LSU gets a chance to face some of the best teams from the Big 12 this weekend when they compete in the Shriners Hospitals for Children College Classic at Minute Maid Park. Tonight, LSU faces top ranked TCU, Saturday undefeated Baylor and Sunday 21st ranked Texas Tech. Tigers Coach Paul Mainieri says this weekend will continue the process of building a championship-caliber team..:
Cut 16 (20) “ball clubs”
All three games will be played at the home of the Houston Astros.

More on the diamond, last night Nicholls State fell to West Virginia 8-1 in Thibodaux.

In the NBA, the Pelicans host the top team in the Southwestern Division, San Antonio. New Orleans only victory since the All-Star break was without their new player, DeMarcus Cousins. Tipoff tonight is 8:30.

Saints Coach Sean Payton addressed trade rumors involving wide receiver Brandin Cooks Thursday at the NFL Combine in Indianapolis. In an interview with NewOrleansSaints.com, Payton said he wouldn’t say Cooks is on the trade block, but that the Saints are always open to offers for any player. ESPN’s Chris Mortensen says the Eagles and Titans are two teams with the most interest in the former first round draft pick.

College hoops, UNO fell to conference foe Southeastern last night 63-58, but since Northwestern State beat Stephen F Austin, 72-67, the Privateers are in sole possession of first place in the league standings. The Lions clinched their fifth straight trip to the Southland Conference Tournament with the win. The Demons stay alive and could get a berth if they win tomorrow against Central Arkansas.
New Orleans will have a chance to win the Southland title outright when the Privateers travel to face Nicholls State on Saturday. Last night the Colonels fell to Lamar, 87-75. A win over UNO would put the Colonels into the tournament.

In the Sun Belt, UL-Lafayette picked up a 94-84 overtime victory over Texas State — a fifth straight win for the Ragin Cajuns. ULM fell to the top ranked team in the league, UT Arlington, 72-57.

Former LSU running back Leonard Fournette spoke with the media today at the NFL Scouting Combine about his weight. Fournette weighed in at 240 pounds, after playing at LSU at 235. The future first-round pick says he’s not worried about the extra weight…
cut 30 (07) “….away completely”
Fournette will run the 40 yard dash tomorrow and he expects to run a 4.4

Former Ragin Cajuns star Elijah McGuire also runs tomorrow. He’s considered one of the top senior running backs in the draft.

The Saints are reportedly looking at trading wide receiver Brandin Cooks. ESPN’s Chris Mortensen says the Eagles and Titans are two teams with the most interest in the former first round draft pick. Cooks has put up good numbers the last couple of seasons, but also has complained about he was used in the Saints offense. New Orleans also has good depth at the wide receiver position with Michael Thomas and Willie Snead.

It could be a special night for the UNO athletic program as the men’s basketball team can become the first sport at that school to win a conference title since Hurricane Katrina. If the Privateers beat Southeastern Louisiana they will clinch at least a share of the Southland title. A win for Southeastern and they’ll clinch a spot in next weeks’ conference tournament in Katy, Texas.

Nicholls is also trying to lock up a spot in the Southland tourney. The Colonels are at Lamar tonight.

In the Sun Belt…the Ragin Cajuns look for their fifth straight win as they host Texas State. While ULM hosts the top team in the league, UT Airlington.

Tomorrow night, the Pelicans host the top team in the Southwestern Division as they host San Antonio. Last night New Orleans defeated Detroit 109-86.

And tonight its the Class Five-A semifinals at the state girls basketball tournament in Hammond. Barbe takes on East St. John, while Natchitoches Central faces Destrehan.

There’s interesting trade news involving the New Orleans Saints today. ESPN’s Chris Mortensen reports the Titans and Eagles are interested in acquiring wide receiver Brandin Cooks, who last year complained about how he was being used in the Saints offense. The former first-round pick still caught 78 passes for 1,173 yards and eight touchdowns. But New Orleans is deep at wide receiver with Michael Thomas and Willie Snead.

The Louisiana Tech baseball team’s 15-game winning steak ended yesterday as 20th ranked Arkansas rallied from a 10-1 deficit to beat the Bulldogs 13-10. Tech will try to start a new winning streak tomorrow when they host Wichita State.

And the LSU men’s basketball team’s 15-game losing streak is over. The Tigers won for the first time since January 4th as they beat Tennessee 92-82 last night on Senior Night. Brandon Sampson led LSU with a career-high 24.

