LITTLE ROCK – Playing for its postseason lives, Little Rock rallied from a 10-point first half deficit to build a 12-point advantage in the second half. But a final Ragin' Cajun surge over the final eight minutes was too much for the Trojans to weather as Little Rock drops a 77-72 heartbreaker at the Jack Stephens Center.
With the loss, coupled with Appalachian State's win over Troy earlier in the evening, Little Rock finds itself in the unenviable position of being eliminated from contention for the Sun Belt tournament. The Trojans dropped their fifth-straight, falling to 10-20 on the year and 5-12 in Sun Belt play.
The loss came despite a double-double performance from
Nikola Maric, who finished with 24 points and 10 rebounds, shooting 9-of-16 from the floor for his second career double-double. Rayjon added 19 points and eight rebounds for Little Rock, upping his season point total to 593 and moving into sixth on the Trojan's all-time single season point total.
Kris Bankston finished with 13 points for Little Rock with eight rebounds as well, going 5-of-7 from the floor with four more dunks, upping his season total to 69.
Deondre Burns added eight points off the bench with
Jaizec Lottie finishing with six points and three assists.
Little Rock shot 49.1% from the floor and hit 72.7% of its free throws on the night, outrebounding Louisiana 41-30. But 20 Trojan turnovers once again turned the tide, accounting for 22 points off turnovers for the Ragin' Cajuns, including 10 in the second half during the final crucial run.
It was a sluggish start for the Trojans, who saw the Ragin' Cajuns score the first 10 points of the game as Little Rock made just one of its first 10 shots. Louisiana held a 10 point lead once again at 16-6, but the Trojans were able to pull to within two at 21-19 off a dunk from
Damir Hadzic with 9:25 remaining.
Hadzic's dunk seemed to energize the Ragin' Cajuns, however, who reeled off 12 of the next 16 points and pushed their lead back to 10 on the Trojans at 32-22 with 6:34 left in the half. But basketball is a game of runs, and Little Rock was able to capitalize on some Louisiana miscues to the tune of a 15-2 run over the next five minutes.
Four different Trojans scored during the run as Little Rock turned a 10-point deficit into a three-point lead at 37-34 with just over a minute to go in the opening half. A Ragin' Cajun three-pointer tied the game at 37-37, but Tucker knocked down a pair of free throws, finishing with 14 points in the first half, to give Little Rock the 39-37 halftime lead.
The momentum carried into the second half as Little Rock outscored Louisiana 12-3 over the first six and a half minutes, including a 12-0 run, breaking out to an 11-point lead at 51-40. That run was capped by a strong performance from Maric, who scored 10 of the 12 and capped it with back-to-back dunks.
Little Rock led by as many as 12 in the second half at 63-51 with 8:34 remaining, but fighting for its postseason lives as well, the Ragin' Cajuns made a run of their own. Louisiana outscored the Trojans 18-5 over the next four minutes, reclaiming the lead at 69-68 with just under four minutes remaining.
The Trojans had some looks in the waning minutes but were unable to convert. A three-pointer in the corner for the Ragin' Cajuns' Marcus Stroman with just over a minute to play gave Louisiana the 74-72 lead, and a final chance for the Trojans in the final seconds was overturned on an official review, icing the victory for Louisiana.
Little Rock closes out the 2018-19 season Saturday when it hosts ULM at the Jack Stephens Center. The Trojans will look to finish at .500 on its home court this season as the Warhawks are coming off a 73-72 loss in Jonesboro Thursday evening. Opening tip is set for 3 p.m.
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