Trojans Hang Tough for 72-67 win at Northern Arizona

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. – Little Rock improved to 9-2 overall and 2-0 in true road games with tonight's 72-67 win at Northern Arizona.
 
With the game tied at the break, Little Rock shot 46. 2 percent from the floor in the second half while holding NAU to 32.3 percent over the same span.
 
Led by Marcus Johnson Jr.'s 15 points, four Trojans finished the game in double figures. Jalen Jackson scored 14 points while Kemy Osse scored 11 and Maurius Hill scored 10. Hill led the Trojans with six rebounds on the night.
 
With the game tied at 60 with 6:02 remaining, Little Rock scored the next six points to build a 66-60 cushion with 3:09 left. Little Rock's defense did not allow Northern Arizona to score a point for nearly four minutes, which extended through the run.
 
NAU pulled within three on a trey by JoJo Anderson with 46 seconds left. But a jumper by Jackson pushed the Trojans' lead back out to five with 20 seconds left.
 
Little Rock led for 17:18 of the first half but went into the break tied at 34 with the Lumberjacks.
 
Northern Arizona took its first lead at the 10:54 mark of the first half on a bucket that put the Lumberjacks up 16-15. The Trojans responded with a 7-0 run that included four points from Ben Marcus to go up 22-16.
 
A 10-0 Little Rock run put Little Rock up 32-21 with 3:21 remaining in the half. But Little Rock hit just 1 of its final 8 shots to close the half while Northern Arizona went 6 of 6 down the stretch to knot the score at 34 apiece.
 
Little Rock is back in action on Monday at Oral Roberts in a game that can be watched on ESPN3. Tipoff is 7 p.m.
 
The 2017 Sun Belt Conference Men's and Women's Basketball Championships are scheduled for a week of March Madness in the Big Easy.  New Orleans will once again be home to the two championships that will take place at Lakefront Arena from March 7-12 and ticket books can now be purchased from your school's ticket office.  For more information, visit the Sun Belt Conference's championship central websites - Men's Championship – Women's Championship – and be sure to follow the #FunBelt on social media - @SunBelt.