LITTLE ROCK – Down 12 with just over four minutes to go, Little Rock used a 12-0 run to pull even with Coastal Carolina at 71-71 with less than a minute to go. But a foul in the final seconds gave the Chanticleers the one point lead and
Kris Bankston's half court heave for the win missed by inches as the Trojans drop a 72-71 heartbreaker.
Trailing 71-59 with just over four minutes to go, Little Rock mounted a fierce rally, outscoring the Chanticleers 8-0 over the next two and a half minutes and pulling to within three at 71-68 with 90 seconds to go off an and-one from
Deondre Burns.
Little Rock then forced a 30 second violation on Coastal Carolina, giving it the ball back down three with 1:10 to go.
Rayjon Tucker, the Trojans' offensive weapon all night, then completed the comeback by drilling a long three from the left wing, tying the game at 71-71 with 54 seconds to play.
A defensive stop by the Trojans then resulted in a missed opportunity in a 30 second violation, giving Coastal Carolina the ball back with 7.7 seconds remaining.
Little Rock's defense held and forced Coastal to put up a desperation shot with less than two seconds left, but the Trojans were whistled for a foul on the three-point play. The Chanticleers converted one of the three, and the inbound pass landed in the hands of Bankston whose shot from beyond the half court stripe hit the back iron.
The loss overshadowed a 29-point performance from Tucker, who connected on six of his 13 shots from the floor and went 14-of-15 from the free throw line. He was one of four Trojans to score in double figures, followed by an 11-point showing from Burns off the bench.
Bankston and
Markquis Nowell both added 10 points each off the bench for Little Rock with four of Bankston's five baskets coming off dunks, upping his season total to 48. Bankston was the Trojans' leading rebounder with seven, matched by
Kamani Johnson, with
Jaizec Lottie dishing out five assists while adding nine points and four rebounds.
Seeking its first ever win against Coastal Carolina, Little Rock traded baskets with the Chanticleers early in the first half, finally taking its first lead of the game off a jumper from Burns at 11-10 at the 14:21 mark.
Coastal reclaimed the advantage, pushing it to a three-point lead at 14-11, which was answered with an 11-3 run by Little Rock, claiming its largest lead of the half at 22-17 off back-to-back baskets by Burns.
But sloppy ball handling aided in Coastal Carolina using a 12-4 run of its own, pulling back in front 29-26 off a three with 3:36 to go. Little Rock held serve down the stretch of the opening 20 minutes, scoring eight of the last 11 points, highlighted by a corner three from Nowell, propelling Little Rock to the 34-32 halftime lead.
Early halftime adjustments by Coastal Carolina turned the tide quickly in the second half, however, as the Chanticleers used another extended run, this time a 14-4 clip, turning the two point deficit into an eight-point lead at 46-38 at the first media timeout. The Trojans got back to within three at 46-43, but seven unanswered by the Chanticleers upped their lead to 10 at 53-43 with 12 minutes to go.
The Trojans had little answer for the inside game of the Chanticleers as Coastal Carolina pushed its lead to a game-high 15 at 60-45, forcing a timeout from coach Walker midway through the second half. Little Rock was able to get it down to single digits at 66-57 with just over six minutes to go, but key three pointers from Coastal gave the Chanticleers some distance before the late Trojan charge.
With the loss, Little Rock drops its third-straight to fall to 7-13 on the year and 2-5 in Sun Belt play. Coastal Carolina improves to 9-9 and 3-3 in league play.
The Trojans will try and regroup Saturday when they welcome Appalachian State to the Jack in a rematch of last year's Sun Belt Conference tournament opening round. The Mountaineers dropped a heartbreaker of their own Thursday night, squandering a 10-point halftime lead and falling in overtime at Arkansas State 82-81 to remain winless in Sun Belt play. Opening tip is set for 3 p.m.
#LittleRocksTeam
