LAKE CHARLES, La. - Akasha Davis eclipsed the 1,500-point mark as she and R'Mani Taylor had 20-point games to lead Lamar (12-4/7-0 Southland) to a 68-52 win over McNeese (7-11/2-5 SLC) Saturday at the Legacy Center. The Cards have won seven straight and remain undefeated in the Southland Conference. The contest also marked head coach Aqua Franklin's 90th win as head coach.
Davis went 9-of-15 from the field and was one rebound shy of a double-double. The Wylie native becomes the sixth Cardinal to record 1,500 points joining Sabria Dean, Carol Sims, Moe Kinard, Uirannah Jackson, and Kalis Loyd. Taylor, making her first appearance in the starting lineup this season, shot 8-of-14 from the field and dished out a team-high eight assists while adding two steals. Also in double figures was Jacei Denley, who netted 10 points and had two steals of her own.
The Cardinals converted 43.8 percent from the field and took command of the paint with 36 points. LU also forced 22 Cowgirl turnovers and turned them into 23 points.
The Cowgirls' only lead of the game came on their first shot. A 9-0 run by Big Red came courtesy of Davis and Denley before McNeese evened the score at 11. The Cardinals took the lead for good as Davis scored the go-ahead bucket while NJ Weems stole the ball and scored a second bucket. After completing 10 points without a response, the Cardinals conceded a three-pointer to the Cowgirls to lead 21-14 after the first quarter.
At the start of the second, McNeese closed the gap to 25-19. Taylor found her stride by scoring eight points to spark a 10-0 run while Davis added five to finish with 13 by halftime. In a quarter that saw Big Red connect on 58.3 from the field, the Cardinals doubled their lead to 38-24 at the break.
While McNeese scored first in the third quarter, the Cardinals appeared to put the game out of reach as they surged to a 19-4 run to lead 57-30. Taylor and Davis combined for 10 points while Denley added five in the run. Suddenly, the Cowgirls caught momentum with seven unanswered points to trail 57-37 after three quarters.
That run carried into the fourth quarter as McNeese scored 12 of the first 17 points, bringing the score to 62-49 in LU's favor with under three minutes to go. Then, Davis got her 1,500th career-point with a much needed three-point play. While their offense would hit four buckets in the quarter, the Cardinals relied on their defense to shutdown McNeese for the rest of the contest to earn their 16th-straight victory over the Cowgirls.
The Cardinals are back home Thursday to take on Northwestern State at the Neches Federal Credit Union Arena at the Montagne Center. The game is scheduled to tip off at 7 p.m.
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