JOURNAL STAFF
LSUS defeated Our Lady of the Lake 97-88 Sunday in the quarterfinals of the Red River Athletic Conference men’s basketball tournament held at the Rapides Coliseum In Alexandria.
The Pilots took a 27-24 lead on a Kevin Norman 3-point field goal just under 12 minutes left in the first half and never trailed from there. LSUS built as much as a 12-point margin (51-39) in the first half before settling for a 57-49 halftime lead.
The Saints pulled within two at 67-65 with a little more than 13 minutes left but couldn’t get any closer and the Pilots gradually pulled away. Their largest lead of the game grew to 14 at 84-70 with 8 ½ minutes left.
Leondre Washington led LSUS with 24 points and handed out five assists. Washington made just five field goals but was 12-of-16 from the free throw line. Norman and Akeem White both scored 17 and Quentin Jones 15.
The Pilots shot 53 percent from the field compared to Our Lady of the Lake’s 48 percent.
The Saints, who finished their season at 9-15, were led by Joseph Anderson’s 15 points.
The Pilots, now 21-7, will face LSUA in the East semifinals Monday at 5:30 p.m.
WOMEN
The Lady Pilots, the No. 3 seeded team in the East, advanced to the semifinals of the conference tournament as well with a 59-45 upset win over second-seeded Huston-Tillotson on Sunday.
It was an early morning tipoff (8 a.m.) and both teams got off to a slow start but the Lady Pilots took the early lead and extended their advantage as the game progressed. They went from shooting 31 percent in each of the first two quarters to 58 percent in the fourth quarter and finished the game shooting 38 percent. H-T shot 40 percent for the game but made five fewer field goals and were forced into 21 turnovers.
DeAuja Thompson scored 11 of her team-high 18 points in the fourth quarter as the Lady Pilots pulled away, outscoring the Rams 18-12. Thompson added six steals, five rebounds and four assists to her scoring. Ciera Daniels added 11 points and a team-best 7 rebounds and Kiara Collins scored 10.
LSUS, the No. 3 seed from the East, is now 16-12 and will play top-seeded Xavier at 1 p.m. today at the Rapides Coliseum in Alexandria.
