Box Score
Hardman leads Trojans past SE Louisiana, 58-48
Dec. 3, 2004
Box score
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- UALR trailed Southeastern
Louisiana by one at the half, but put together a stifling defensive effort
in the second half to take a 58-48 win over the Lions in the first game of
the SMS PriceCutter Classis hosted by Southwest Missouri State University.
With the win, UALR (3-2) will play the winner of Friday's late game
between SMS and Youngstown State at 8 p.m. Saturday.
Richard Hardman led all scorers with 15 points,
while Zack Wright and Columbus Willis scored nine each. Darius Eason and Zack Graber
added eight each for the Trojans.
"This was the first time this season we've gotten
consecutive stops on the defensive end," UALR coach Steve Shields said
after the game.
Southeastern Louisiana, leading 27-26 at the break,
went on a 17-8 run to open the second half and took a 44-36 lead on a
jumper by Nate Lofton with 13:33 remaining. The Trojans quickly cut into
the lead on back-to-back treys by Graber, pulling UALR to within two,
44-42, with 12:01 to play. After a Lion basket by Thomas Woods with 8:49
left, the Trojans shut down SELU. The Lions went scoreless until Neill
Berry hit a jumper with 45 seconds remaining in the game.
UALR held Southeastern's 6-9, 250-pound senior
Lofton to just eight points. He came into the game averaging 15, and
scored 29 in a 65-62 loss at Southern Mississippi on Nov. 24.
The Trojans held an early seven-point lead, 9-2,
with 16:29 to play in the first half, but SELU went on a 7-0 run to go up
by one, 10-9, on a jumper by Ricky Woods with 14:21 left. UALR's Darius
Eason hit consecutive jumpers, and a basket by Willis gave UALR a
three-point advantage, 13-10, with 12:53 remaining.
The Lions answered with baskets from Lofton and
Jonathan Walker to go up 16-15 with 7:58 left and led the rest of the
period.
UALR's Brandon Freeman, who had been averaging 23.5
points a game and at one point was the leading scorer in the country
earlier in the season, was held to seven points on three-of-seven
shooting.
Southeastern Louisiana "did a great job on Freeman,"
Shields said. "They got him frustrated, and he forced some shots."
Graber, who had attempted just six shots so far this
year, went three-of-six from the floor and made two of his four
three-point attempts. In Graber's career at UALR, the Trojans are 9-3 in
games in which he makes a trey.
UALR shot 60.6 percent (23-of-38) from the field and
50 percent (4-of-8) from three-point range. The Trojans made eight of
their 11 free throw attempts, and didn't make a trip to the charity stripe
in the second half until Wright hit a pair with 2:00 left to play.
The Trojans outrebounded the Lions 24-19, and UALR
did not have one of its shots blocked for the first time this season.
Besides his 15 points, Hardman grabbed six rebounds
and has led the team in rebounding every game this season.
