Box Score LITTLE ROCK, Ark. ? The UALR men's basketball team (8-8, 3-2 Sun Belt) shot a season-best 61.7 percent from the field on Thursday night to pick up an 86-75 win over North Texas at the Jack Stephens Center. The Mean Green (11-4, 2-2) entered the game ranked 20th in the latest Mid-Major Top-25 Poll by CollegeInsider.com, but fell victim to the Trojans' best offensive performance of the year.
The Trojans closed out the first half on an 11-3 run to take the lead for good, as junior Terrance Akins scored nine of the team's 11 points and accounted for the other two points by feeding senior Rashad Jones-Jennings for a dunk. Down 38-33 in the first half, Akins drained a three pointer then scored a pair of transition baskets off a pair of steals to get the homecourt fans behind the Trojans. After assisting on a dunk by Jones-Jennings, the Little Rock, Ark.-native answered a three pointer by Calvin Watson with a jumper to send UALR into the break with a three-point lead.
Akins finished with 16 points and a career-high six assists, while Jones-Jennings recorded his 10th double-double of the year with game highs of 21 points and 12 rebounds ? marking the eighth-consecutive game the 6-8 forward has reached double figures in rebounds.
Holding a slim three-point lead at the break, 44-41, the Trojans quickly extended their lead to 10 points thanks in part to three pointers from sophomore Lekheythan Malone and freshman Steven Moore. Malone and Moore were two of the four Trojans to score in double figures on Thursday night, as Malone tallied 13 points and four rebounds (while going 3-of-3 from three-point range), and Moore chipped in 10 points and four assists.
A field goal by Jones-Jennings put UALR on top 55-45 with 15:19 remaining, but North Texas answered with a quick 8-0 spurt to pull within two, 55-53. The two teams traded buckets over the next six minutes, with North Texas trailing by just three points, 69-66, following a pair of free throws from Kendrick Davis with 6:33 to play.
With the Mean Green on its heels, UALR got a boost from Malone who sank a pair of free throws then drained a three pointer to extend the Trojans' lead back to eight points, 74-66. Up 77-70 with 2:58 on the clock, sophomore De'Andre Eggins delivered the knockout punch, as his three pointer put UALR ahead 80-70 and squashed any chances of a North Texas comeback.
Eggins, playing in his first game since Dec. 21, finished with nine points and two rebounds in 13 minutes of action. The Alexandria, La.-native went 3-of-5 from the field and 2-of-2 from beyond the arc.
UALR established season highs in multiple categories on Thursday night, as the team set new season bests for field goal percentage (61.7), made three pointers (10), three-point percentage (71.4), and points scored (86). The Trojans racked up 21 assists in the win led by sophomore Buddy Harding's career-high seven assists against just one turnover. Akins added a career-best six assists followed by four from Moore.
Four players scored in double figures for North Texas in the loss, led by a team-high 15 points from Watson. The Mean Green entered the game ranked 13th in the nation in rebounding margin at +8.8 rebounds per game, but were outrebounded 34-to-30 on Thursday night despite leading the rebounding battle 16-to-10 at the half. Senior Byron Ray followed Jones-Jennings' lead with eight rebounds, despite being limited to just 13 minutes because of foul trouble.
UALR returns to action on Saturday when it hosts New Orleans at 7 p.m. The Privateers are led by guard Bo McCalebb, who entered Thursday's game ranked fourth in the country in scoring at 26.1 points per game.
