LAFAYETTE, La. — Chris Gradnigo scored 18 points, and Louisiana-Lafayette held Denver, the nation’s second- best shooting team, to a season-low 34.7 percent in a 55-49 win Thursday night.
The Ragin’ Cajuns (6-10, 3-2 Sun Belt Conference) jumped out to a 30-10 lead and led 30-17 at halftime. The Pioneers, who came into the game shooting 53 percent, shot 36.4 percent from the field (8-for-22) in the first half and were 17-for-49 for the game.
Louisiana-Lafayette opened the second half with an 11-3 run to lead 41-20 with 14:01 left, but Denver whittled the lead to 47-43 with 2:22 left. The Ragin’ Cajuns hit 8-of-10 free throws to seal the win.
Denver (12-6, 5-2) was held below 40 percent for the second time this season. Brian Stafford led Denver with 16 points — all in the second half.
“We let Louisiana-Lafayette feel good about themselves right from the start, and that’s not a good recipe for success on the road,” DU coach Joe Scott said. “I have to give credit to Stafford, Chase (Hallam), (Sabatino) Chen and (Justin) Coughlin for fighting and giving us a chance at the end, but overall I’m not very happy with our performance.”
