| GAME 29 | ULM |
| Date |
Thursday, February 27 |
| Time |
6:30 p.m. |
| Location |
Little Rock, Ark. |
| Arena |
Jack Stephens Center |
| Records |
Little Rock (19-9, 13-4 SBC)
ULM (9-18, 5-13 SBC) |
| Watch |
ESPN+ |
| Listen |
The Point 94.1 FM |
| Live Stats |
TrojanStats.com |
| Notes |
Little Rock | ULM |
LITTLE ROCK - Little Rock closes out its 2019-20 home schedule with the Louisiana schools this week, beginning with ULM on Thursday, February 27. Opening tip against the Warhawks is set for 6:30 p.m. and will stream on ESPN+ with Ben Creighton and Steve Shields on the call.
"The key to being successful in this conference is winning your home games, and we're focused on a very good ULM team," said head coach
Darrell Walker. "Where they are in the standings is not indicative of the team they have. They've won three of four and should have beaten South Alabama on the road. They are a very sound team, which is what you would expect from (head coach) Keith Richard. They gave us all we could handle at their place and it will be a tough test Thursday."
GAME STORYLINES
• Little Rock and ULM meet for the 37th time Thursday with the Trojans holding a 19-17 lead in the all-time series. The Trojans are 11-6 all-time against the Warhawks in Little Rock and are seeking their first season sweep since the 2012-13 season.
• Little Rock remains in first place in the Sun Belt, holding a one and a half game lead on Texas State. Little Rock's magic number to clinch a share of the league title and an automatic bid to the semifinals in New Orleans is one game, while its magic number to claim the outright Sun Belt championship is two games.
• The Trojans are one win away from the 12th 20-win season in program history and the first for the program since 2015-16.
•
Kamani Johnson picked up his second Sun Belt Player of the Week honor Monday after setting career-highs with 32 points and 16 rebounds in the win at Arkansas State. It brings Little Rock's total Sun Belt weekly award winners to five (three for
Markquis Nowell), the most in program history.
•
Ruot Monyyong continues to lead the Sun Belt Conference in rebounds (9.9), defensive rebounds (7.9) and blocks (2.2) per game with 14 double-doubles. As a team, Little Rock has 20 double-double performances, the most in the Sun Belt.
• Little Rock is the league's top shooting team at 47.0% from the floor. ULM ranks third in the league standings in field goal percentage defense at 41.3%.
• Little Rock is ranked 18th in this week's CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top-25. The Trojans are 84th in the NCAA RPI rankings, 127 in KenPom and 138 in the latest NET ratings.
NEWS AND NOTES
SCOUTING THE WARHAWKS
2019-20: 9-18 overall, 5-13 Sun Belt (T-10th)
Last Three Games: W vs. Louisiana (83-77); W at Arkansas State (66-52); L at South Alabama (50-49)
Head Coach: Keith Richard (ULM, 1982). 10th season at ULM (121-192); 19th season overall (271-309)
Key Players:
• #2 Michael Ertel (Jr., G): 16.4 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 42.2 FG%
• #5 Tyree White (Sr., F): 10.1 ppg, 5.7 rpg, 44.1 FG%
• #1 Erie Olonade (Jr., G): 5.4 ppg, 2.0 rpg, 37.2 FG%
• #0 Chris Efretuei (Jr., C): 5.3 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 54.8 FG%
• #10 Langston Powell (So., G): 4.5 ppg, 2.2 rpg, 80.8 FT%
LAST WE MET
Trailing by 10 late in the second half, Markquis Nowell scored nine points in a 33 second span, including the game-winning three from nearly mid court with three seconds left, propelling the Trojans to the 73-72 win at Fant Ewing Coliseum on December 19. Little Rock led by 10 at the half, but a 27-8 run by the Warhawks gave them the lead at 62-52 before the rally.
WHAT'S AT STAKE
The Trojans hold a 1.5 game lead on Texas State with three games to play, holding a magic number of two. One win by Little Rock assures the Trojans at least a share of the Sun Belt regular season title and an automatic berth to the semifinals in New Orleans. Two wins, or a combination of a win and a Bobcat loss, gives Little Rock its first outright Sun Belt title since 2015-16.
CLOSING IN ON 20
Little Rock sits at 19 victories on the season, more than the combined win totals of the past two years combined (seven in 2017-18 and 10 in 2018-19). The Trojans need one win to secure the 12th 20-win campaign in program history and the first since the 30-5 championship season in 2015-16.
HONORS FOR KAMANI
Kamani earned his second Sun Belt Player of the Week honor of the season after his 32-point, 16-rebound performance at Arkansas State Saturday, setting career-highs in both. The honor for Johnson gives the Trojans five Sun Belt Player of the Week honors (three for Markquis Nowell), the most in a single season for the program.Â
RUOT BLOCK PARTY
With his three blocks at Arkansas State, Ruot Monyyong upped his season block total to 61 as he continues to lead the Sun Belt Conference. He recently surpassed Ryan Moss (1997-98) for the most in a single season in program history at the Division I level, and is 21 behind Larry Johnson's 82 in 1976-77 for second.
MAKING A STATEMENT
Making a strong case for Sun Belt Newcomer and Defensive Player of the Year, Ruot Monyyong ranks in the top-30 nationally in five statistical categories, including seventh in defensive rebounds per game. Monyyong is 15th nationally in double-doubles and has posted double digit rebounding totals in 16 games while scoring in double figures a team-best 21 times, leading the Sun Belt in both rebounds and blocks.
EYEING 700
Markquis Nowell finished with 19 points in the win over Arkansas State Saturday, his 18th double figure scoring performance of the season. The total leaves him two points shy of reaching 700 for his Trojan career as he is the active roster leader in points, ranking second in minutes behind Jaizec Lottie's 2,186.
CARDIAC TROJANS
Saturday's 81-78 win at Arkansas State was Little Rock's 11th game this season decided by five points or less. The Trojans are 8-3 in those games in 2019-20, a far cry from prior to the season when Little Rock had lost nine-straight games decided by five points or less, dating back to the 56-54 win over Georgia Southern in 2017.
EXCEEDING EXPECTATIONS
Little Rock is one of two teams nationally which leads its conference after being picked 11th in the respective preseason poll and is one of four conference leaders picked seventh or lower. Merrimack is the other team picked to finish 11th, leading the Northeast Conference at 13-4 and 19-11 overall.
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