JONESBORO, Ark. – Little Rock (15-2, 5-1 SBC) battled back from a 19-point deficit and had a chance to tie the game in the closing seconds before ultimately falling to Arkansas State (9-8, 5-1 SBC) by a 76-73 final score Monday at the Convocation Center.
The Trojans faced an 18-point halftime deficit and were down 10 with 4:33 to play. The Trojans outscored the Red Wolves 12-5 the rest of the way, pulling within one with 1:16 remaining. Arkansas State called timeout, and Anthony Livingston canned a long 2-point jumper to push the margin back to three, 76-73, with 51 seconds to go.
Both teams came up empty on their next possessions, and a Little Rock rebound following Arkansas State's missed shot with 19 seconds to play gave the Trojans the opportunity for the final shot. The Trojans were unable to convert, however, as Marcus Johnson Jr's 3-point attempt hit off the iron in the closing seconds.
Little Rock outscored Arkansas State 43-28 after halftime, but it wasn't enough to overcome the 18-point hole it dug over the first 20 minutes. The Red Wolves made 18 of 29 shots in the first half, including 6 of 9 from 3-pointt range. Little Rock connected on just 8 of 27 shots and turned the ball over eight times in the first half.
Roger Woods and
Josh Hagins led Little Rock with 16 points each.
Kemy Osse scored a season-high 13 points while
Mareik Isom chipped in 12 on 3-of-6 shooting from 3.
Livingston and Devin Carter scored 20 points each for Arkansas State. Nouhoum Bocoum (11) and Frederic Dure (10) also scored in double figures.
Arkansas State finished the game shooting 50 percent compared to 32.8 percent for the Trojans. Little Rock hit 10 3-pointers and 25 of 30 free throws.
Down 18 at the break, the Trojans began the second half with an 11-0 run that quickly trimmed the margin to seven less than three minutes into the second half. Osse alone was responsible for seven of those points, knocking down four free throws and a 3-pointer to help jump-start the run.
The teams began trading baskets from there, with Arkansas State going back up 10 on two free throws by Sean Gardner with 14:01 on the clock. Another Osse 3-pointer, a Woods basket inside and a 3-point play by
Jalen Jackson got the Trojans within 56-52 – the first time Little Rock's deficit was under five since more than 10 minutes remained in the first half.
Arkansas State answered with a 13-0 spurt to build a 69-52 lead after Livingston's free throws with 7:50 to play. The Trojans started slowly chipping way. Down 11, a 5-0 spurt pulled the Trojans within six after a Hagins 3 made it 71-65 with 3:56 to play.
Four straight points by Hagins – two free throws and a jumper – cut the margin to 73-70 with 2:21 to play. After Donte Thomas split a pair at the line for Arkansas State, Isom hit two free throws for the Trojans and Woods went 1 of 2 at the line to make it 74-73 with 1:16 to play.
Arkansas State finished the night with a 30-16 edge in points in the paint. Little Rock's bench outscored A-State's reserves 42-21.
A 10-0 run starting just before the 10-minute mark of the first half allowed the Red Wolves to turn a 16-15 lead into a 26-15 margin with just under eight minutes to play in the half. ASU's lead grew as large as 12 on a jumper by Carter that made it 28-16 with 5:58 remaining.
A second 10-0 run late in the half grew the Red Wolves lead to 19. After a Woods 3-pointer trimmed the deficit, ASU answered with a jumper and a free throw to get its lead back to 19 with under a minute to play.
Little Rock returns to action on Thursday at Texas State. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m.
