| Game 27: Little Rock at Arkansas State |
| Date |
Saturday, February 17, 2018 |
| Time |
7:00 p.m. |
| Location |
Jonesboro, Ark. |
| Arena |
First National Bank Arena |
| Records |
Little Rock (5-21, 2-11 SBC)
Arkansas State (9-17, 4-9 SBC) |
| Watch |
ESPN3 |
| Radio |
The Point 94.1 FM |
| Stats |
TrojanStats.com |
| Notes |
Little Rock | Arkansas State |
OPENING TIP
Little Rock's three-game road swing wraps up with the second-shortest road trip of the season, making the 137-mile trek to northeast Arkansas to take on rival Arkansas State in Jonesboro on Saturday, February 17. Tip-off against the Red Wolves is scheduled for 7 p.m. as the game will stream live on
ESPN3 and through the WatchESPN app. Ray Tucker and Kevin Crass will have the call of the rivalry showdown from the First National Bank Arena on The Point 94.1 FM and online at
KKPT.com, getting underway at 6:45 p.m.
EASY STREET
After Little Rock's road travels this season, the 137-mile trip to Jonesboro will be a welcome reprieve from long travel days. The trip to northeast Arkansas is the second-shortest road trip of the season, second only to the 34-mile trip to Conway against Central Arkansas. To date, Little Rock has racked up over 11,000 miles on the road, playing games in 11 different states  and four different time zones during the 2017-18 campaign.
TOUGH ROAD TO HOE
Not only has Little Rock's road games taken them across the country, the Trojans have faced some tough challenges along the way. Little Rock's 12 road opponents have a combined record of 197-147 (.573) as 11 of the 13currently sit at .500 or better on the season. Eight of the Trojans' road foes have registered at least 15 victories, led by Georgia State's 19 wins on the year, with Mississippi State and Bradley each adding 18 wins. Grand Canyon has notched 17 victories, followed by San Diego, Sam Houston State and Georgia Southern with 16 and Memphis at 15 victories.
PREVIEWING THE RED WOLVES
2017-18: 9-17 overall, 4-9 Sun Belt Conference (11th), 6-5 at home
Last Three Games: L at South Alabama (87-67); L at Troy (89-83, OT); W vs. Georgia Southern (91-89)
Head Coach: Mark Balado (St. Thomas, 1998). First season at Arkansas State (9-17, .346)
ARKANSAS STATE SCOUTING REPORT
Arkansas State enters Saturday's game sitting 11th in the Sun Belt Conference, dropping their last two road games at South Alabama and Troy. The Red Wolves are averaging 73.7 points per game but giving up 78.2 points per game, ranking last in the conference. Arkansas State has been efficient from both the floor (44.1%) and the free throw line (70.9%), ranking fifth in the conference in both categories, but rank last in opponent field goal percentage (48.9%) and 11th in three point field goal percentage defense (36.8%). The Red Wolves are led by Ty Cockfield's 13.5 points per game with Grantham Gillard (9.5) and Tamas Bruce (9.3) both averaging over nine points per game. Similar to Little Rock, Arkansas State dismissed their leading scorer last week as Deven Simms was averaging 17.1 points and 6.1 rebounds per game.
SERIES HISTORY
Little Rock and Arkansas State renew the longest standing rivalry in program history, meeting for the 87th time Saturday. Beginning in the 1927-28 season, the Red Wolves hold a 53-33 edge in the all-time series and have won four of the last five, including the 70-62 win over the Trojans on January 17, their third-straight. The Trojans are 21-12 all-time against their in-state rivals in Little Rock, including an 8-5 record against the Red Wolves at the Jack Stephens Center.
LAST TIME OUT
Little Rock dug itself a big hole early and never recovered, dropping an 82-64 decision at Troy Saturday afternoon. A pair of extended runs by Troy gave it a  12-point halftime lead, then the home Trojans used a 16-4 run in the second half to pull away. The loss overshadowed career-nights for both
Jaizec Lottie and
K.J. Gilmore, who finished with 17 and 10 points, respectively, as Lottie went 11-of-14 from the free throw line.
