BEAUMONT, Texas – The Lamar University women's basketball team opens the home portion of its Southland Conference schedule when it hosts the New Orleans Privateers at 5 p.m. Monday in the Montagne Center.
 
Monday's contest is the opening game of a hoops doubleheader, with the men's game between LU and New Orleans set for a 7:30 p.m. start.
 
The Cardinals (4-8 overall, 0-1 Southland) look to bounce back from Saturday's 69-59 loss at Nicholls to open the Southland Conference slate. LU is 4-1 at home this season.
 
"We have done a good job at home, defending our nest," LU coach Robin Harmony said. "We have to learn from Saturday's game and move forward. There are still plenty of games left in the season."
 
Senior guard Addesha Collins had a career-high 26 points in Saturday's game at Nicholls. Collins has provided a spark off the bench for the Cardinals, scoring in double figures in four straight games and five of the last six. Collins is averaging 17.0 points per game over the last four outings.
 
LU's other senior guard, JaMeisha Edwards, leads the Cardinals in scoring, averaging 15.6 points per game. Edwards enters Monday's contest with 977 career points, needing just 23 points to become the 13^th player in program history to reach the 1,000-point plateau.
 
New Orleans (3-6, 0-0) is opening its Southland Conference season. The Privateers bring a three-game losing streak into Monday's game. UNO is led by sophomore guard Randi Brown, who averages 17.6 points per game.
 
The Cardinals lead the all-time series 18-6. LU is 3-0 against New Orleans since the Privateers joined the Southland Conference in the 2013-14 season. Last year, LU posted a 64-54 win at UNO behind 17 points from Edwards.
 
Following Monday's game, LU hosts Texas A&M-Corpus Christi at 7 p.m. Thursday before road games at Central Arkansas on Jan. 11 and Southeastern Louisiana on Jan. 14.
 
Monday's game will be shown live on ESPN3. For ticket information for all LU home games, please call 409-880-1715, or CLICK HERE.