So what are the chances of ULās men and womenās basketball teams making noise in the Sun Belt Championship Tournament this week in Pensacola, Florida?
Well, it starts with having to win the first game.
For the No. 12-seeded men, thatās a rematch with No. 13 Georgia State in a 5 p.m. Tuesday game at the Pensacola Bay Center.
For the No. 14 women, itās a second game in the past five days against No. 11 Georgia State at 2 p.m. Tuesday.
At first glance, coach Quannas Whiteās men's club would appear to be a perfect candidate to make a dark-horse run in the tournament.
For starters, the Cajuns beat the Panthers 82-72 on Jan. 29 in Lafayette.
Even better, the winner of this game will play No. 9 James Madison at 5 p.m. Wednesday and UL also defeated the Dukes earlier this season ā a 64-61 win on Feb. 4 in Harrisonburg, Virginia.
The next factor to consider is the availability of guard Dorian Finister, who missed the past two games while in concussion protocol. Fortunately for UL, Finister is expected to be available in the tournament.
ULās first meeting against Georgia State was arguably the Cajunsā best game of the Sun Belt season.
The only reason the Panthers only lost by 10 is because they made 33 of 35 free-throw attempts. UL had one of its better shooting nights ā making 50% from the field and 3-point range and 81% at the line.
The Cajuns (10-21, 7-11) even outrebounded the Panthers 37-30 in the win, while limiting second-team All-Sun Belt performer Jelani Hamilton to 2-of-15 shooting from the field.
Another big part of ULās earlier win over Georgia State (10-21, 7-11) was DeāVion Lavergne. His 23 points and seven assists began a six-game run where Lavergne averaged 17.3 points a game.
In his past four games, though, the North Central graduate has settled for 8.5 points per game.
If Finister isnāt quite himself, the Cajuns will likely need the hot version of Lavergne to advance.
Finister had 18 points and six rebounds in 29 minutes in the win earlier this season.
Theoretically, Finister not playing last week gave him a breather and he probably needed it after having to log so many minutes because of the injury bug all season.
It'sĢż a matter of how sharp he'll be.
Even more encouraging for the Cajuns is Georgia State has lost nine of its past 10 games ā beginning with that Jan. 29 loss at the Cajundome ā with the only win being a 66-64 decision over Georgia Southern.
Also true, though, is UL is almost a .500 team in home games this season at 7-8 and 3-13 away from home.
On the womenās side, coach Garry Brodheadās club lost 74-68 at Georgia State on Friday.
It was a frustrating game because the Cajuns outrebounded the Panthers 50-33, outshot Georgia State 44% to 33% from the field and dominated points in the paint 44-20.
The problem was the Cajuns (4-25, 2-16) had 23 turnovers to eight for Georgia State and the Panthers made seven more 3-pointers.
Georgia State (10-20, 5-13) had lost nine straight games before that win, so it shouldnāt take the best effort of the season to advance.
If the Cajuns can avenge last week's loss to Georgia State, though, a matchup against No. 10 UL-Monroe doesn't look as favorable. The Warhawks won the two meetings 61-51 and 102-58 during the regular season.
Sun Belt men's postseason awards
Player of the Year ā Chaze Harris, South Alabama
Defensive Player of the Year ā Luke Wilson, App State
Newcomer of the Year ā Joshua Beadle, Coastal Carolina
Freshman of the YearĢżā D.J. Hall, Texas State
Sixth Man of the YearĢżā Joey Chammaa, Arkansas State
Coach of the Year ā Scott Cross, Troy
All-Sun Belt team
FIRST TEAM
Joshua Beadle, Coastal Carolina
Thomas Dowd, Troy
Wyatt Fricks, Marshall
Chaze Harris, South Alabama
Tylik Weeks, Southern Miss
SECOND TEAM
D.J. Hall, Texas State
Jelani Hamilton, Georgia State
Kasen Jennings, App State
Adam Olsen, South Alabama
Jalen Speer, Marshall
THIRD TEAM
Cliff Davis, James Madison
Alonzo Dodd, App State
Christian Harmon, Arkansas State
Justin McBride, James Madison
Victor Valdes, Troy
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