Trojans' Season Ends With Loss to Alabama in WNIT

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Alabama used an 11-0 run spanning the end of the third and start of the fourth quarters to get back into the game, and the Crimson Tide hit a layup with 5.1 seconds remaining to defeat Little Rock 55-53 in the WNIT Second Round at Coleman Coliseum on Sunday afternoon.

The loss ends the season for Little Rock (25-9) and moves Alabama (21-13) into the WNIT Third Round later this week.
 
In her final game as a Trojan, Sharde' Collins topped the team with 20 points and scored her 1,000th career point in the third quarter while adding five rebounds and a block. Sophomore Kira Shepard was Little Rock's only other double-digit scorer with 10 points.
 
Senior Kaitlyn Pratt also played her final game as a Trojan, grabbing 10 rebounds and scoring 7 points. Monique Townson finished off her junior season with 7 points, four assists and three rebounds.
 
Little Rock led for 31 minutes of the game, jumping out to an early 12-4 advantage and holding a 13-point lead midway through the third quarter. But after a Shepard jumper to give the Trojans a 45-32 edge, Alabama closed the period with a 9-3 edge to make it just a 48-41 game entering the fourth.
 
The Tide then began the fourth quarter with an 8-0 run to take a 49-48 lead, their first lead since midway through the second quarter. Little Rock retook the lead with a Collins jumper, and a Shepard fast-break layup with 4:22 left made it 52-50 Trojans. But that would be the last field goal Little Rock made all game.
 
Alabama tied the game with two free throws, Pratt made a free throw of her own, and then the Tide made a free throw with 58 seconds left to once again tie the game at 53-53. With its next possession, Pratt was forced to try for a drive with the shot clock running down and committed an offensive foul. Then Alabama's Jordan Lewis got a rebound on her own layup attempt and put it in, giving Alabama a 55-53 edge.
 
Little Rock had one last chance to score with 5.1 seconds left, but the Trojans were unable to get a shot off before time expired.
 
Freshman Anna Hurlburt scored 2 points for the Trojans and also set a career high with four blocks. Ronjanae DeGray had 3 points at the free-throw line and four rebounds, Kyra Collier scored 2 points and Raeyana DeGray added 2 as well.
 
The Trojans got off to a great start shooting the ball, making 5 of their first 7 attempts from the field to take a 12-4 lead into the first media timeout with Collins scoring 7 points. The offense cooled after that, though, with Little Rock not making a field goal for the final six minutes of the quarter but still holding a 14-12 lead heading into the second.
 
Little Rock's scoring drought continued into the second quarter, and Alabama took a 17-14 lead with a 3-pointer that forced a Trojan timeout. After that timeout, though, Little Rock got back in the groove.
 
Collins got the offense started with two 3-pointers in a 31-second span, and Little Rock scored 12 of the next 18 points to take a 32-23 lead into halftime. Overall, Little Rock closed the half on an 18-6 run that included points from six different players.
 
Collins leaves Little Rock with 1,002 career points, 152 assists and 281 rebounds. She is fifth all-time in team history in 3-point percentage (.342), seventh all-time in field goals attempted (1,033) and eighth all-time in made 3-pointers (105).
 
Pratt left her mark on the program as well, finishing her career with 1,142 points and 698 rebounds. She is third all-time in team history in field-goal percentage (.539), fourth all-time in rebounds, fifth all-time in free throws made (264) and eighth all-time in scoring.
 
Carolee Dillard ends her time with the Trojans with 169 points and 175 rebounds. Dillard is 10th all-time in team history with 0.5 blocks per game.