Little Rock Opener, Homecoming Set for Saturday

Game Notes | Game Day Information | Live Stats | Live Video

GM1: Little Rock (0-0) vs. Central Baptist (2-0)
Saturday, Nov. 14 | 3 p.m. (CST)
Little Rock, Ark. | Jack Stephens Center
Live Video: LRTrojans.com
Live Stats: LRTrojans.com
Radio: The Point 94.1 FM
Talent: Ray Tucker (PxP) and Bobby Vint (Analyst)
 
LITTLE ROCK – Head coach Chris Beard and the Little Rock men's basketball team opens the 2015-16 season at home on Saturday, Nov. 14 at the Jack Stephens Center vs. Central Baptist. Tipoff is set for 3 p.m.
 
Prior to Saturday's season opener, with will also serve as the University of Arkansas at Little Rock's Homecoming, a Trojan Alley Tailgate will run from 11 a.m.-2:30 p.m. in Lot 13 East of the Jack Stephens Center. Nine food trucks will be on site along with over 20 campus and student groups. Tailgating activities are encouraged.
 
The first 500 students to the tailgate will receive a free rally towel and shirt. The first 750 students will receive a free meal voucher courtesy of the Chancellor's Office. Signal media will be on site for a live remote during the tailgate. The brand new Kids Zone will be active in Fisher Court during Saturday's game.
 
Single-game tickets for Little Rock basketball start at $7 and are available online at LRTrojans.com or by calling 565-UALR. Season ticket packages start as low as $99. Mini season ticket packages are also available for non-conference, conference and special Pack the Jack games.
 
Quick Hits
• The Little Rock men's basketball team's 78th season will start a new era as head coach Chris Beard becomes the 21st head coach in program history and the ninth of its Division I era.
• Little Rock hosts Central Baptist College at the Jack Stephens Center on Saturday, Nov. 14 at 3 p.m.
• Beard comes to Little Rock after two seasons at Angelo State, where he went 47-15 and led ASU to the 2015 NCAA Division II Sweet Sixteen and No. 19 national ranking in 2014-15.
• Beard was named the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) South Central Region and Lone Star Conference Coach of the Year after leading Angelo State to a program-record 28 wins in the 2014-15 season.
• Beard sports a record of 141-45 (.758) in six seasons as a head coach.
• Little Rock's 2015-16 roster features 10 newcomers, including seven with immediate eligibility.
• Little Rock returns four lettermen and three redshirt players from its 2014-15 squad.
• Seniors Josh Hagins and Roger Woods were both tabbed as Preseason All-SBC selections.
 
Little Rock in Home Openers
Little Rock is 34-2 in home openers since making the move to Division I in 1978-79. The Trojans' only losses over that span came against Oklahoma State (Nov. 23, 1999) and North Florida (Nov. 11, 2013).
 
Preseason Honors
Seniors Josh Hagins and Roger Woods were both voted Preseason All-Sun Belt selections by the league's coaches.
 
A Preseason Second Team All-SBC pick, Hagins averaged a team-high 12.1 points to go along with 4.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.7 steals per contest a season ago. His numbers were good enough to rank 14th in the Sun Belt in scoring, eighth in assists, third in free throw percentage (.833), seventh in steals and fifth in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.9). He led Little Rock with 93 assists and a career-high 52 steals while scoring in double figures 20 times, including 14 of 16 to close the season.
 
A Preseason Third Team All-SBC pick, Woods averaged 11.9 points, 6.5 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 26.4 minutes per game as a junior in 2014-15. A criminal justice major, he scored in double figures 20 times and grabbed double-figure rebounds a team-high six times. His five double-doubles all came against Sun Belt opponents, including 16 points and 10 rebounds vs. South Alabama in the conference tournament.
 
Hagins in Elite Company
Josh Hagins enters his final season at Little Rock as one of just 20 players in program history to score 1,000 career points. Hagins is among the program's career top-10 for free throw shooting percentage, steals and assists. Hagins is one of just three players in program history – along with Little Rock Trojan Athletic Hall of Famers Derek Fisher and Vaughn Williams – with 1,000 points, 300 assists and 125 steals.
 
Little Rock TV Games
Little Rock currently boasts eight TV games on its 2015-16 schedule.
 
Little Rock's game at San Diego State (Nov. 21) will be on Fox Sports San Diego; its game at DePaul on Dec. 12 will be on Fox Sports 1; and its game at Texas Tech on Dec. 22 will be on Fox Sports Southwest.
 
Five of Little Rock's games will be on ESPN3, including its matchup at Tulsa (Nov. 28), at Arkansas State (Jan. 18), vs. Georgia State (Jan. 30), at Georgia State (Feb. 18) and at Appalachian State (March 3).
 
Radio/TV Shows
For the first time, all of Little Rock's 2015-16 men's basketball games will be carried on The Point 94.1 FM.
 
The move to 94.1 FM will give fans across the state the chance to tune into the Trojans' games. Live audio will also be streamed online at KKPT.com.
 
The Chris Beard and Joe Foley Radio Show will be carried on 103.7 The Buzz from 8-9 p.m. on Monday nights. The show begins Jan. 4.
 
Additionally, The Chris Beard Television Show will be televised at 10:30 p.m. on Wednesdays on CW Arkansas. The show begins Jan. 6.
 
Academic Success
The Little Rock men's basketball team boasts an excellent Graduation Success Rate, earning a score of 92 percent that is nearly 20 points above the national average and 16 points better than any other Division I team in the state.

The Little Rock Department of Athletics as a whole posted the highest GSR (86 percent) among Arkansas' Division I schools for the fifth time in six years.
 
Up Next
Little Rock will host Centenary on Wednesday, Nov. 18 as the front end of a doubleheader with the Little Rock women's team. Tipoff is set for 5:15 p.m.