LAFAYETTE, La. – J.J. Thomas scored 22 points and Louisiana-Lafayette defeated Louisiana-Monroe 84-75 on Saturday night.
The Ragin' Cajuns (5-14, 2-5 Sun Belt Conference) trailed 60-57 with 8:56 left before going on an 11-3 run to lead for good. Bryant Mbamalu's layup capped the spurt for a 68-63 lead with 5:49 to play.
The Warhawks (6-15, 1-6) pulled within one, 74-73, on Steven McClellan's 3-pointer with 2:37 to play. But Louisiana-Lafayette scored six straight, capped by Raymone Andrews' free throws with 1:40 left.
The Ragin' Cajuns made 20 of 25 from the free-throw line, while the Warhawks were just 7 of 16 from the line (43.8 percent). It was Louisiana-Monroe's worst free-throw shooting performance of the season.
La'Ryan Gary added 18 points for the Ragin' Cajuns and Josh Brown chipped in 12.
Tommie Sykes scored 21 points and Marcelis Hansberry 15 for the Warhawks.
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