LAKE CHARLES, La. — A staunch defensive effort drove fourth-seeded Lamar's 71-57 win over eighth-seeded New Orleans Monday evening in the first quarterfinal matchup of the 2024 Jersey Mike's Southland Conference Championship presented by Explore Louisiana. 

The Cardinals (19-13) will face first-seeded McNeese in Tuesday's semifinal round at 5:30 p.m. on ESPNU. The Privateers end the season with a 10-23 record. 

Terry Anderson poured in 20 points highlighted by a 12-of-12 clip at the foul line. Cody Pennebaker had 13 while seven additional Cardinals contributed to the team's scoring output. 

A triumvirate of Tyson Jackson, Jamond Vincent and Khaleb Wilson-Rouse each had 10 points for New Orleans. The Cardinals limited Jordan Johnson to seven points on three-of-seven shooting after a 34-point outburst against Southeastern in the first round. 

The Privateers jumped out to a 13-4 lead at 14:06 after a Vincent layup but Lamar climbed out of that deficit with a pair of opportunistic plays on the defensive end. 

Errol White and Chris Pryor converted consecutive New Orleans turnovers into layups, bringing the Cardinals within two at 13-11 at 11:04. Lamar scored 15 points off 12 UNO turnovers. 

B.B. Knight connected on a three point shot at 9:47, giving the Cardinals their first lead at 16-14. 

Meanwhile, the Lamar defense zeroed in on Johnson, holding him without a shot attempt until the 6:49 mark of the first half when the guard hit a jumper to bring the Privateers within one at 22-21. 

The Cardinals would close the half on a 10-2 run, possessing a 34-25 edge at halftime. 

Lamar struggled from behind the three-point arc (three-of-16) but made all 11 of its free throws in the first 20 minutes. The four seed would make its first 18 free throws and finished the game 20-of-21 from the line. 

New Orleans pulled within seven at 13:19 in the second half before Anderson put in layups on back-to-back possessions, pushing the lead back to a 10-point margin. 

The eight seed made several short runs in the second half but Lamar had answer each time. Pryor dished out the most emphatic of these responses, finding Pennebaker for an alley-oop dunk that tightened the Cardinals' grasp on the match. 

Pryor finished with seven points, eight assists and two steals. 

Lamar claimed its largest lead at 64-49 and held a double-digit advantage until the final buzzer.