We've Had a Facelift

Privateer Island has been spruced up a bit.

And as you can see, some choices have definitely been made. It's not that the term "LSU-New Orleans" will never be used, or the purple and gold logo will never be displayed, but this site has always given a special nod to tradition and nostalgia. That is the spirit behind the heavily blue color scheme that we've totally doubled down on.

Further, some recent frustrations with Tapatalk have convinced me that we need to be hosting our own forum on our own server. It has always been my vision to heavily tie the forum to the main site, but the rather rigid structure of Tapatalk (and, to be fair, other forum hosts) made that unworkable. I think what is launching today is as close as we're gonna get to that -- one reasonably unified Privateer Island.

For those disillusioned with the LSU stuff -- and you should be -- please stop by from time to time and join the message board discussion anyway. And keep an eye on the main site for occasional blasts from the past. Privateer athletics isn't just a 2026 thing; here, its entire history is celebrated.

Even the history of Privateer Island itself.

SLU Denies UNO a Tourney Bye

Playing its final home game in silver and blue, the New Orleans Privateers laid an egg at Lakefront Arena, falling to Southeastern Louisiana 82-78.

Only needing a win to secure a bye in the upcoming Southland Conference tournament, the Privateers (14-17, 12-10) were outhustled throughout the first half, falling behind 40-32. While New Orleans came out of the locker room more energized, they could never pull away from the last-place Lions, who surged ahead in the final two minutes to steal a win.

Jay Buckley, who was an all-conference guard for SLU last season, scored 28 points and dished 13 assists against his former team to lead the Privateers. Coleton Benson added 21 despite struggling again from the field.

UNO will play in Lake Charles next week in the first round of the league tournament.

Tough Day on the Lakefront

A day of struggles for UNO concluded with a men's basketball loss at the hands of McNeese State, 66-63.

New Orleans (14-16, 12-9) appeared ready to go but just could not keep pace with the visiting Cowboys early. In particular, they could not contain McNeese's Larry Johnson, who led all scorers with 16  points in the first half. He would only score 1 in the second half, however, as the Privateers rallied.

UNO hung around and hung around and finally overtook McNeese in the stretch run, taking a 56-52 lead on a Kedrick Osby three. UNO led 63-60 with just a minute left, but the Cowboys scored the final six points of the game, including a Tyshawn Archie leaner to put McNeese up with 2.6 seconds left.

Osby led New Orleans with 16 points. Coleton Benson was the only other Privateer in double digits, but he struggled terribly from the field, shooting just 3-for-14 and 0-for-5 from deep. UNO as a team shot just 3-for-21 from three. McNeese was not much better at 4-for-22.

UNO will need to defeat Southeastern Louisiana on Monday night on the lakefront in order to secure a single bye in the upcoming Southland Conference Tournament in Lake Charles.

Earlier in the day, the women's basketball team fell to McNeese despite Lauren Banks' 20 points. And before that, Stephen F. Austin's baseball team defeated UNO 3-1 at Maestri Field to drop the Privateers to 0-2 on the young Southland season.

Privateers Get Stunner at SFA

New Orleans broke Stephen F. Austin's 13-game winning streak, pulling a 77-73 upset in Nacogdoches on Monday night.

Led by Coleton Benson's 30-point night as well as M.J. Thomas' gutty 18-point, 10-rebound effort, UNO (14-15, 12-8) clinched a winning record in the Southland and bolstered their chances of securing a single bye in the SLC Tournament.

The Privateers jumped out to a 14-4 lead and maintained their edge throughout the first half, leading 31-23 at the break. Like they did in their five-point win at Lakefront Arena earlier this season, SFA came out of the locker room strong, surging ahead briefly before New Orleans' poise helped them regain the lead, which grew as large as 58-45 before a late Lumberjacks surge.

At 69-67, the Privateers missed two shots, but Panagiotis Pagonis rebounded both of them to keep the possession alive, then converted two free throws to extend the lead and help secure the win.

T.J. Cope added 11 points for New Orleans, and Jay Buckley struggled with his shot but contributed 11 assists.

UNO will return home with confidence to face McNeese on Saturday.

UNO Beats Corpus Christi in Slugfest

In a brutally physical contest that saw 66 fouls and 93 combined free throws, the Privateers outlasted Texas A&M-Corpus Christi 84-78 in overtime.

New Orleans (11-14, 9-7), which led 35-30 at the break, did not match the Islanders' increased intensity coming out of the halftime locker room. TAMU-CC's 18-3 run turned that five-point deficit into a 48-38 lead, and the Privateers spent the rest of the night trying to catch up, finally succeeding near the end of regulation on a Jay Buckley fast break layup.

In overtime, Coleton Benson drained a three to put UNO up, and they never relinquished that lead, hanging on with a flurry of free throws to secure the win.

The Privateers survived 22 turnovers, though they forced 19, many of them during their late surge to take control of the game in the nick of time. Buckley led the way with 22 points, while Benson added 18 and T.J. Cope 16.

New Orleans will hit the road for four straight beginning on Saturday at Houston Christian.

UTRGV Blitzes UNO

Seeking revenge for a 16-point loss to the Privateers in Texas on December 29, UT-Rio Grande Valley mauled New Orleans at Lakefront Arena on Saturday, 95-76.

The Vaqueros made 13 three-pointers and outrebounded the Bucs by a whopping 42-27 en route to an easy victory in a key matchup between contenders for the Southland tournament single bye. They dominated from start to finish and were never seriously threatened, dropping UNO to 8-7 in the conference and 10-14 overall.

