Four in a Row: UNO Downs Lamar

Turk Vincent

After surrendering a lead it had most of the night, the Privateers got two critical buckets from an injured Turk Vincent and escaped with an 84-79 win at Lamar.

Vincent, who led New Orleans (10-18, 7-10) with 22 points and 8 rebounds, was helped off the court with UNO clinging to a small lead late in the game.  While he was tended to, the host Cardinals took the lead and appeared ready to complete the comeback.

Vincent returned to snatch away a rebound and put UNO back in front 80-79, then cleaned up a layup miss by K'mani Doughty with a followup score to make it 82-79.  One more Lamar miss and two more Privateer free throws later, UNO had its fourth win in a row in an improbable late season surge after a nine-game losing streak.

New Orleans will finish the regular season on Wednesday in Lake Charles against McNeese, and then remain there for the Southland tournament beginning March 5.

McNeese Rallies, Beats UNO

After a sizzling start, New Orleans saw a huge lead dissipate, ultimately losing 79-78 to McNeese.

UNO (6-18, 3-10), riding an eight-game losing streak, took out their frustration on McNeese early, bursting out to a 16-2 lead and stretching the lead to 20 at the half.  But the Cowboys steadily chipped away at the lead throughout the second frame, and down 78-76 with seconds left, took their only lead of the game on a Harwin Francois three pointer to secure the comeback victory.

Tyson Jackson suffered a mid-game injury but returned to pace New Orleans with 18 points.  Khaleb Wilson-Rouse picked up the slack for a still-absent Jordan Johnson, notching 15 points and draining three from long distance.  Vincent added 13.

The Privateers will go on a road swing next week at TAMU-Commerce and Northwestern State.

Nicholls Destroys UNO

The Privateers were never in the game on Thursday night in Thibodaux and fell to the host Colonels 84-59.

New Orleans (6-17, 3-9) lost its eighth game in a row in a noncompetitive effort in which they fell behind early and never recovered.

Tyson Jackson led UNO with 13, and K'mani Doughty added 10 off the bench.  The visitors shot just 35% from the field and committed a whopping 26 turnovers.

The Privateers return home on Saturday afternoon for a contest against McNeese.

Privateers Dominated by Islanders

The Privateers tried to avenge an earlier blowout loss to Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, but it just happened again; the Islanders won the rematch 86-69 at Lakefront Arena.

New Orleans, shorthanded and playing without leading scorer Jordan Johnson, were hamstrung from the start, trailing TAMU-CC 21-6 right off the bat.  They were never able to get into the game at all, trailing by more than 20 points in the first half and never seriously threatening.

Without Johnson, UNO's bench players did have a chance to step up, and Marquez Cooper came off the pine to give them a 21-point outing, shooting 7-for-9 from the field.  D'Ante Bell, off the team for part of the season, was the only other Privateer in double digits with 11.

New Orleans will next rematch with Incarnate Word.  The Privateers' only road win of the season thus far came against the Cardinals back on January 12.