The Pelicans snapped a three-game losing streak by downing Detroit 109-86 last night. Newly acquired all-star center DeMarcus Cousins did not play, because he was serving a one-game suspension from the league for having too many technical fouls over the course of the season. Anthony Davis had 33 points and 14 rebounds for the Pels and Jrue Holiday added 22 points. New Orleans hosts San Antonio tomorrow night.

In college basketball tonight….the Cajuns look for their fifth straight win as they host Texas State. ULM will host U-T Arlington.

In the Southland, first place UNO hosts Southeastern Louisiana. A win over the Lions would give New Orleans at least a share of the conference title. Nicholls is at Lamar. The Colonels currently own the eighth and final spot in the Southland tournament with a couple of games left in the regular season.

If Northwestern State wants to make the Southland tourney, they’ll have to beat Stephen F Austin tonight.

In other action…McNeese is at Sam Houston. Southern visits Prairie View, Grambling hosts Alabama A-and-M and Tulane travels to Memphis.

The Pelicans did it without newly acquired All-Star Demarcus Cousins last night, picking up a 109-86 win over the Pistons at the Smoothie King Center. Cousins had to serve a one game suspension for posting his 18th technical foul on Sunday, but point guard Tim Frazier had the impact on this game. He frustrated Pistons center Andre Drummond into a flagrant two-foul, an automatic ejection. The Pels couldn’t be stopped from there.

They finally won. For the first time in 8 weeks, the LSU men’s basketball team got a victory and it was over Tennessee by a score of 92-82. The Tigers improve to 10-19 on the season, and 2-15 in the SEC. With the victory, the team avoided having their worst SEC record in school history. LSU closes out the regular season Saturday at Mississippi State.

The ULM men’s basketball team opens the final home weekend of the regular season tonight against Sun Belt leader UT Arlington. Also today, Northwestern St. is at Stephen F Austin. Nicholls State is at Lamar. McNeese State is at Sam Houston. Lafayette hosts Texas State. Grambling hosts Alabama A&M. Southeastern is at UNO. Tulane is at Memphis.

The NFL has set its 2017 salary cap at $167 million dollars, according to the players association. The Saints carried over $5.7 million dollars in space from 2016, and currently have about 27.4 which will likely change before free agency as they reportedly plan to release free safety Jairus Byrd which would mean as much as $7.8 million freed up.

Louisiana Tech had their first loss of the season on Wednesday. The Bulldogs fell to No. 20 Arkansas in Ruston, 13-10. The loss snaps a 15-game home winning streak for Tech.

The ULM baseball team got three runs in the top of the 5th inning to take a three run lead, but how bout McNeese. The Cowboys responded with six runs in the bottom of the 5th to retake control on the way to a 14-5 in Lake Charles.

Southeastern couldn’t hold off No. 10 Vanderbilt and the Lions fell 4-2 in Nashville. Tulane dropped a 2-1 contest to Southern Miss on the road.

Today the LSU and Baylor Baseball teams will visit the Shriners Hospitals for Children in Houston. This visit is part of the Shriners Hospitals for Children College Classic taking place this weekend at Minute Maid Park.

The Saints are reportedly set to release high-priced safety Jairus Byrd. Byrd has three years left on a six-year, 54-million dollar contract. The move will save the Saints a reported three-point-two million dollars in cap space.

Making the rounds on a social media is a claim by Saints running back Mark Ingram that he and several other New Orleans’ players were turned away from a club in London for being, “too urban.” Ingram said they had reservations, but the establishment issued a statement saying they would never dismiss anyone based on race, however they’re an exclusive members club where entry is not guaranteed to anyone.

At the NFL Scouting Combine, former LSU running back Leonard Fournette weighed in at 240 pounds. During his time at LSU, Fournette’s listed weight was 235 pounds. He’ll run the 40 and perform in other skill drills on Friday.

And can they pull it off? It’s the final home game of the season tonight for the LSU men’s basketball team. The Tigers are trying to snap a school record 15-game losing streak.

The 2017 football schedules for the Ragin Cajuns and ULM were released today. UL Lafayette will have two Thursday night games, October 12th at home against Texas State and October 19th versus Arkansas State. ULM will have a primetime kick-off to begin the season when they visit Memphis on August 31st.

