AT LAST! Privateers Win at Home

It had been nearly two calendar years since the New Orleans Privateers won a game at Lakefront Arena, but that streak ended dramatically on Monday night with an 84-83 thriller over Incarnate Word.

The Privateers (3-7, 1-1) jumped out the gate to a 9-0 lead playing much more aggressive defense than they had of late. New Orleans maintained a steady lead throughout the half and led 38-26 at the break.

They extended that lead to 54-39 before UIW began its comeback. Shooting 12-for-27 on threes and led by the talented Davion Bailey, UIW rallied furiously as UNO struggled to get stops. They flashed ahead briefly at 78-76 before Coleton Benson, who had been held scoreless to that point, drilled a three while getting fouled, completing the four-point play and giving UNO back the lead.

At 84-83, Bailey, who had a game-high 28 points, drove the lane and flipped up a shot that bounced off the rim and was tipped away as the buzzer sounded.

UNO was led by high-flying T.J. Cope with 19 points. Jay Buckley contributed 18 points, including several critical scores down the stretch, and 7 assists. M.J. Thomas did a little of everything, posting 16 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, and 3 steals. Panagiotis Pagonis added 14 on 5-of-6 shooting.

New Orleans will step back out of conference for the last time this coming Saturday when they take on the national runner-up Houston Cougars before a lengthy holiday break.

Privateers Drop SLC Home Opener

Almost done with the money game portion of the schedule, the Privateers returned home to Lakefront Arena to open conference play but fell to Houston Christian, 85-76.

It has been almost two years since UNO has won a game in Lakefront Arena -- its last win was over HCU in 2024 -- but they could not break the losing streak today. They led 35-29 after a Panagiotis Pagonis triple late in the first half, but surrendered a 7-0 run to trail 36-35 at the break. They led briefly in the second half before the Huskies slowly took over, thoroughly controlling the second half.

Coleton Benson led UNO with 26 points, while M.J. Thomas added 16.

At a halftime ceremony, UNO retired the #1 jersey of Privateer legend Bo McCalebb.

The Privateers will stay home and try to break the home losing streak again on Monday night when they take on Incarnate Word.

Memphis Cruises to Win over UNO

The Privateers showed some fight in the second half but were never really in their 86-70 loss at Memphis on Wednesday night.

A Kedrick Osby three tied the game at 10-10, but Memphis led the rest of the night, opening up a 25-point second half lead before UNO fought back late to make the score more competitive. T.J. Cope came off the bench to lead the Bucs with 21 points, and Jay Buckley added 14. Standout shooter Coleton Benson was limited to three points on 1-for-9 shooting.

The Privateers look forward to opening their conference schedule on Saturday evening at 5 p.m. at Lakefront Arena against Houston Christian.

UNO Blows Yet Another Big Lead

The Privateers held a 13-point lead with four minutes and change left in the game, blew the entire thing, and lost 81-78 in overtime at Mississippi State.

New Orleans, holding a tenuous five-point lead at 58-53, launched what should have been a game-deciding 8-0 run in the waning minutes that gave them their biggest lead with just under five minutes to play. However, as the Privateers (2-4) have done many times of late, they helplessly watched as their entire lead evaporated down the stretch.

They were able to force overtime and even tied it late in the extra frame, only to lose on a banked three-pointer with 1.9 seconds left.

Coleton Benson led the way with 25 points and seven threes. Churchill Abass and M.J. Thomas both posted double-doubles with 13 points and 10 rebounds each.

UNO will travel to Lubbock for a pre-Thanksgiving day game on Wednesday at #10 Texas Tech.

UNO Swept on the West Coast

The Privateers finished 0-2 at the Acrisure Holiday Invitational, falling at Fresno State 85-76 on Friday night.

After a few brief UNO leads early, Fresno took a narrow advantage in the first half and essentially maintained it the entire remainder of the night. At several points, the Privateers almost pulled even but were unable to secure enough key stops to complete the rally, and the host Bulldogs prevailed somewhat comfortably.

Jay Buckley had an unusual double-double for him, notching 25 points and a whopping 14 rebounds, though dishing out only two assists. M.J. Thomas added 16 points and 8 rebounds.

The road only gets tougher, as New Orleans takes on SEC and Big 12 opponents next week, heading to Mississippi State on Monday and Texas Tech on Wednesday before Thanksgiving break.