UL junior guard Kia Wilridge

 

Louisiana's Ragin Cajun women's basketball team won their 2014-2015 home opener on Tuesday night, defeating the Xavier (La.) Gold Nuggets, 69-53, in non-conference action at the Cajundome.

Louisiana led at halftime, 29-23, out-shooting Xavier, 33%-31%, in the process.

The Cajuns went on an 11-2 run to begin the second half, and extended their lead to 40-25 at the 16:02 mark of the second half.

The Gold Nuggets could only get as close as ten points on a couple of different occasions, before UL secured their biggest lead of the game, 67-44, with 2:33 remaining.

From there, Louisiana coasted to the 16-point, 69-53 win.

Louisiana out-shot Xavier from the floor, 42%-34%, while also finishing with a 45-32 rebound advantage.

The Cajuns were led by Keke Veal, who finished with 18 points and eight rebounds, and Simone Fields, who added 13 points and nine rebounds, while Kia Wilridge chipped in with 12 points and four assists.

In a losing cause for Xavier, Ireyon Keith and Whitney Gathright each scored ten points.

With the victory, the Cajuns improved to 2-0 on the season, while the Gold Nuggets fell to 2-4.

Louisiana returns to action on Saturday afternoon, when they host Louisiana Tech in non-conference action at Earl K. Long Gym.

View the game box score.

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