Johnson jams up UNO
Published 6:56 pm Saturday, January 24, 2026
Cowboys stay game behind SFA with win
Larry Johnson keeps getting better, and it seems the rest of the Cowboys are, too.
Saturday afternoon, Johnson led a complete performance by McNeese on a wet inside Townsley Law Arena.
The redshirt freshman filled the stats sheet in the Cowboys’ 82-63 victory that kept McNeese one game behind Stephen F. Austin in the Southland Conference race. SFA survived a scare at Lamar, 88-81.
“Proud of our effort,” said McNeese head coach Bill Armstrong. “This game it was for all 40 minutes. It speaks of what we are capable of.”
The victory was the 23rd in a row at home for the Cowboys and the 30th straight against Southland opponents on their home floor over the last three seasons. They are 43-1 over the last three years in Lake Charles.
“You could feel the energy today,” said Johnson. “I get excited when I wake up, and we are playing at home.”
It showed as Johnson was in control from the start, when he went to the basket to score the game’s first points 35 seconds after the opening tip.
“I’m just better going to the rim, so I focused on that,” said Johnson.
The transfer from Creighton finished with a game-high 26 points, the most against a Division I team in his career and second-most overall. He had 30 in the season opener against Champion Christian.
Johnson made 9-of-15 shots from the floor and all eight of his free throws. He also grabbed eight rebounds, dished out five assists, and had two steals without committing a turnover.
“I don’t know if I have seen a kid make as much progress in eight months as Larry has,” said Armstrong. “He can do so many things, and I don’t think he has scratched the surface as to what he can become.”
Johnson also has a flair for the spectacular, as shown with his dunk off a lob pass from Garwey Dual in the first half. It was the best of his three slams.
“If Garwey’s eyes get bigger, I know just to go up to the rim,” said Johnson. “He is a great passer.”
Dual finished with 14 points while fighting a stomach bug. Tyshawn Archie added 10 and four assists.
Coleton Benson led New Orleans with 23 points, hitting 5-of-9 on 3-pointers.
“He can shoot,” said Johnson. “One time we ran two guys on him, and he still hit it.”
However, one hot shooter had no chance against a bunch of Cowboys who were sharing the basketball.
McNeese had 18 total assists on 26 made shots. The Cowboys also outrebounded UNO 41-29 and turned 23 Privateer turnovers into 31 points.
“It is not an easy thing to do, crash the boards the entire game,” said Armstrong. “I give them all the credit. I thought our press looked really, really good.”
McNeese led 42-34 at halftime and then broke the Privateers (7-13, 5-6) in the final 14 minutes. UNO managed just 12 points over that time while the Cowboys scored 25.
“That’s what we do,” said Armstrong. “That’s what we are built for.”
And the Cowboys want to keep building down the stretch.