The Pelicans will look for their first win with DeMarcus Cousins tonight when New Orleans hosts Detroit..but they’ll have to do it without their new All-Star center. Cousins is suspended after receiving his 18th technical foul Sunday. New Orleans is 0-3 since acquiring Cousins, but Head Coach Alvin Gentry is optimistic the victories will come soon…:
Cut 17 (15) “what happens”
Tipoff tonight in the Smoothie King Center is 7pm.

At the NFL Scouting Combine, former LSU running back Leonard Fournette weighed in at 240 pounds. During his time at LSU, Fournette’s listed weight was 235 pounds. He’ll run the 40 and perform in other skill drills on Friday.

The Saints are reportedly set to release high-priced safety Jairus Byrd. Byrd has three years left on a six-year, 54-million dollar contract. The move will save the Saints a reported three-point-two million dollars in cap space. Byrd had two interceptions last season and for the most part failed to make big plays during his three seasons in New Orleans.

The 2017 football schedules for the Ragin Cajuns and ULM were released today. UL Lafayette will have two Thursday night games, October 12th at home against Texas State and October 19th versus Arkansas State. ULM will have a primtime kick-off to begin the season when they visit Memphis on August 31st.

After a four-three win over 20th ranked Arkansas last night, Louisiana Tech hosts the Razorbacks again today at 3 PM. Tech has won 15 straight on its home field, the longest winning streak in college baseball.

Also today, Southeastern Louisiana is at 10th ranked Vanderbilt. The Commodores defeated the Lions 9-6 last night. ULM visits McNeese State. Last night the Warhawks easily defeated Jackson State 10-2.

Also last night, LSU defeated Nicholls State three to two. Greg Deichmann drove in the winning run with a base hit in the 7th inning…
cut 30 (11) “…Deichmann”
LSU now gets ready to play top ranked TCU on Friday night in Houston.

It’s the final home game of the season tonight for the LSU men’s basketball team. The Tigers are trying to snap a school record 15-game losing streak.

And the Pelicans will look for their first win tonight since the DeMarcus Cousins trade when they host the Detroit Pistons. But Cousins will not play tonight. He’s been suspended by the league for tonight’s game for picking up his 18th technical foul.

There were several great college baseball games last night. LSU rallied from a 2-0 deficit to beat Nicholls State three to two. The Tigers bullpen was outstanding as Hunter Kiel, Todd Peterson, Caleb Gilbert and Hunter Newman pitched at least one inning and did not give up a run. Greg Deichmann’s RBI single in the seventh was the difference.

Lousiaina Tech is still undefeated after beating 24th ranked Arkansas four to three. That’s also 15 straight wins at JC Love Field. There were over 31-hundred fans who watched this game as Chase Lunceford and Jonathan Washam each drove in two runs. Graham Ahlrich tossed three shutout innings to get the win.

The 16th ranked Cajuns outlasted Northwestern State eight to six in 12 innings. First baseman Alex Pinero was 2-for-5 with a home run and 3 RBI.

Southeastern Lousiaina had a three-run lead over 10th ranked Vanderbilt in the 5th inning, but the Commodores hit three home runs to win nine to six.

The Saints will reportedly release free safety Jairus Byrd when the free agence period begins on March 9th. The move would save New Orleans three-point-two million dollars against the salary cap. The Black and Gold signed Byrd to a six-year, 54-million dollar contract in 2014, but injuries kept him from being that playmaker the Saints thought they were getting.

The Pelicans will look to get their first win tonight since trading for All-Star center DeMarcus Cousins. In the three games since the deal, Cousins and fellow All-Star Anthony Davis have put up big numbers. Cousins says he’s spoken to A-D about getting their supporting cast going…
cut 19 (19) “…of time”
But Cousins will not be in the line-up tonight against the Pistons He’s suspended after receiving his 18th technical foul in Sunday’s loss to Oklahoma City.

The NFL Scouting Combine is underway in Indianapolis as draft-eligible football players begin talking with other teams. Draft Analyst Mike Detillier says outside linebacker Duke Riley is moving up the draft boards the fastest out of the former Tigers. He says the Buras native was an unknown player before the start of the 2016 season, now he has a chance to be a second-or-third round pick if he runs well in the 40-yard dash….
cut 18 (17) “….at LSU”
A total of 10 players from LSU are at the Combine, including Jamal Adams and Leonard Fournette. Both players have a chance at being a top five pick.

