James Makes Senior Night Special With Win Vs. A-State

LITTLE ROCK – One winning streak had to come to an end. On Tuesday night at the Jack Stephens Center, that ended streak belonged to Arkansas State.
 
Shanity James scored a career-high 25 points and added a season-high 14 rebounds on Senior Night, leading the Little Rock women's basketball team to a 71-69 victory Arkansas State and snapping the Red Wolves' 18-game winning streak in the process.
 
Little Rock (17-11, 15-4 Sun Belt Conference) extended its own winning streak to 12 games when it knocked off Arkansas State (24-4, 18-1) and handed them their first loss in Sun Belt Conference play. The teams had already clinched the top two seeds in the league's regular season prior to Tuesday's game.
 
The Trojans led almost the entirety of the game and had a lead as large as 10 in the first quarter. But Arkansas State slowly worked its way back into the game, taking a 63-62 lead with four minutes remaining that marked its first lead since 3-2.
 
But Little Rock was far from done. The teams exchanged the lead once more before a James free throw tied things up at 65-65. A Sharde' Collins jumper got Little Rock ahead 67-65, but the Red Wolves re-tied things at 67-67 after two Gamble free throws.
 
From there, James took over.
 
With 48 seconds showing on the clock and with four fouls to her name, James drove from the 3-point line, knocking down a layup that would put Little Rock ahead 69-67. A-State tied the game again with a Brittney Gill layup, but James answered with one more layup of her own to provide the final score.

The Red Wolves, with one last chance, were unable to get off a shot after inbounding the ball with four seconds showing. The buzzer sounded, and the Trojans celebrated in front of a packed house.
 
James ended the night 10 of 18 from the field, scoring one more point (25) than her previous career high and coming one rebound short (14) of her career high. The double-double she earned was her second straight and her sixth of the year. James also scored 20 points for the eighth time this season.
 
In her final game at the Jack Stephens Center, James also surpassed current assistant coach Alicia Cash on the Trojans' all-time scoring list, moving up to fifth. Her new career total stands at 1,302 points.
 
Not to be outdone, Kaitlyn Pratt picked up a double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds. Collins (13 points) and Alexius Dawn (12) – Little Rock's other senior – also scored in double figures, and Dawn led the team with three steals.
 
As a team, the Trojans shot 48.3 percent in the game and made a season-best 28 field goals.
 
The win was Little Rock's 11th straight home win against Arkansas State and gives the Trojans 15 league wins for the second consecutive year. The Trojans' win was also its ninth straight at home.
 
The first half was as exciting of a half as Jack Stephens Center visitors had seen all season. Little Rock dominated inside, outrebounding Arkansas State 23-12. James had a double-double at the break with 14 points and 10 rebounds, and Pratt was well on the way to her double-double with 10 points and eight rebounds at halftime.
 
The Trojans jumped all over the Red Wolves in the first five minutes. James had 5 points and six rebounds in that span, helping Little Rock to a 13-4 lead at the first media timeout. The Trojans made six of their first 12 shots and held the Red Wolves to a 1-of-7 effort to that point. At the end of the first quarter, Little Rock's lead was eight points at 22-14.
 
In the second quarter, the Arkansas State offense shot slightly better, getting its biggest help from senior Jessica Flanery. She made three 3-pointers in the period, helping cutting Little Rock's lead to just 30-28 late in the half. But the Trojans responded with six of the final eight points in the half, taking a 36-30 edge into the break.
 
The third quarter saw the Red Wolves repeatedly get close to Little Rock, cutting the 6-point halftime lead down to zero with 2:26 left in the quarter. But Little Rock scored 4 of the next 6 points to take a 53-49 lead. A 3-pointer with less than 10 seconds left on the clock by A-State brought the visitors within 1 point at 53-52 entering the final quarter.
 
During the contest, Dawn picked up her 200th career assist, James got her 500th career made field goal and 800th career rebound. Pratt also scored her 600th point.
 
Little Rock closes out the regular season with a road trip to Appalachian State for a Thursday game. The Trojans and Mountaineers will tip off at 4 p.m. central.