NEW ORLEANS – The day after Thanksgiving provided a big feast of points and a new Lakefront Arena record as the New Orleans Privateers dusted off the Eureka Red Devils 125-60 on Friday.
The point total was the largest in Lakefront history while the margin of victory was the second largest in program history. Seven Privateers landed in double figures in points as the squad shot 57.8 percent from the floor.
STATISTICAL NOTES
-The scoring output was the second highest ever by a Privateers squad.
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Charles Bohannon had 18 points in 18 minutes to lead all Privateer scorers.
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Jaylen Key notched his first double-double as a Privateer with 15 points and 10 boards.
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Gerrale Gates added 15 points along with five boards, three assists, and two steals.
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Damion Rosser (14),
Ahren Freeman (14), Rodney Carson (13) and
Bryson Robinson (11) also eclipsed double digits in points.
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Troy Green finished with nine points five assists, and four steals.
FIRST HALF
The Privateers shot 61.8 percent in a first half that they controlled shortly after taking the lead for good with 13:00 left. Eureka hung in early and grabbed their first advantage at 12-10 on an Ian Milsteadt layup.
New Orleans responded with a 10-2 run over the next two minutes. The Privateer defense was responsible for forcing 15 Eureka turnovers which turned into 19 New Orleans points. Six Privateers had at least six points when the horn sounded. The home side also dished out 14 assists on 21 made field goals.
The scoring continued right up to the horn as a Bohannon layup beat the buzzer to send the Privateers to the locker room with a 20-point advantage.
SECOND HALF
New Orleans kept their foot on the gas in the second half as they dished out 28 assists, the second most by a Southland school this season. The Privateers only committed one turnover while they forced 14 in the half. They also scored 70 points in the half with 18 coming on the fast break.
The Lakefront Arena record breaking basket came when Carson followed up a miss in transition with a layup at the 3:25 mark. The board was one of eight for the freshman.
The Privateers also got 61 points from the bench.
Raquan Brown finished with nine points while
Lamont Berzat added seven.
FROM COACH SLESS
"We knew Eureka was going to get up and down the floor and give us some fits and they did early on. But I was glad our guys got their feet back underneath them to be able to have a good team win today."
"We shared the ball tremendously and our assist-to-turnover ratio was great. I was really proud of how the guys came out with a good spirit and played today."
NEXT UP
It's a short turnaround for the Privateers who will take on Xavier (La.) at 6 p.m. on Saturday.
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