LITTLE ROCK – 10 different Trojans registered points as Little Rock wore down Troy in the second half, notching an 81-63 victory at the Jack Stephens Center. The win closes out the first half of the Trojans' Sun Belt Conference slate at 8-2 as Little Rock remains in sole possession of first place in the league standings.
"This was a very good team win for our ball club as every player contributed tonight," said head coach
Darrell Walker. "Our goal all week was simple – run (Troy) off the three and force them inside the arc. We held them to just seven threes tonight and committed just 10 turnovers. I'm very proud of the effort of this team that is gaining more and more confidence."
Game Notes
• Little Rock had 10 different players score on the night as the Trojans shot 49.2% from the floor (29-of-59) while hitting seven of their 19 three point attempts (36.8%). Little Rock dominated the paint, outscoring Troy 44-24 despite Troy holding a 44-36 rebounding edge.
• Three different players scored in double figures for Little Rock, led by
Ruot Monyyong's 17 points with seven rebounds. Monyyong was 7-of-10 from the floor with four dunks while also registering three blocks.
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Jaizec Lottie had another productive night, finishing with 14 points, three rebounds, five assists and four steals.
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Kamani Johnson added 12 points on 5-of-5 shooting with five rebounds.
Ben Coupet Jr. and
Marko Lukic each finished with nine points as Coupet scored all of his in the second half, adding six rebounds.
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Markquis Nowell saw his most playing time since sustaining an injury late in the Georgia Southern game on January 6. Nowell played 26 minutes and scored seven points with five rebounds and a game-high six assists.
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Isaiah Palermo added a spark off the bench in the first half, scoring six points on 3-of-4 shooting with a pair of blocks.
• Once again, Little Rock held a team under their season average, doing so for the 17th time out of 21 games thus far. Troy came into the game averaging 70.3 points and was held to 63.
• Little Rock committed a season-low 10 turnovers while forcing 15 from Troy, leading to a 23-12 edge in points off turnovers.
• The Trojans reach the halfway point of the 20-game Sun Belt Conference schedule with an 8-2 mark, one game off the 9-1 mark set by the 2015-16 team for the best start in Sun Belt play in program history.
First Half Notes
• Little Rock scored the games first six points, but Troy answered with a 7-0 run of its own to take the early 7-6 lead at the 15:56 mark. The lead for Troy marked the first time Little Rock had trailed in nearly 86 minutes, dating back to the end of the South Alabama game on January 11.
• Troy's run reached 11-0 over a five minute span, a stretch in which the Trojans were just 3-of-9 from the floor. Trailing 11-6, Little Rock reeled off six unanswered over a 1:15 span, aided by a Troy technical foul and an and-one for Monyyong.
• After falling behind 11-6, Little Rock used a 13-5 run to pull back in front 19-16 off a three pointer from Lukic and a layup from Palermo. Six different Trojans scored in the opening 10 minutes for Little Rock.
• A three-pointer from Lottie at the 6:46 mark capped a 6-0 run for Little Rock, extending its lead to eight at 28-20 with 6:46 to go in the half. Maric then hit a free throw at the 4:28 mark to give the Trojans the 29-27 lead, marking eight different scorers in the opening 16 minutes. It is the highest amount of Trojans to score in an opening half this season.
• Little Rock hit an offensive drought late in the first half, being held without a field goal for 5:12 after the Lottie three. Troy used a 12-2 run during that span, taking the lead at 32-30. The Trojans made up for it by scoring seven points in the final 1:34, including a jumper from Nowell, a three from Lukic and a steal and dunk from Monyyong to take the 37-34 halftime lead.
• Little Rock shot 46.4% from the floor in the first half, making 10 of its last 17 shots from the floor, while limiting Troy to 35.1% and 3-of-13 from three. Troy dominated the boards, however, outrebounding Little Rock 29-15 in the first half, including 11-0 on the offensive glass.
Second Half Notes
• Another fast start to a half for Little Rock as the Trojans reeled off nine-straight over a 2:43 stretch, upping its lead to 48-37 at the 15:46 mark. Coupet hit a three to start the run, making it all nine Trojans that had played had scored.
• The two Trojans exchanged baskets as both teams found their scoring touch. Little Rock hit 5-of-7 field goal attempts while Troy knocked down 4-of-5, but a steal from Lottie helped set a three from Nowell, pushing the lead back to 10 at 57-47 with 12:26 remaining.
• Troy was able to get the lead down to seven at 60-53 off a 9-3 run spanning three minutes, but free throws from Coupet and an and-one off a steal from Lottie gave Little Rock the 65-53 lead with 7:43 to play. Another driving layup from Lottie on the next possession upped the Trojan advantage to 14 at 67-53.
• As in the last two games, Little Rock's lead was never seriously threatened over the final five minutes, leading by as many as 20 at 81-61 with under a minute to go after
Sam Dunkum registered his first three career points as a Trojan. Dunkum made 10 different players to score points on the night for Little Rock.
• Little Rock shot 56.1% in the second half while limiting Troy to just 30.8% from the floor and 4-of-13 from three-point range.
Up Next
• Little Rock breaks up the home stand with a road trip back to Alabama, heading to Mobile for a showdown with South Alabama Saturday. Opening tip against the Jaguars is set for 7 p.m. from the Mitchell Center Saturday evening.
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