UTA Puts Away Trojans With Second-Half Run

ARLINGTON, Texas – UT Arlington (19-6, 9-3 SBC) used a big second-half run to break open Monday night's game against Little Rock (13-13, 4-9 SBC). The Mavericks pulled away for a 71-55 win at the College Park Center.
 
With Little Rock leading 45-41 following a Deondre Burns jumper at the 13:47 mark of the second half, the Mavericks went on a 16-1 run to build a 57-46 lead with just over seven minutes to play. The Trojans committed five turnovers and missed five straight shots during the UTA spurt.
 
Little Rock pulled within seven twice after the run. The final time, Jalen Jackson's 3-pointer made it 60-53 with 4:42 remaining. UTA answered with the next nine points to put the game out of reach.
 
Marcus Johnson Jr. led Little Rock with 14 points. Burns scored 12 while Hill added 10 points.
 
Jalen Jones and Kevin Hervey paced UTA with 20 points each.
 
The Trojans finished the game shooting 36.7 percent after making 7 of 26 shots in the second half. UT Arlington shot 55.6 percent after halftime and finished at 46.2 percent for the night.
 
Little Rock faced a one-point deficit at halftime as Hervey's offensive board and putback at the horn gave UTA a 30-29 lead.
 
The Trojans led for 8:04 of the opening half. The first 20 minutes saw seven lead changes and five ties, with neither team taking a lead larger than five points.
 
Johnson hit two 3s and totaled eight points to pace the Trojans in the half. Jones scored nine points in the first half to lead UTA.
 
Little Rock is back in action Friday at Arkansas State. The game will be carried on ESPN3 and will tip off at 7:30 p.m.
 
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