Lafayette, La. – Kylan Blackmon scored 17 points to lead the Chanticleers in scoring, but it was not enough as CCU lost to Louisiana 85-77 Saturday night at the Cajundome in Lafayette, La.
Blackmon led four Chants in double-digits as
Jon Sanders scored 15, followed by
John Ojiako with 13 and
Jimmy Nichols with 12.
Ojiako picked up his eighth double-double of the year by grabbing 12 rebounds to go with his 12 points in leading CCU to winning the rebound battle 39-35 as the Chants move to 4-10 overall and 1-2 in Sun Belt Conference action.
UL's Joe Charles had game-highs in points with 22 and rebounds with 14 to lead the host team. Hosana Kitenge scored 16 points, while Kentrell Garnett scored 13 and Michael Thomas came off the bench to add 11 as Louisiana moves to 8-7 overall and 1-2 in conference action.
The game featured big runs by each team, a nine-point run by the Chants and an 11-point run by the Ragin' Cajuns, both came in the first half. There were seven ties and five lead changes over the course of the night.
With six minutes left in the game the Ragin' Cajuns held a slim 70-67 lead, but the home team was able to keep the Chants at arm's length by hitting nine of 11 free throws over the final two minutes while CCU was unable to keep pace in the eight-point loss.
The Chants shot 48.3 percent (29-60) from the field, but only shot 21.4 percent (3-14) from the three-point line and 66.7 percent (16-24) on its free throws.
UL shot 45.3 percent (29-64) from the field and 34.6 percent (9-26) on its three-point attempts. The Ragin' Cajuns shot 78.3 percent (18-23) at the free throw line, including going 12-of-15 in the second half.
CCU's turnovers turned out to be a problem as its 16 miscues led to 25 Louisiana points.
Louisiana led 40-36 at halftime with Charles scoring 10 in the opening half and Kitenge adding eight.
CCU was led by Blackmon's nine first half points with Ojiako adding seven.
The Chants will be back home for its next two conference games hosting Appalachian State on Jan. 11 at 7 p.m. ET, and Old Dominion on Jan. 13 at 3:30 p.m. ET.
For complete coverage of CCU men's basketball, follow the Chants on social media @CoastalMBB (Twitter), facebook.com/CCUChanticleers (Facebook), @GoCCUSports (Instagram) or visit the official home of Coastal Carolina Athletics at goccusports.com.