The Privateer attack, such as it was, was led by Jay Buckley with 25 points. Coleton Benson and T.J. Cope added 11 each.

New Orleans will stay home and host Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Monday night before embarking on a four-game road trip.

Privateers Win Bruiser Over NWST

The Privateers bested the Demons of Northwestern State on Saturday night at Lakefront Arena, 75-64.

The Demons, who had played six consecutive games decided by two points or less, got UNO involved in another physical, close contest. With New Orleans up 33-30 at the half, Northwestern State immediately launched an 8-0 run to start the second frame, answered by an 18-2 UNO run. The game tightened, however.

With UNO up 63-60 late, Chris Mubiru missed a three, and the Privateers got a break going the other way that resulted in a Coleton Benson three-point play for a critical six-point swing. From there, UNO was able to salt the game away.

Jay Buckley paced UNO with 18 points and 6 assists, as well as 7 rebounds. Kedrick Osby was a huge factor in the second half, his three triples a part of a 13-point overall effort. Benson also added 13, and Churchill Abass had 10 points and 7 boards.

UNO hits the road on Monday night for a game at East Texas A&M.

Privateers Win at Stopher Gym

It hasn't generally been a friendly venue, but New Orleans dominated at Nicholls on Tuesday afternoon, 80-62.

The Privateers (8-13, 6-6) trailed very early but took control midway through the first half and never trailed again. Buoyed by multiple threes from Kedrick Osby, who had 11 points in the first half, UNO opened a 39-29 lead at the break. In the second half, New Orleans outmuscled the Colonels and didn't allow them back into the game.

Again, the Privateer frontcourt was dominant, with Churchill Abass posting 20 points and 8 boards and M.J. Thomas adding 16 and 7. UNO absolutely dominated the glass as a team, with 48 rebounds to Nicholls' 28.

New Orleans will host Northwestern State on Saturday as they return home from this two-game trip.

UNO Flexes Muscle, Beats Lamar

Monday night was a battle of frontcourts at Lakefront Arena, and New Orleans prevailed 89-76 over Lamar.

While Lamar big man Braden East led all scorers with 26 points to go along with 11 rebounds, UNO's frontcourt duo of M.J. Thomas and Churchill Abass carried the day. Thomas led the Privateers (7-12, 5-5) with 20 points and 9 rebounds, while Abass added 20 points and 7 boards of his own. Jay Buckley also chipped in 13 points and 8 assists.

The Privateers used a 15-0 first half run to turn an early 28-22 deficit into a 37-28 lead. They led by five at the half, and while the Cardinals tied it early in the second frame, they were never able to regain the lead, as UNO protected its cushion and held Lamar to 40% shooting from the field.

New Orleans will hit the road again this weekend for a road battle with McNeese in Lake Charles.

SFA Overcomes Early Deficit, Beats UNO

The Privateers started strong but faded in the second half, falling to first-place Stephen F. Austin 84-79 at Lakefront Arena on Saturday.

New Orleans (6-12, 4-5), buoyed by the return of Jay Buckley after a one-game absence, bolted to an early 30-20 lead. However, the Lumberjacks regained their footing, and the UNO defense struggled as SFA posted 21 points in the last six-and-a-half minutes of the first half to tie it at 41 at the break. The Jacks began the second frame with an 11-4 run and, while the Bucs hung around and rallied to within two late in the game, they never regained the lead.

Buckley led UNO with 24 points, and Churchill Abass had 13 points and 9 rebounds. Coleton Benson had 17, including several late threes, and Kedrick Osby added 11.

The Privateers will stay home on Monday for a battle with Lamar.

Nicholls Rains Threes on UNO

In a contest of hot-shooting teams, the visiting Colonels were sharper, defeating UNO 90-77 at Lakefront Arena on Saturday.

First-place Nicholls, which improved to 7-0 in the Southland, used exceptionally pinpoint shooting from deep to pull away from the Privateers (5-11, 3-4), draining 17-of-37 threes for the game. They bested a decent New Orleans offensive attack that wasn't inept but could not keep up with the Colonel barrage.

Coleton Benson, for his part, tried to keep pace with Nicholls, leading UNO with 26 points and four threes of his own. T.J. Cope and M.J. Thomas also got into double digits with 12 points each. The Privateers actually easily won the rebound battle but also committed 15 turnovers to Nicholls' 7.

The Privateers hit the road but stay close to home on Monday, traveling to Southeastern Louisiana.

Privateers Beat E-TAMU on Lakefront

The Privateers returned home and scored an 83-73 victory over East Texas A&M on Monday night.

New Orleans (5-10, 3-3), which went almost two years between victories at home, now has two in a row at Lakefront Arena. They established control early and, while they never quite pulled away, they were never really threatened until late, when a 12-0 Lions run cut a comfortable 69-54 lead down to three. It was a familiar scenario for a UNO team that has had trouble holding leads.

The Privateers, however, answered with a Jay Buckley jumper and an M.J. Thomas putback on its next two possessions to calm nerves and secure the win.

M.J. Thomas had 12 points, but the bigger story is his whopping 19 rebounds, which powered a decisive 16-rebound team edge for UNO. Coleton Benson used a 10-for-11 free throw barrage to lead the extremely balanced UNO attack with 17 points despite struggling from the field, and Enzo Boudouma added 11. Churchill Abass had 10. Buckley didn't start but came off the bench to dish 9 assists.

UNO stays at home on Saturday, when they will take on a Nicholls team that is currently 6-0 and in first place in the Southland Conference.