TROJANS-RED WOLVES, PART ONE
Little Rock held the early advantage in its rivalry game against Arkansas State, racing out to a 19-6 lead at the midway point of the first half. But the Red Wolves shot 56.5 percent from three-point range and the Trojans couldn't keep pace, dropping a 70-62 decision to their in-state rivals. Little Rock made just 29.4 percent of its three-point attempts, making just one of its last 13 and going 0-for-7 in the second half.
ON YOUR MARC-US
Junior
Ben Marcus has quietly emerged as a reliable presence in the paint for Little Rock this season. Marcus has made 58 of his 79 shots on the year, a 73.4 percent shooting average, which would lead the Sun Belt if he had met the minimum. The Pine Bluff native currently would shatter the Trojans' single season field goal percentage record of .650, set by Ryan Moss in 1997-98, but needs to take 11 more shots over the final five-plus games of the season to reach the 90 field goals attempted minimum.
ROCKY MOUNTAIN HIGH
Freshman
Jaizec Lottie posted his best game in a Trojan uniform Saturday, finishing with a career-high 17 points while going 11-of-14 from the free throw line, the most free throws made in a game since Ben Dillard in 2015 - ironically, against Troy. Lottie has been a constant for Little Rock in his freshman season, leading the team in both assists (75) and steals (26) while ranking third in both points (168) and minutes (636).
HITTING THE GROUND RUNNING
The four true freshmen on Little Rock's 2017-18 roster haven't had much time to settle into things as all four have been relied upon early and often. The quartet of
Cameron Corcoran,
Jaizec Lottie,
Damir Hadzic and
Kris Bankston have combined to play 1,698 minutes already this season, accounting for 32.2% of the Trojans' 5,275 minutes. The freshmen foursome enter the game Saturday averaging 20.0 points per game, which is 31.6% of Little Rock's offensive production, as Lottie, Hadzic and Bankston have combined for 46 starts this season.
HEARTBREAK HOTEL
Little Rock's youth has been telling down the stretch in close games this season as the Trojans are 0-6 in games in which there has been a one possession differential in the final minute of the game, including two overtime defeats and two games in which Little Rock has lost on an opposing basket at the buzzer. Aiding those defeats has been the Trojans' struggles from the free throw line as the Trojans currently rank 350th in free throw percentage (60.7%) among the 351 NCAA Division I teams. Additionally, the Trojans have had 10 of their opponents hit a shot in the final three seconds of a half this season, occurring eight times right before the halftime break.
PLAYING CATCH-UP
In the Trojans' five victories in 2017-18, Little Rock has held the lead for an average of 33:42 and has not trailed at any point in each of the last three wins over University of the Ozarks, ULM and UT Arlington. On the flip side, in the games the Trojans have lost this season, Little Rock has held the lead for an average of 9:30 and has found itself trailing by double digits on 16 occasions. Falling behind has proven costly for the Trojans this season as Little Rock has not won a game in which it has trailed at any point since rallying from 16-points down to defeat Central Arkansas 71-65 on November 29, 2017.
SEEKING THEIR ROAD TOUCH
The Trojans head to Jonesboro in search of their first victory away from the Jack this season. Little Rock is 0-13 in road games this season, extending its winless streak in true road games to 14-straight, while winning just one of its last 22 in enemy territory. Little Rock's last win away from the Jack Stephens Center came in a 62-57 against South Alabama in Mobile on March 2, 2017.
OFF THE SCHNEID
Little Rock is hoping to find a win in Troy, Alabama this Saturday and bring to an end its eight-game losing streak. The eight-game skid is the longest since the Trojans endured an eight-game losing streak from December 12, 2009 to January 16, 2010. Little Rock is hoping to steer clear of its 16-game losing streak from December 21, 1999 to February 21, 2000, the longest during the Division I era. The task may seem somewhat daunting for the Trojans who have lost 15-straight games away from the Jack Stephens Center as Little Rock plays three of its final five games on the road.
THE STRETCH RUN
Little Rock enters the stretch run of the 2017-18 season next week, playing its final two home games at the Jack Stephens Center this season. The first of those will take place Thursday, February 22, when the Trojans welcome Coastal Carolina to Little Rock for a 7 p.m. tip.Â
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