LITTLE ROCK – Some home cooking did Little Rock some good as the Trojans raced out to an early 11-point lead on the University of the Ozarks and never looked back, routing the Eagles 94-49 at the Jack Stephens Center.
The win snaps Little Rock's four-game losing skid as the Trojans improve to 3-9 on the year. It was the largest margin of victory for Little Rock since a 100-36 victory over Southwestern on November 25, 2000.
Little Rock had 12 different players score in the victory, four of which finished in double figures and three of them notching career-bests.
Anthony Black led the charge with a career-high 19 points, including hitting 5-of-7 from beyond the three-point line, followed by 14 points from both
Ben Marcus and
Ryan Pippins.
Cameron Corcoran was the fourth Trojan in double figures, adding 12 points on 4-of-7 shooting from beyond the arc. Two others nearly joined the club as
Damir Hadzic added nine points with
Oliver Black finishing with eight to complement his game-high 11 rebounds.
Andre Jones,
Jaizec Lottie and
K.J. Gilmore all added four points for Little Rock with
Wadly Mompremier,
Brandon Brady and
Kris Bankston adding two points each. For the game, the Trojans shot 52.9 percent from the floor, hitting 36 of their 68 attempts, while making a season-high 12 three-pointers off 30 attempts (40.0 percent).
The Trojans also dominated in the paint, outscoring Ozarks 46-10 and holding a 44-25 edge in rebounding. Behind the 11 boards from Black, Marcus added six, his new career-best, with Bankston also setting a new personal-best with five.
Corcoran also dished out a career-high six assists in the Trojan victory, aided by four from Lottie and three apiece from five other Trojans as Little Rock recorded assists on 26 of its 36 baskets. Lottie also registered five steals for Little Rock as the Trojans held a 14-1 advantage on the night as Bankston led all players with a pair of blocks.
For the first time all season, the Trojans never trailed in the game, scoring the first five points and never looked back. Little Rock built a 22-9 lead at the 11:29 mark off a lay-up from Pippins, holding Ozarks scoreless for nearly three and a half minutes in the process.
The Eagles made a run at the midway point of the half, outscoring Little Rock 10-2 over the next 3:36 to cut the Trojan lead to just five at 24-19. But that was as close as Ozarks could claw as Little Rock outscored the Eagles 21-6 to close out the half, including the final 13 points of the opening stanza, to take the 45-25 lead into the locker room.
Seven different Trojans scored in the opening 20 minutes but Little Rock asserted its authority inside, outrebounding the Eagles 25-6. O. Black had more rebounds (eight) than the entire Ozark team (six), six of which were offensive boards.
Little Rock's new found shooting touch continued into the second half, highlighted by back-to-back threes for the first time all season, pushing the Trojans' lead to a season-high 28 at 58-30 with 15:56 remaining.
The lead continued to grow, ultimately ending in the 45-point victory for the Trojans. The 94 points was the most for a Little Rock team since last season's 100-61 victory over Ozarks.
The victory marks the 12th-straight in the series for Little Rock, dating back to the 1968-69 season. The Trojans are now 26-11 all-time against the Eagles and improve to 3-3 at the Jack Stephens Center in 2017-18.
Little Rock now closes out the non-conference portion of its schedule in SEC country, traveling to Starkville, Mississippi for a showdown with Mississippi State Wednesday, December 20. The Bulldogs are 9-1 this season, including a 9-0 record at home, and are receiving votes in this week's USA Today Coaches Poll. Opening tip from Humphrey Coliseum is set for 7 p.m. as the game will be televised on SEC Network + as well as through the WatchESPN app.
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