JONESBORO, Ark. – Overcoming a late second half deficit, Little Rock thwarted a late Arkansas State rally to topple the rival Red Wolves 82-78 in Jonesboro. The victory snaps an eight-game skid for the Trojans who improve to 6-21 on the season and 3-11 in Sun Belt Conference play.
The 82 points was a season-high for Little Rock who shot 55.1 percent from the floor (27-of-49) and 47.4 percent from three-point range (9-of-19). But arguably the key stat that aided to the victory was Little Rock making 19 of its 24 free throw attempts, including going 16-of-18 in the second half.
Camron Reedus led the Trojans with a career-high 20 points in the victory, hitting seven of his 12 shots and going 4-of-8 from three-point range and 4-for-4 from the foul line.
Ben Marcus tied his career high with 14 points, making six of his eight attempts and pulling down five rebounds for Little Rock.
Kris Bankston scored eight of his 10 points in the second half and finished with seven rebounds for the Trojans, followed by
Oliver Black,
Ryan Pippins,
Jaizec Lottie and
Cameron Corcoran each contributing eight points on the evening.
A back-and-forth affair all night, the game was tied 15 times with 11 lead changes with Little Rock outscoring Arkansas State 34-22 in the paint.
Three-pointers came in abundance in the first half as the Trojans and Red Wolves combined for 14 with each team hitting seven. Little Rock knocked down its seven threes on 11 attempts, shooting 63.6 percent from beyond the arc, with Arkansas State's coming on 14 tries.
The hot shooting from beyond the arc kept the two teams within striking distance of each other as neither team was able to lead by more than one possession through the first 15 minutes of play. Little Rock built its largest lead of the game at 32-28 at the 4:29 mark, thanks to a free throw from Lottie.
But Arkansas State used a 12-2 run to build its largest lead of the game at 40-34 with 1:41 remaining in the half, which was answered by a lay-up from Lottie with less than a minute to play, cutting the halftime deficit to four at 40-36.
Little Rock responded early in the second half, rallying back to take the lead at 45-43 with 16:47 remaining off a fast break layup from Marcus. However Arkansas State responded with an 8-0 run of its own to take a 51-45 lead, matching its largest lead of the evening.
But the Trojans kept their composure, hanging with the Red Wolves until the 7:44 mark when a three from Reedus gave Little Rock the 60-59 lead, its first in the second half. Free throws would help the Trojans tie the game at 62-62 and again at 64-64 with just over six minutes remaining as Little Rock hit its first eight from the charity stripe in the second half.
After watching Arkansas State build a 70-66 lead, the Trojans once gain fought back, scoring 10 unanswered to take a 76-70 lead with just under a minute remaining. The Red Wolves clawed to within two on a number of occasions but clutch free throw shooting for the Trojans preserved the win for Little Rock.
The victory snapped a number of streaks that head coach
Wes Flanigan is more than happy to see fall by the wayside. The win ended an eight-game overall losing streak, a 14-game road losing streak and a three-game losing streak to Arkansas State, earning the first win in Jonesboro since 2015. Additionally, it marked the first game the Trojans had won in which they trailed at any point of the game since defeating Central Arkansas on November 29, 2017.
Little Rock now begins the stretch run of the 2017-18 season, beginning with the final two home games at the Jack Stephens Center. The first of those will be on Thursday, February 22, when the Trojans welcome Coastal Carolina in their yearly visit to Little Rock. Opening tip against the Chanticleers is scheduled for approximately 7:15 p.m.
#LittleRocksTeam
