| GAME 7 | MISSOURI STATE |
| Date |
Monday, December 21 |
| Time |
7:00 p.m. |
| Location |
Springfield, Mo. |
| Arena |
JQH Arena |
| Records |
Little Rock (4-2. 0-0Â SBC)
Missouri State (2-0, 0-0 MVC) |
| Watch |
ESPN3 |
| Listen |
106.7 FM The Ride |
| Live Stats |
TrojanStats.com |
| Notes |
Little Rock | Missouri State |
LITTLE ROCK - Little Rock closes out the non-conference portion of its 2020-21 schedule Monday night, facing Missouri State at 7 p.m. from JQH Arena in Springfield, Missouri. The game against the Tigers will stream live on ESPN3 with Trojan Hall of Famer Ray Tucker handling the radio call on 106.7 FM The Ride, getting underway at 6:40 p.m.
"This is where it all started for us last year, and it will be a big test for our players as we head into Sun Belt play," said head coach
Darrell Walker. "I'm sure they remember the game last year and will be looking for some payback. This will be our first true road game of the year and hopefully will help prepare our team to begin conference play."
GAME STORYLINES
• This is the fourth-straight year the Trojans will square off against a team from the Missouri Valley Conference. Little Rock has faced Missouri State (2019, 2020), Illinois State (2019) and Bradley (2017, 2018) during that span.
• Little Rock is 1-7 all-time against Missouri State and is 1-4 all-time in Springfield. The Trojans earned their first win of the series last season, defeating the Bears 67-66 at JQH Arena in the season-opener on November 5, 2019.
• The Trojans are 4-2 on the season heading into Monday night's game, assuring Little Rock its second-straight year of entering Sun Belt play with a winning record after going 6-5 in 2019-20.
• Monday's game at Missouri State will be Little Rock's first true road game of the season. The Trojans opened the year with four neutral games at the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville, Kentucky, before a pair of home games at the Jack Stephens Center.
•
Markquis Nowell ranks among the top-12 nationally in five statistical categories as of Saturday, December 19. He is second in total assists (55), third in assists per game (9.2), tied for fifth in double-doubles (4), 10th in steals per game (3.0) and 12th in total steals (18). Teammate
Ruot Monyyong is tied with him for fifth in double-doubles.
• Little Rock's roster has combined for nine double-doubles this season, with four each for both
Ruot Monyyong and
Markquis Nowell and one for
Nikola Maric.
• The Trojans are 15-22 (.405) all-time against teams from the state of Missouri and are 4-11 (.267) inside the borders of their northern neighbor since becoming a Division I program.
NEWS AND NOTES
SCOUTING THE BEARS
2020-21: 2-0 overall; 0-0 Missouri Valley
First Three Games: W vs. William Jewel (73-64), W vs. Northwestern State (94-67), Dec. 21 vs. Little Rock
Head Coach: Dana Ford (North Georgia, 2002). 3rd season at Missouri State (34-33); 7th season overall (91-98)
Key Players:
• #44 Gaige Prim (Sr., F): 23.0 ppg, 7.5 rpg, 78.3 FG%
• #1 Isiaih Mosley (So., F): 15.5 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 50.0 FG%
• #34 Jared Ridder (Jr., F): 14.0 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 43.5 FG%
• #4 Ja'Monta Black (So., G): 12.5 ppg, 6.5 rpg, 42.9 FG%
• #14 Keaton Hervey (Jr., G): 8.0 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 53.8 FG%
LAST WE MET
Little Rock and Missouri State staged a thriller in the 2019-20 season opener with a long jumper from Ruot Monyyong with 2.3 seconds remaining proving the difference in a 67-66 Trojan win on November 5, 2019 at JQH Arena. Little Rock rallied from a six-point halftime deficit, led by 13 points from Ben Coupet Jr. in his Trojan debut.
LAST TIME OUT
A 23-0 run in the first half helped propel Little Rock to a 78-50 win over Champion Christian Friday night at the Jack Stephens Center. Markquis Nowell registered his fourth-straight double-double, finishing with 17 points and 10 assists, and CJ White scored 12 points in his Trojan debut as 11 different Little Rock players scored against the Tigers.
MR. DO-IT-ALL
Markquis Nowell continues to develop as the floor leader of the Trojans, posting his fourth-straight double-double against Champion Christian with an impressive 17-point, 10-assist, 5-steal, 4-rebound performance in 27 minutes with no turnovers. He leads the Trojans in scoring, free throw percentage, assists, steals and minutes and ranks third in rebounding.
CHASING THE CROWN
Ruot Monyyong continues to draw closer to establishing himself as Little Rock's all-time leader in double-doubles, posting his 20th against Central Arkansas on December 6 with 12 points and 13 rebounds. His 16 in 2019-20 tied Rashad Jones-Jennings for the single-season Trojan record and he is eight back of matching Jones-Jennings' all-time program record of 28 double-doubles. Monyyong's 20 career double-doubles is tied for 17th among the active national leaders.
NIKOLA STANDING TALL
Nikola Maric has been a force inside for Little Rock early on, averaging 15.8 points and 7.2 rebounds per game, shooting 63.9% from the floor. Maric has scored at least 16 points in five of the first six games for the Trojans this season as he currently ranks sixth in the Sun Belt in points per game, fourth in field goal percentage and 10th in rebounding.
WELCOME TO THE SHOW
Little Rock native CJ White had quite an impressive debut in his homecoming Friday, finishing with 12 points on 4-of-5 shooting (3-for-3 from three) with three rebounds, two assists and a steal. White transferred to Little Rock from SMU where he played two seasons for the Mustangs and was granted immediate eligibility by the NCAA with its blanket waiver on Wednesday, December 17.
TAKING THEIR SHOTS
Little Rock is shooting 49.5% from the floor this season, ranking 42nd nationally, and has made at least 50% of their shots in four of its six games this season. The Trojans also rank 43rd nationally in three point defense, limiting opponents to just 27.0%, while sitting 68th overall in turnovers forced (16.8).
CLOSING IN ON 1,000
Markquis Nowell continues to inch closer to joining an elite Trojan club. With his 17 points against Champion Christian Friday, he upped his career point total to 860, leaving him 140 shy of becoming the 21st member of the Trojan 1,000-point club and the first since Will Neighbour in 2014. He continues to move up the all-time Trojan greats in a handful of other categories, ranking seventh in assists (296), eighth in three pointers (138) and tied for ninth in steals (116).
THROWING IT DOWN
Little Rock's size has made it one of the Sun Belt's top dunking threats, holding a 20-8 advantage on the opposition this year following last years' 96-43 advantage. Ruot Monyyong has thrown it down 10 times for the Trojans in 2020-21, upping his career total to 67, while Kris Bankston sits at 97 career dunks behind his three on the season.
LITTLE ROCK AGAINST THE VALLEY
Monday's game against Missouri State is Little Rock's 22nd game against current members of the Missouri Valley Conference, posting a 6-15 (.286) record against the league. The eight meetings against Missouri State is the most against any other MVC foe as the Trojans have faced at least one Missouri Valley opponent in each of the last four seasons.
DUO ON LOU HENSON WATCH LIST
The 2020-21 Lou Henson Player of the Year Watch List includes a pair of Trojans as both Ruot Monyyong and Markquis Nowell made the initial cut of 50 of the top players from Mid-Major leagues added to the list. The Trojan duo is two of the five Sun Belt players on the list, joined by DeVante Jones (Coastal Carolina), Kane Williams (Georgia State) and Mylik Wilson (Louisiana).
#LittleRocksTeam
