LITTLE ROCK - Little Rock begins the defense of its 2019-20 Sun Belt Conference title this weekend, opening league play by hosting UT Arlington at the Jack Stephens Center. The Trojans and Mavericks square off at 4 p.m. on both Friday, January 1 and Saturday, January 2, with both games streaming on ESPN+ and called by Hayden Balgavy and Patrick Newton. Trojan Hall of Famer Ray Tucker will handle the radio call on The Ride 106.7 FM with coverage beginning at 3:40 p.m. both days.
"This is going to be a challenging conference schedule this year, beginning with a tough UT Arlington team," said head coach
Darrell Walker. "They don't have the size we do, but are fast and can shoot the three-ball well, and coach (Chris) Ogden's teams are always very well disciplined and well prepared. This will be a tough start to the year."
GAME STORYLINES
• Little Rock begins its 30th season as a member of the Sun Belt Conference with an all-time league record of 256-240 (.516).
• Little Rock and UT Arlington is scheduled to be the first official Sun Belt Conference game of the 2021 season with its 4 p.m. tip Friday afternoon, one hour ahead of three other games.
• This weekend begins the adjusted Sun Belt Conference schedule for 2020-21 to assist with COVID prevention and safety protocols. Teams will only play schools from their respective divisions and will play Friday-Saturday weekend series against the same opponent at the same venue.
• UT Arlington holds a 7-6 edge in the all-time series against Little Rock heading into this weekend. The teams split last year's games with the home team winning both contests.
• The Trojans are 4-3 against the Mavericks in Little Rock and have won four-straight against UT Arlington at the Jack Stephens Center.
• Little Rock enters the weekend on an eight-game winning streak at the Jack Stephens Center. The Trojans have won six-straight home games against Sun Belt opponents.
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Ruot Monyyong is tied for 17th among active Division I players with 20 career double-doubles entering the weekend. He has four this season and is eight shy of matching Rashad Jones-Jennings' 28 as the Trojans' all-time double-double leader.
• Little Rock hopes to be cleared from COVID contact tracing that left the Trojans with just eight players at Missouri State on December 21. Little Rock played the final 39 seconds of that game with just four players due to injuries and foul-outs.
NEWS AND NOTES
SCOUTING THE MAVERICKS
2020-21: 4-4 overall; 0-0 Sun Belt
Last Three Games: W vs. Howard Payne (117-53), W vs. Dallas Christian (109-48), W vs. Hardin-Simmons (91-66)
Head Coach: Chris Ogden (Texas, 2004). Third season at UT Arlington (35-38)
Key Players:
• #13 Shahada Wells (Jr., G): 14.6 ppg, 3.1 rpg, 52.0 3FG%
• #4 David Azore (Jr., G): 12.4 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 47.0 FG%
• #1 Sam Griffin (So., G): 9.6 ppg, 2.0 rpg, 91.7 FT%
• #10 Fredelin De la Cruz (Jr., F): 9.3 ppg, 7.6 rpg, 61.4 FG%
• #20 Nicolas Elame (So., G): 8.6 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 38.1 FG%
LOOKING BACK
Little Rock and UT Arlington split the 2019-20 season series with each team winning on its home court. The Trojans outlasted the Mavericks 92-89 at the Jack Stephens Center on January 4 before UT Arlington raced out to an early first half lead and cruised to the 76-65 win in Arlington on February 15.
LAST TIME OUT
Little Rock dug itself an early first hole at Missouri State on December 21, falling behind by 14 early in the second half. The Trojans rallied to within four with under a minute to play, but couldn't complete the comeback in an 85-77 loss in Little Rock's first true road game of the 2020-21 season.
THE GOOD...
Head coach Darrell Walker has put an emphasis on limiting the number of Trojan turnovers. After averaging 19.0 giveaways per game in four games in the Louisville bubble, the Trojans have averaged just 11.7 in their last three games, including eight against Champion Christian and 12 at Missouri State. Little Rock is forcing 16.0 turnovers during that same span, outscoring the opposition 63-39 in points off turnovers.
... AND THE BAD
Little Rock's struggles at the free throw line have reemerged following the time in the Louisville bubble. After going 77.4% from the line in four games at the KFC Yum! Center, Little Rock is shooting 61.5% from the charity stripe in the last three games, including a 5-for-13 performance against Champion Christian and going 10-for-19 in the loss at Missouri State.
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 Division I national leaders.
DOUBLE FIGURE CLUB
Seven Trojans have combined for 24 double figure performances through the first seven games of 2020-21. Markquis Nowell has reached the mark in all seven games, just ahead of Nikola Maric with six, followed by Ruot Monyyong (five) and Marko Lukic (three) with Ben Coupet, Isaiah Palermo and CJ White each eclipsing the 10-point plateau once this season. Nowell is the Trojans' active leader with 43 career double figure games, followed by 31 from Maric and 29 from Monyyong.
EARNING HIS MINUTES
Isaiah Palermo has come on strong for Little Rock over the last three games, averaging 9.7 points with 11 rebounds and eight assists. The sophomore earned his first start of the season at Missouri State on December 21, finishing with a career-high 14 points with three boards and three assists in 34 minutes.
STRONG FIRST IMPRESSION
After being granted immediate eligibility on Wednesday, December 16, CJ White has made an impact in his first two games with the Trojans. The SMU transfer scored 12 points in his debut against Champion Christian and added a three at Missouri State before suffering an injury to his tailbone in the first half. He is 5-of-8 from the floor and 4-for-4 from three-point range.
THROWING IT DOWN
Little Rock's size has made it one of the Sun Belt's top dunking threats, holding a 22-9 advantage on the opposition this year following last years' 96-43 advantage. Ruot Monyyong has thrown it down 12 times for the Trojans in 2020-21, upping his career total to 69, while Kris Bankston sits at 97 career dunks as he and Isaiah Palermo are both at three thus far.
LOOKING GOOD FOR 30
The 2020-21 season marks Little Rock's 30th season as a member of the Sun Belt Conference, joining the league prior to the 1991-92 season. The Trojans hold the distinction as one of the longest active members of the conference, joining the league with rival Arkansas State and Louisiana in 1991 as the trio is second only to South Alabama in longevity, an original founding member in 1976. Little Rock is 256-240 (.516) all-time in Sun Belt play with three regular season league titles.
HOME SWEET HOME
2020-21 marks the 16th season the Jack Stephens Center will serve as the home court for the Trojans as Little Rock has compiled an all-time record of 146-80 (.646) in the facility, including an 81-55 (.596) mark against Sun Belt Conference opponents. Since the Jack Stephens Center opened in 2005-06, Little Rock's men's and women's basketball teams have combined for nine regular season Sun Belt championships, the most of any conference school during that span.
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