LITTLE ROCK – The Trojan women's basketball team will wrap up its home schedule with two league games this week, starting with a game against Georgia Southern at the Jack Stephens Center on Thursday at 6:30 p.m.
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The game against the Eagles will be Little Rock's annual Play4Kay Pink Game to raise funds and awareness for breast cancer. This year's game will be sponsored by Karen and Denny Ferra.
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Fans will have an opportunity to watch the first-place Trojans at a discounted rate. Anyone wearing pink to the contest will be able to purchase a ticket for just $1. Fans not wearing pink can also purchase any regular-price ticket and receive a second ticket for just $1 more. The Trojans will be wearing pink gear during warmups, and pink merchandise will be on sale at the game with proceeds benefiting breast cancer research. Pink bracelets will also be given out while supplies last.
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With the season coming to a close shortly, each game could bring the Trojans closer to clinching a Sun Belt regular-season championship. With two victories this week, the Trojans will clinch at least a share of the regular-season championship. Little Rock can also clinch the outright championship and the league's No. 1 seed with two wins and one loss from Troy.
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With a single win this week regardless of other outcomes, Little Rock would wrap a first-round bye for the Sun Belt Conference Tournament and not have to play until the second round.
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Little Rock enters Thursday's game after a huge victory over in-state rival Arkansas State. The Trojans held the Red Wolves to just 35 points in the game, their lowest total ever in the series that spans more than four decades.
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The Trojans are receiving two points in this week's USA Today Coaches Poll, back in the poll after missing out last week. And Little Rock also remains No. 19 in the Mid Major Top 25 while having a national RPI of 48, the best in the Sun Belt.
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After beginning league play 1-4, the Eagles are one of the hottest teams in the conference, winning five of their last seven games. They are 8-7 in the league and currently sixth in the standings. Georgia Southern's RPI is 228 in the nation.
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Angel McGowan is Georgia Southern's leading scorer with 15.1 points per game, and that total puts her fourth overall in the conference. Patrice Butler's 14.8 points per game has her fifth in the Sun Belt this year. No other Eagle scores in double figures.
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On the boards, Butler averages 7.1 rebounds per game. Alexis Sams is their top passer with 2.4 assists per game, and McGowan has the most steals on the roster with 38.
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TIP OFF
- Little Rock remains in first place in the Sun Belt Conference standings with four games left to play. The Trojans can clinch at least a share of the league regular-season title with two wins this week.
- Little Rock has reached the 12-win threshold in the Sun Belt for 11 consecutive years.
- The Trojans are receiving two votes in the USA Today Coaches Poll and are ranked No. 19 in this week's Mid Major Top 25.
- Little Rock earned a 60-35 win over rival Arkansas State on Friday, holding the rival Red Wolves to their lowest point total ever in the 41-year series.
- The Trojan offense is scoring 71.4 points per conference game, second-best in the Sun Belt and best in program history for any single season.
- Little Rock has the highest RPI in the Sun Belt this season, ranking 48th in the nation as of Wednesday morning.
- The Trojans have never lost to Georgia Southern, going 4-0 against the Eagles in the last two years.
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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 our 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.
