LAFAYETTE, La. – Trailing by 14 in the second half, Little Rock once again staged a furious rally to take the lead in the final minute, outlasting Louisiana 69-66 at the Cajundome Saturday evening. The effort was sparked by career nights for both
Ruot Monyyong and
Kamani Johnson as they each registered career highs to spearhead the Trojan rally.
Monyyong finished with his fifth double-double of the season, scoring 21 points and grabbing 12 rebounds, going 9-of-13 from the floor and registering three blocks against the Ragin' Cajuns. Johnson finished with 19 on the night, scoring 11 in the opening half and tallying eight-straight points late in the second half to help push the Trojans into the lead.
Game Notes
• Little Rock finished the game 28-of-54 from the floor for a 51.9% clip, including hitting 14-of-22 shots (63.6%) in the second half. The Trojans were just 3-of-11 from three-point range but were 10-of-13 from the free throw line, including 6-of-8 in the second half.
• After the 21 points from Monyyong and 19 from Johnson,
Ben Coupet Jr. finished with 11 points and four rebounds.
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Markquis Nowell was held to a season-low seven points on 3-of-7 shooting. Nowell was in foul trouble most of the night, logging a season-low 25 minutes, the first time all year he has played less than 35 minutes in a game.
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Isaiah Palermo had another strong performance off the bench, finishing with seven points and four rebounds in 27 minutes with a pair of steals and a pair of crucial free throws late in the second half to help complete the comeback.
• The win for Little Rock gives the Trojans their first 2-0 start in Sun Belt Conference play since the 2015-16 season and marks the first time the Trojans have won in Monroe and Lafayette in the same season since 2009.
• Little Rock will head into the Christmas break with eight victories, the most for the program since they were 9-4 at the break in the 2016-17 season.
• The Trojans are now 3-0 in games decided by one possession in 2019-20, winning 67-66 at Missouri State on November 5 as well as the dramatic 73-72 win at ULM Thursday.
First Half Notes
• Little Rock opened the game with a balanced attack as four different players scored the first four baskets early on. Three points from Coupet and Monyyong and a pair each from Nowell and Johnson helped the Trojans to an early 10-7 lead.
• After building a 12-9 lead, Little Rock went over three minutes without a basket while Louisiana pieced together a 6-0 run, taking a 15-12 lead the 12:30 mark. The run was broken up by a steal from Palermo, who finished with a dunk on the fast break to pull to within one at 15-14 with 11:49 remaining in the half.
• Louisiana's run hit 11-2 as the Ragin' Cajuns extended their lead to six at 20-14 at the midway point of the first half. A layup from Johnson got Little Rock to within two possessions. The bucked by Johnson sparked an 8-0 run over the next two minutes as Johnson had three of the four baskets, putting the Trojans back in front 22-20 at the 7:16 mark.
• The Trojans held the Ragin' Cajuns without a basket for nearly four minutes and led by as many as three. Louisiana then hit three three pointers, sandwiching four free throws, while Monyyong added four-straight for Little Rock as the Trojans took the 31-30 lead at the final media timeout.
• Louisiana closed the half on an 11-2 run, taking a 41-33 lead into intermission. The Trojans were held to just one field goal over the final 2:49.
• Johnson paced Little Rock with 11 points in the opening 20 minutes while Monyyong was just shy of a double-double, posting nine points and eight rebounds. Nowell was held to just two points as he picked up three first half fouls, getting double teamed nearly every time down the court.
• Little Rock was 14-of-32 shooting in the opening half but made just 1-of-6 from three-point range. The Trojans made 4-of-5 free throws but eight fouls put the Ragin' Cajuns at the line 11 times, making nine. Louisiana was also 4-of-10 from three, led by 17 points from Jalen Johnson.
Second Half Notes
• Five Trojan turnovers in the opening four minutes aided Louisiana in a 10-4 run, building a 14-point cushion at 51-37 with 15:04 left in the game. During the run, Nowell picked up his fourth foul and Stulic took another elbow to the face, forcing him to leave the game.
• Monyyong picked up his fifth double-double of the year early in the second half, grabbing a rebound and scoring on three-straight possessions for the Trojans as Little Rock got the deficit under 10 at 53-46 with 11:29 remaining. Little Rock held Louisiana without a basket for nearly six minutes during the span.
• Monyyong's strong play continued as he helped spark a 6-0 run, getting the Trojans to within three at 55-52. Ruot had four points and three crucial rebounds during the stretch, upping his total to 19 points and 12 rebounds.
• The run ultimately hit 17-4 as Little Rock took the lead at 56-55 on Johnson's 13th point of the game. During the run, the Ragin' Cajuns were held without a basket for over seven minutes, making just four free throws.
• Little Rock held a 60-59 lead, but a 4-0 run for Louisiana put the Ragin' Cajuns on top 63-60 with just over two minutes to go. Johnson's 19th point, a new career-high, cut the deficit to one at 63-62 with 1:41 remaining.
• Nowell then hit his lone three pointer of the game with 56 second remaining, a similar three from the right corner that he hit in the waning seconds at ULM Thursday. A dunk from Monyyong off a Palermo steal with 17 seconds left put the Trojans on top 67-63.
• Louisiana hit a three at the other end with nine seconds left, then a nice move from Nowell to get the ball down to Palermo in the Trojan zone helped burn the clock down to three seconds. Palermo knocked down a pair of clutch free throws, pushing the score to 69-66, and Louisiana's game-tying three as time expired hit the back rim to secure the Little Rock victory.
Up Next
• Little Rock now heads into the Christmas break and will have 11 days until their next game, opening up a home heavy schedule in early January that includes three of the first four games at the Jack Stephens Center. Little Rock returns to action on Thursday, January 2, hosting Texas State at the Jack in a 6:30 p.m. opening tip.
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