Thursday, March 14, 2019

New Orleans knocks off Lamar 76-72 in SLC Tournament

Story and photo by Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2017 All Rights Reserved

KATY, TEXAS (March 14, 2019) The Lamar Cardinals battled back from a nine-point deficit at the 17:20 mark of the second half to cut the New Orleans lead to one with 59 seconds remaining in the game, but it was not enough. The No. 5 seeded Cardinals fell to the No. 4 Privateers 76-74 in the second round of the 2019 Southland Conference Men's Basketball Tournament in Katy, Texas. The crowd at the Merrell Center saw Lamar trailing by one with less than a minute to go when a three-point jumper by Bryson Robison sealed the deal and sent the Cardinals back to Beaumont. Lamar had won their last eight games, and finish the season with a 19-13 record.

On the other hand, New Orleans edged the Cardinals on second chance points (15-11), with most other stats being equal. Robinson lead the Privateers with 17 points, followed by Scott Plaisance with 16 and Jorge Rosa with 13. Plaisance also pulled down seven rebounds to lead his team. Nick Garth, who started at guard for Lamar tallied 28 points, shooting 8-of-16 from the field including 4-of-7 from the arc and 8-of-9 from the line.

Forward Josh Nzeakor accounted for 11 of Lamar's 37 rebounds, including seven of the Cardinals' 13 rebounds on offense. He also scored 12 points, to go along with the 14 points that Davion Buster chipped in off the bench. 

New Orleans will meet up with the No. 1 seeded Sam Houston State Bearkats on Friday, March 15 with a 5 p.m. CDT start. The game will be available for viewing on ESPN+.



No comments: