped UNC take a 39-33 lead. Calder's field goal brought Appalachian to within four points, but UNC would slowly pull away with a 9-2 spurt and eventually claimed the win.

Kea (20 points) and Cherry (17 points) did the damage for UNC with a combined 37 points on 12-for-27 shooting from the field (Rest of team: 5-for-30).

For the Mountaineers, it was a promising effort that will surely give them confidence, especially after posting a 46-42 edge on the glass and corralling 16 offensive rebounds. App State held an 18-6 advantage in points in the paint and an 11-7 output in second-chance points, while turning the ball over a season-low 17 times.

Tip-Ins
- The 15 rebounds for Plummer is her second game of the season with at least 15 boards or more (16 vs. Davidson)
- Calder led the team with a Player Efficiency Rating (PER) of 14