Two days earlier, DJ Richards promised a new-look Cowboys crew would emerge from their holiday break.

Saturday afternoon, he and his teammates delivered.

Despite being down two starters, McNeese looked very much like the squad everyone expected. They opened Southland Conference play with an easy 86-61 win over New Orleans.

The win came as the Cowboys (7-5, 1-0) began defense of their league championship.

“We set the tone for the league that we are not here to play around,” said senior Javhon Garcia. “We are here to be the top seed.”

The victory was McNeese’s 22nd in its last 23 home games as UNO fell to 2-10, 0-2.  It was also the Cowboys’ 12th straight win and 19th in their last 20 within the Southland.

McNeese was the last team in the conference to open league play, and the Cowboys wasted little time showing they are still the favorites. 

“Good to start the league 1-0,” said McNeese head coach Will Wade. “We were better than we have been but nowhere near where we want to be.”

Richards snapped out of his shooting doldrums to hit seven 3-pointers on his way to a season-high 21 points. That led five Cowboys who finished in double figures. 

Richards hit seven of his 16 shots, all from long range, as McNeese hit 11 as a team.

“We went home and when you see your family, it gives you new vibes,” said Richards. “That showed.”

Garcia added 16 points, while Joe Charles tossed in 13 for the Cowboys, who finished with 19 assists on their 32 field goals. Quadir Copeland, who started for Omar Cooper at point guard, had 10 assists to go with his 11 points for his second double-double of the season.

Richards was starting for Brandon Murray, who was out with a knee issue. Cooper was out because of a problem with his appendix that sent him to the hospital Saturday morning.

Sincere Parker was limited to just over 10 minutes and no points while being slowed by illness. Cooper is out for Monday’s showdown with Southeastern in the Legacy Center, while Parker and Murray are both questionable.

With Cooper’s status up in the air and Alyn Breed still out, McNeese lifted the redshirt off of sophomore T’Johnn Brown. Expected to sit out the season, Brown played 16:58 against the Privateers and finished with seven points and two assists. 

“He has earned the right to do this,” Wade said of Brown. “This is not some cute one-game story; he is in the rotation right now.”

Brown and Copeland helped the Cowboys play much faster than they had, jumping out to an early 16-3 lead. Garcia (10) and Richards scored all the McNeese points.

Both hit a pair of threes in the opening six minutes to jumpstart the Cowboys. It was a turnaround for a team that came into the game in the bottom 11 percent of the nation in 3-point shooting. 

Richards entered Saturday making just 30% this year after hitting 45% last season. However, Richards never lost his confidence.

“Don’t be confused by stats,” he said. “My shot never left.”

The Cowboys led 46-23 at halftime and never looked back. Their lead swelled to 61-31 with 15:07 remaining on back-to-back 3-pointers by Richards.

James White, the conference’s leading scorer and rebounder, finished with 20 points and 10 rebounds for New Orleans.

McNeese will now prepare for Southeastern (6-6, 0-1). Last year, the Lions were the only SLC team to beat the Cowboys. 

“They are a much better team this season,” Wade said. “They are a good team with about 10 days to prepare for us.”