Sun Belt opponents knew Louisiana-Lafayette would eventually be better after two consecutive losing seasons. They just didn't realize it would happen this soon.

The Ragin' Cajuns entered the season with one of the nation's youngest rosters and picked to finish near the bottom of the Sun Belt West. Instead, they grew up fast through a difficult nonconference schedule and proved to be one of the best surprises of the conference season, earning a share of the Sun Belt West Division title.

"It's a good step for our team in the process," ULL coach Robert Lee told the Lafayette Daily Advertiser. "From where we were a year ago to where we are now speaks volumes to the progress we've made. I think we're on the right track to going to where our program wants to go."

If the Cajuns needed a reminder of how much work they still have to do, they got in their final game of the season when they entered the Sun Belt tournament as the fifth seed and lost 70-60 to 12th-seeded Troy at home in the first round.

"It hurts," sophomore guard La'Ryan Gary said. "Even though it's my first year, I don't like to lose, especially going out like that."

The good news for the Cajuns (15-15, 11-7 Sun Belt) is that they return eight of the 10 players who saw the most minutes and eight of their top nine scorers.

"We'll be picked to finish first next year," sophomore point guard Randall Daigle told the Daily Advertiser, "and the years to follow."

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