The schedule for SEC Media Days came out today and LSU Head Coach Ed Orgeron will meet with hundreds of reporters on Monday, July 10th just outside of Birmingham, Alabama.

Fourth ranked LSU hosts Nicholls State tonight at Alex Box Stadium. The Tigers will see left-hander Mike Hanchar on the mound tonight. He threw seven shutout innings against the Ragin Cajuns last week.

16th ranked UL Lafayette is at Northwestern State. Both teams are 3-and-3 on the season.

Louisiana Tech’s baseball game against Arkansas at J-C Love Field is sold out tonight. Both teams are undefeated.

Elsehwere, ULM is at Jackson State and Southeastern Louisiana begins a two-game series against 14th ranked Vanderbilt.

ULM athletics director Brian Wickstrom is reportedly a finalist for the A-D job at Sacramento State.

At the girls basketball tournament in Hammond…top seeded Houma Christian advanced to the Division Four State championship game with a come from behind 49-46 win over Southern Lab. Houma Christian will face Lafayette Christian in the title game as the Lady Knights were vistorious over Vermilion Catholic 48-38.

The NFL Scouting Combine begins today in Indianapolis and Draft analyst Mike Detillier says wide receiver Malachi Dupre has the most to gain out of the former LSU Tigers, because the former John Curtis star had trouble catching passes early in 2016…
cut 17 (19) “…quarterback play”
Detillier says a good performance during the scouting combine and at LSU pro day could result in Dupre being taken in the second or third round.

In other football news…LSU basketball player Brad Bridgewater says he might try out for the football team. He played tight end in high school.

And Mississippi State Football Coach Dan Mullen has agreed to a four-year contract extension.

The fourth ranked LSU baseball team will host Nicholls State tonight. Freshman right-hander Zack Hess will start for the Tigers, the Colonels will counter with senior left-hander Mike Hanchar. Coach Paul Mainieri announced yesterday that reliever Doug Norman is done for the season as he’ll need elbow surgery on his throwing arm.

Two undefeated teams are undefeated meet in Ruston tonight as Louisiana Tech hosts Arkansas in a game that can be seen on CST. ULM is at Jackson State, the 16th ranked Cajuns are at Northwestern State and Southeastern Louisiana begins a two-game series at Vanderbilt.

In college hoops, Frank Bartley had 21 points and five steals as the Cajuns defeated Appalachian State 77-62 as UL Lafayette is now 8-8 in the Sun Belt. ULm lost to Coastal Carolina 77-72.

And Warhawks athletic director Brian Wickstrom is reportedly a finalist for the athletic director job at Sacramento State. Wickstorm has led ULM athletics the last three years.

LSU is off to a 7-1 start after sweeping Maryland. One of the big surprises so far has been freshman Rankin Woley from Atlanta. He’s five-for-11 at the plate and Coach Paul Mainieri says Woley is making the case for more playing time…
cut 20 (19) “…about that”
Mainieri announced today that junior relief pitcher Doug Norman will miss the remainder of the season. Mainieri says Norman needs surgery on his elbow. He left the game in obvious pain after throwing a pitch in yesterday’s 9-5 win against Maryland.

Louisiana Tech pitcher Nate Harris has been named Conference USA Pitcher of the Week. The senior from San Antonio earned a win and two saves for the undefeated Bulldogs, who host nationally-ranked Arkansas tomorrow night.

Nicholls’ center Liam Thomas has been named the Southland Conference Men’s Basketball player of the week. The seven-footer from Australia recorded a triple-double against UIW last week and had 11 points and five blocked shots in a victory over Southeastern on Saturday.

There’s some college basketball games on the schedule tonight. Grambling looks to win its fourth in a row as they visit Mississippi Valley State. ULM is at Coastal Carolina. The Warhawks are trying for back-to-back wins for the second time this season. And UL Lafayette is at Appalachian State. The Cajuns have won three in a row.

The 13th ranked UL Lafayette baseball team won its series with 18th ranked Sam Houston State over the weekend. Southeastern Louisiana won its weekened series over 21st ranked Rice. The Lions defeated the Owls 12 to four yesterday. Former John Curtis star Evan Hileman pitched four shutout innings in relief to get the win. The Lions begin a two-game series at 10th ranked Vanderbilt tomorrow night.