By RYAN ARENA

Sports Editor

Country Day senior forward Eddie Ludwig has burned many opponents in his career with Cajuns. On Monday, East St. John was the latest.

The 6’8 LSU signee scored 28 points to lead his team over the Wildcats, 68-50 at Country Day.

“He created matchup problems for us,” said East St. John Coach Yussef Jasmine. “He can handle the ball and pass really well. I think our defense underestimated him a little bit.”

Ludwig and teammate Matt Derembecker, who scored 19, each gave East St. John’s interior players something extra to think about when defending the lane.

“They drew our big guys out into screen and roll situations,” said Jasmine. “They were able to get into it real quick and we didn’t recognize it as fast as we needed to.

“Defensively, our guys need to be able to see their man and the ball, not just where the ball is.”

Malcom Lago led East St. John (3-4) with 12 points. Kaylon Placide and Brandon Robinson each added eight.

Country Day led by eight after a quarter and took a 37-27 lead into halftime.

The Cajuns (5-0) all but secured the win in the third, though, after holding ESJ to five points while scoring 20 of their own. It was 57-32 after three quarters, and Country Day was off to another victory.

“We got out of sync offensively,” said Jasmine. “They made a big push. We turned it over, and most of those were unforced. They converted them.”

The Wildcats were slated for a pair of tough back-to-back matchups. Friday, ESJ hosted Class 5A runner-up H.L. Bourgeois. On Tuesday, the Wildcats will host Class C champion Reserve Christian at 7 p.m.