Feb. 1, 2012

Box Score

HAMMOND, La. - Senior guard Brandon Davis poured in a game-high 21 points Wednesday night at the University Center as Lamar University handed Southeastern Louisiana an 83-59 Southland Conference basketball loss.

The Cardinals' 24-point victory is their largest ever in Hammond, and gives Lamar its second straight road win over the Lions. Lamar, which improved to 14-8 overall and 5-3 in league action, will host UTSA on Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m. from the Montagne Center.

After shooting 44.8 percent from the floor in the first half, the Cards improved to 56.7 percent in the second half to leave little doubt as to the outcome of the game. Lamar built a 44-24 lead at the half and the Lions (8-12, 2-6) would get no closer than 20 the rest of the game.

"I thought it went well tonight," said LU head coach Pat Knight about the victory. "We got open looks and did a good job of moving the ball around. I had to take a couple of guys out early because they were going one-on-one, taking contested shots, but they got the idea when I put them back in."

Lamar used a 12-2 run early in the first half to turn a 7-7 game into a 19-9 lead. SLU responded with a 7-2 run of its own to pull within five points at 21-16 with 8:29 to play in the first half, but the Lions would get no closer.

Davis hit a pair of free throws and a 3-pointer over a 21 second span to push Lamar's lead back to 10 at 26-16. The Cards then closed the half on an 18-8 run with a 3-pointer at the buzzer by SLU's Todd Nelson keeping it from being even worse.

Senior guard Anthony Miles, who finished with 19 points, put in a layup that gave Lamar a 27-point lead at 60-33 with 15:35 to play in the game. The Cardinals hit seven of their first 10 shots in the second half as they opened on a 16-9 run.

"We talked to them at halftime not to relax because they're playing at home and they'll try to get back in it," said Knight. "I thought the guys did a real good job of jumping on them the first five minutes."

Lamar dominated nearly every phase of the game, including outrebounding the Lions 37-24 and committing six less turnovers (15-9). The Cardinals exploited the SLU miscues, finishing with a robust 26-5 advantage in points off turnovers.

Davis, who got his second straight start in place of Charlie Harper, finished 5-of-9 from the floor and hit four of Lamar's seven 3-pointers. He added seven rebounds and was 7-of-8 from the free throw line.

Devon Lamb recorded his team-leading fifth double-double of the year with 11 points and a game-high 10 rebounds. He also led Lamar with four assists and two steals.

Leading scorer Mike James came into the game averaging 16.7 points per contest, but managed just nine against the Lions. It snapped a streak of four straight games where he had scored at least 16 points.

Vincenzo Nelson scored nine of Lamar's 15 bench points, while Stan Brown added eight points.

Jeremy Campbell led the Lions, who shot 45.7 percent from the floor but just 12-of-19 from the free throw line, with 14 points and four rebounds. Elgin Bailey and Daron Populist each scored 10.

LAMAR