hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with 51.8 seconds remaining and the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns advanced to the Women's Basketball Invitational semifinals after defeating in-state rival McNeese State, 63-58, before a capacity crowd on Saturday at Earl K. Long Gym.scored a career-high 29 points and became the 15th player in school history to eclipse the 1,000-point mark in her career as Louisiana (21-12), the No. 2 seed in the West Region, advance to face the winner on Monday's contest between top-seeded New Mexico and fifth-seeded Oral Roberts.Louisiana, which led by as many as 15 points in the second half, led for over 39 minutes in the game before sixth-seeded McNeese State (18-14) trimmed a 10-point deficit with 9:14 left and took its first lead of the game when Talisa Boyd scored on a jumper with 1:26 left for a 56-55 advantage.Aftersank a pair of free throws that put Louisiana ahead on the following possession, McNeese reclaimed the lead when Victoria Rachal rebounded a missed jumper by Allison Baggett and scored for a 58-57 lead with 1:00 remaining.But Gordon, the Ragin' Cajuns top long-range shooter, buried her only 3-pointer of the night when her bucket from the right wing gave Louisiana a 60-58 lead it would not relinquish.The Ragin' Cajuns defense then kept McNeese State off the board for its final two possessions as Jayln Johnson was called for an offensive foul with :28 seconds left andlater stepped in front of a Baggett pass and was fouled with 1.8 seconds remaining.Louisiana built a 16-6 lead with 11:26 remaining in the first half on a jumper byand extended it to 25-12 when Wilridge buried a jumper in the lane. The Cowgirls chipped away at the lead, getting as close as 27-23 on a bucket by Jasmyn Carswell with 2:57 remaining in the first half, but the Ragin' Cajuns closed out the half with a 7-0 run that began with a three-point play fromGordon added a jumper for the Ragin' Cajuns and Wilridge drove the lane for a layup that gave Louisiana a 34-23 lead at the break.Veal, who finished 12-for-21 from the floor and grabbed a game-high eight rebounds, increased her career scoring total to 1,011 points. The junior added three steals for the Ragin' Cajuns, who forced 16 turnovers and shot 25-for-52 (48.1 percent) from the floor.Johnson scored 20 points, including a 12-for-14 performance from the free throw line, to lead McNeese State. Baggett added 11 points for the Cowgirls with Mercedes Rogers pulling down a team-high five rebounds. The Cowgirls finished 21-for-44 (47.7 percent) from the floor, 15-for-18 from the free throw line and held a 29-26 advantage on the glass.