Privateers Win Ugly at HBU

Thibodeaux's double-double
helped UNO to a win at HBU

It was an ugly basketball game, but all wins count the same, and the Privateers (5-8, 2-0) scored their first road victory of the season Saturday night at Houston Baptist, 64-57.

Led again by senior Travin Thibodeaux, whose double double of 18 points and 10 rebounds paced the team, New Orleans rallied from 5 down at the 7-minute mark to take control late. The Bucs finished the game on a 17-5 run.

Each team had significant turnover issues, with HBU committing 21 and UNO 20.  The Huskies also shot a putrid 8-for-18 from the free throw line.

Scott Plaisance came off the bench for New Orleans to score in double digits with 10, and Makur Puou had 9 points and 9 boards.

Houston Baptist, playing without its best player in Josh Ibarra, was led by Jalon Gates with 20 points.

UNO returns home after New Year's on Wednesday, January 3, to take on former coach Tic Price, former player Colton Weisbrod, and the Lamar Cardinals.

Second Half Surge Lifts UNO

Puou gave UNO a
second half spark

The Privateers (4-8, 1-0), opening Southland Conference play at home, fought off a late Abilene Christian rally and won a 77-74 victory.

New Orleans, which trailed by as many as 10 in the first half and found itself down 36-34 at the break, went on a Makur Puou-led 14-2 run early in the second half to take a 48-41 lead.  The game went back and forth, with ACU's Tevin Foster draining two free throws to give the Wildcats a 74-73.

Travin Thibodeaux answered those with two foul shots of his own to give UNO the lead back, and a Puou slam completed a fast break to extend the lead to the final margin.

Thibodeaux once again led the scoring for New Orleans with 20. Puou had an extremely strong second stanza in adding 16. Troy Green also notched 14.

UNO hits the road on Saturday for its first away conference game, playing at Houston Baptist.

Rally Falls Short at UAB

Freshman G Damion Rosser

Down 19 points in the second half, the Privateers (3-8) rallied to within two with under two minutes left before falling 74-67 at Alabama Birmingham.

New Orleans, which trailed 45-30 at the half, fell even further behind before beginning a rally that culminated in two Ezekiel Charles free throws to bring UNO within 69-67. Unfortunately, those were the last Privateer points of the night.

Freshman Damion Rosser led UNO in scoring for the second time this year with 13 points. Travin Thibodeaux and Ezekiel Charles added 12. Charles continued to establish himself as a threat from deep, nailing three triples.

The non-conference slate is over. New Orleans begins conference play in eight days with a home contest against Abilene Christian on December 28.

Official box score

Privateers Cruise at Home

Thibodeaux again led UNO
in scoring with 22 points

The Privateers (3-7) were never challenged at Lakefront Arena on Monday night, easily wiping out NAIA Oklahoma Pandhandle State, 107-59.

UNO scored the last 10 points of the first half to head to the locker room leading 53-27.  From then on, it was just a matter of getting to 100, which they did at the 2:49 mark on a Scott Plaisance free throw.

OPSU went with some
interesting shorts

Travin Thibodeaux once again paced New Orleans in scoring with 22.  Michael Zeno and Ezekiel Charles added 11, and Diontae Champion and Plaisance had 10.

7'3" Bol Riek, playing in just his third game, had 4 blocks off the bench.

The Privateers will head to UAB on Wednesday for their third game in five days as they take on the Blazers in their final non-conference contest of the season.

ULL Blasts UNO at Cajundome

Thibodeaux led UNO with 23 points

It used to be Lakefront Arena West, but it's been almost 20 years since the Privateers (2-7) have won at the Cajundome.  That didn't change tonight, as New Orleans fell 87-65 to Louisiana Lafayette in a non-conference contest.

UNO was led by Travin Thibodeaux's 23 points, but Diontae Champion was the only other Privateer in double digits with 11.  The Bucs trailed just 42-35 at the half, but they couldn't make inroads early in the second half, and the game got away from them as it progressed.

The Cajuns were led by Jakeenan Gant's 21 points and 11 rebounds.  ULL shot 55% from the field, 52% from beyond the arc and 80% from the free throw line.

New Orleans returns home for a 7 p.m. tip on Monday night against Oklahoma Panhandle State.

SMU Fights Off Privateers

Robinson led UNO with 16 points

The SMU Mustangs are a lifetime 57-3 in Moody Coliseum, but for a while at least, the Privateers (2-6) gave them a run for their money before falling 79-66 on Wednesday night.

New Orleans, which trailed 44-34 at halftime, had the deficit down to 61-56 at the under-12 timeout before the Mustangs stepped up their defensive pressure and the Bucs' scoring pace slowed considerably.

UNO got a rare spark from long distance, as Bryson Robinson drained four threes and Ezekiel Charles three.  SMU, though, one-upped them in this department, connecting on 11 shots from downtown (11-for-22).

Robinson led the Privateers with 16 points in addition to 6 rebounds and 5 assists.  Travin Thibodeaux had 15, and Charles added 14, all in the second half.

UNO will head to the Cajundome on Saturday night to take on former Sun Belt rival Louisiana-Lafayette.

Discussion forum game thread

UNO Wins Rout over Williams Baptist

Damion Rosser had a
career-high 19 points

The Privateers (2-5) got a break from the difficult early road schedule, hammering Williams Baptist 87-70 at Lakefront Arena on Saturday afternoon.

Led by freshman Damion Rosser's 19 points, New Orleans was never threatened, taking a 48-24 lead into the locker room and cruising to victory.  Williams Baptist hit several late threes to make the score look closer than it was.

Freshman in double figures for UNO also included Lamont Berzat and Troy Green with 11 each.  Senior Makur Puou added 10 along with 9 boards.  Diontae Champion led the Bucs with 10 rebounds.

Next up for UNO is an 11-day layoff followed by a road contest at SMU.