Box Score
NEW ORLEANS, La. – The New Orleans Privateers men's basketball team (5-8, 2-3 Southland) shot efficiently in the second half as they pulled away to a 77-55 win over the Lamar Cardinals (1-16, 0-5) on Thursday at Lakefront Arena.
New Orleans pulled away by using strong transition ball and the three-point shot. They hit five triples in 10 attempts from beyond the arc in the half to break open a game that they only led by four at half. Overall, the Privateers shot 65 percent (15-for-24) in the second half.
"We had a tough week coming off of Saturday where we were below our standard. I really tried to push the guys this week. They were very attentive, eager, and they had a lot more questions and answers. I think it showed tonight. They played hard, they played as a unit, and they didn't play selfish," said Coach
Mark Slessinger.
The Privateers jumped out to an early 10-2 lead, mostly with leading scorer,
Cory Dixon who picked up two fouls and had to sit at the 17:49 mark. Lamar struggled to find their stroke from the field early, making only one of their first nine shots. Lamar settled in though, and took their first lead of the game at 17-15 with 7:34 left in the first half on a Nimrod Hilliard layup. It also marked the first basket of the game for Hilliard who entered leading the Cardinals in points. The Privateers took a 30-26 edge into the locker room. The score was tied four times, and the lead changed hands six times in the opening half.
After Lamar scored the first basket of the second half to pull to within two, New Orleans delivered the first shot with a 12-2 run that included a dunk by Dixon to pull the Privateer lead up to 12 with 13:10 left. It was Dixon's first field goal made of the contest. The Cardinals never got closer than within nine for the rest of the game.
Said, Slessinger about the crowd "We had a great turnout tonight. Students are back and it was a great atmosphere and just a taste of the magic this building can hold."
The Privateers were led by
Kevin Hill, who scored a career-high 17 points and tied a career-high with 12 rebounds. It was Hill's first double-double of the season and third of his career. Hill also added two blocks and three steals.
New Orleans also got strong contributions from Tradarrius MacPhearson who wound up with 16 points and
James Harrison who added 11. Dixon battled through the early foul trouble to put up 12 points and nine boards.
Lamar was led offensively by Donovan Ross who put up 13 points. Hilliard was held to 10 points on just 4-of-11 from the field. The Cardinals shot just 30.8 percent from the field in the second half, and were out-rebounded 39-32.
The Privateers continue conference play against Sam Houston State on Saturday after the women's game.
