LITTLE ROCK –
Kemy Osse's first field goal of the game proved to be the game-winner, as his 3-pointer with seven seconds to play lifted Little Rock (14-15, 5-11 SBC) to a 56-54 win over second-place Georgia Southern (18-12, 11-6 SBC) at the Jack Stephens Center on Monday night.
Little Rock, who trailed by as many as 10 points twice in the second half, whittled the Eagles' lead down to three with 3:25 to play. Georgia Southern pushed its margin back to five on a jumper by Mike Hughes with 2:59 remaining before back-to-back layups from
Andre Jones made it a one-point game with 1:40 left.
The Trojans' defense forced Ike Smith into a turnover on Georgia Southern's next possession. With the chance to take its first lead of the game, Little Rock's 3-point try by
Marcus Johnson Jr. was off the mark.
Georgia Southern missed a jumper on its final offensive possession, but a GS offensive rebound forced
Maurius Hill to foul Tookie Brown with 20 seconds remaining. Brown's first free throw in the one-and-one was off the mark, and
Jalen Jackson secured the rebound and called timeout with 17 seconds to play.
Coming out of the timeout, the ball went to Jackson at the top of the key. Jackson drove hard to his right and found
Kemy Osse with the pass. Osse's 3-pointer from the wing, just in front of the Little Rock bench, was good to give Little Rock its first lead of the game.
Smith's shot was off the mark for Georgia Southern in the closing seconds, and Little Rock pulled out the win.
Jackson led Little Rock with 16 points on 5-of-6 shooting. Hill scored 11 points, grabbed eight rebounds, blocked two shots and had two steals. Johnson had 11 points and four rebounds.
The Trojans finished the game shooting 44.4 percent, compared to 36.4 percent for the Eagles.
In a first half that saw each team commit 12 turnovers, Little Rock went into the break facing a four-point deficit.
Little Rock made four straight baskets as a part of a run that trimmed a 19-8 deficit to 19-14 in just over a two-minute span. The Trojans pulled within 21-17 on
Maurius Hill's three-point play with 8:02 to play in the half.
Jalen Jackson's second trey of the game made it 23-20 with under five minutes until halftime.
Georgia Southern took a 28-24 lead into halftime after two free throws from Burns made it a four-point game in the closing seconds of the half.
Little Rock returns to action on Thursday to face South Alabama in Mobile. Tipoff is set for 7:05 p.m.
Sun Belt Championship Tickets
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.
