Cowboys Slug Past Lamar In Battle of Border on National Television

Lake Charles, Louisiana (KNGT-FM) - For the McNeese program, Friday night was about as good as it gets. National Television in town, a record crowd, and a win over rival Lamar in the Battle of the Border for the McNeese Cowboys.

In the 121st all-time matchup, McNeese took its seventh straight over rival Lamar. Some might even say they own the border at this point. With the win, the Cowboys extended their home winning streak to 19 consecutive games.

A game that McNeese had to slug its way through saw McNeese finally build an 11-point lead with 12 minutes to play, and never looked back.

“It was a heavyweight fight, but our guys found a way at the end,” said Armstrong. “That’s what we talk about every day—finding a way to win.”

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It wasn’t the prettiest of starts for McNeese, who found themselves in a 7-point hole halfway through the 1st half when Armstrong decided to go to a smaller lineup, which featured Garcia, Johnson, Richards, Archie, and Ndjong, and immediately provided an offensive spark for the Cowboys.

“We couldn’t get a defensive rebound, so we decided to play faster and use our speed,” Armstrong said. “Those guys gave us the spark we needed.”

The Cowboys led the Cardinals 39-34, despite shooting 6-14 from the free-throw line in the first half.

In true Southland Conference fashion, it wasn’t the prettiest game for the national audience to see as the two teams combined for 71 free throws in the contest.

“We attacked the paint and shot 40 free throws,” said Armstrong. “I’m really proud of that.”

Freshman Larry Johnson once again led the attack for McNeese State with 19 points on 7/12 shooting. It was a balanced attack for Armstrong’s Cowboys, with all but one Cowboy getting into the scoring column. 4 Cowboys scored in double figures.

“We’ve got 10 guys who can contribute,” Armstrong said. “Every night, different guys step up.”

Andrew Hollifield led all scorers with 21 points on 6-17 shooting.

It started for McNeese with the record-breaking crowd of 4,612 crammed inside Townsley Law Arena. "We’ve got one of the best home-court advantages in the country,” Armstrong said. “That crowd played a huge role tonight.”

With the win, McNeese moves to 11-3 overall and 4-1. The Cowboys will now turn their attention to Monday Night, where the Cowboys will take on Stephen F Austin at 6:30 inside Townsley Law Arena.