Privateers Falter in Home Finale

The Privateers completed a winless season at Lakefront Arena with a come-from-ahead loss to East Texas A&M, 73-71.

New Orleans trailed early in a turnover-plagued first half but took the lead on a Luke Davis layup at 21-20. The Privateers (4-25, 2-16) continued that roll into the second half, building as much as a 15-point lead before the Lions came roaring back to tie the game on a Yusef Salih three at 56-56.

From that point, the Privateers surged ahead behind the stellar play of star freshman M.J. Thomas, who posted a monster game with 16 points and 18 rebounds. But they fumbled away a 71-61 lead, and at 71-70 with seconds to go, E-TAMU's K.C. Ugwuakazi stole an inbounds pass and laid in the go-ahead bucket to doom the Privateers yet again. The Lions scored the final 12 points of the contest.

Thomas led a dominant Privateer effort on the glass, as UNO won the rebounding battle 50-31. J.R. Jacobs contributed 14 points and 7 assists.

UNO will conclude the season with a two-game road swing at UT-Rio Grande Valley and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Saturday and next Monday, respectively.

Demons' Fast Start Dooms UNO

The Privateers fought hard but could not overcome a massive early deficit in a 73-66 loss to Northwestern State at Lakefront Arena.

After posting the first five points of the game, UNO (4-24, 2-15) surrendered a 21-0 run to the visiting Demons, a hole from which they could never recover. They trailed by as many as 21 and were down 39-24 at the half, and while they clawed to within 6 in the waning moments, they could get no closer.

The New Orleans offensive attack was led by Kohen Rowbatham with 20 points. Luke Davis continued his late-season offensive surge, contributing 17 points. M.J. Thomas had a well-rounded evening with 11 points, 8 rebounds, 4 steals, and 3 assists. Northwestern State's Micah Thomas led all scorers with 23 points.

The Privateers shot just 37% as a team, while the Demons converted 12 out of 23 three-point attempts.

UNO will get one last chance to win a home game on Monday night against struggling East Texas A&M, a team the Privateers defeated on the road earlier this season.

UNO Takes 2 of 3 from BC

On Friday night, the Privateers got a clutch 2-RBI single from Bryan Loriga in the seventh inning to retake the lead against Boston College, 5-4. In the top of the frame, UNO had surrendered a 3-1 lead and fallen behind 4-3.

Sawyer Toney and Bryce Calloway made that lead hold up with a scoreless 8th and 9th in relief, and the Privateers hung on.

The first game of Saturday's doubleheader wasn't nearly that close. The visiting Eagles out of the ACC took a lead early and were never threatened, coasting to an 11-3 win. Zach Longshore struggled in his second start, and despite another three hits from Loriga, the New Orleans offense could never get going.

The Privateers (3-3) got a better outcome in the nightcap. While they blew a 5-0 lead and fell behind on a BC ninth inning solo shot, a clutch two-out single from Collin Loupe tied it in the bottom of the ninth, and then Jahlani Rogers was plunked with the bases loaded in the 11th to secure a 7-6 UNO win.

Privateers Fall to Nicholls

The Privateers dropped their ninth in a row, and remained winless for the season at Lakefront Arena, in a 78-62 loss to Nicholls on Monday night.

The Colonels broke open a close game with a late 8-0 run to open up a double digit lead at the half. New Orleans (4-23, 2-14) fell behind by as many as 21 in the second half before using their own 15-1 run to get as close as 56-50. The Colonels, though, clamped down defensively down the stretch to hang on for the victory.

New Orleans outrebounded Nicholls for the game on the strength of M.J. Thomas' astounding 17 rebounds as well as Luke Davis' 11. Both Thomas and Davis turned in double-doubles. However, the Privateers shot just 36% as a team.

UNO will have two more chances to win on the lakefront, the first of which will come this Saturday against Northwestern State.

McNeese Drubs Privateers; 8th Straight Loss

After a competitive first 12 minutes, McNeese took control and handed the Privateers their eighth consecutive loss, beating New Orleans 78-64 at Lakefront Arena on Saturday.

UNO (4-22, 2-13) played a feisty first half, actually taking a 22-21 lead at the under-8 timeout. From that point on, the visiting Cowboys ripped off a 21-3 run before the break and never looked back, though the Privateers did use a 13-0 second half run to briefly pull back within single digits.

Leland Coleman led New Orleans with 15 points, while Kohen Rowbatham and J.R. Jacobs added 14 each.

The Privateers will again try to notch their first home win of the 2024-25 season on Monday night against Nicholls. UNO lost to the Colonels at Stopher Gym 73-70 earlier this season.