Trojans Top Mountaineers in Stunning Comeback

LAFAYETTE, La. – Appalachian State must feel as if they are in the movie Groundhog Day. For the fourth consecutive year, the Mountaineers faced Little Rock in the Sun Belt Tournament. And for the fourth consecutive year, Little Rock ended the game atop the mountain.
 
The fifth-seeded Trojans (12-18) rallied back from a 15-point deficit to claim a 48-47 win over the eighth-seeded Mountaineers (11-19), scoring 13 points off seven turnovers in the final quarter to eclipse App State.
 
"That was one of the best that I've been a part of," a smiling Joe Foley said following his team's 14^th consecutive win in a Sun Belt Tournament opening game.
 
Little Rock's stunning rally was led by senior Kyra Collier's eight points in the final quarter and by a stalwart defense that made sure Lainey Gosnell's 3-pointer with 3:41 remaining would be App's final points scored in the contest. Gosnell would lead all scorers with 18 points.
 
After that, the Trojans clamped down, forcing four missed shots and three turnovers while finishing the game on an 8-0 run. Collier led Little Rock with 14 points while Teal Battle scored 13 points and grabbed a team-high nine rebounds.
 
And in a recurring story that is becoming a never-ending nightmare for Appalachian State, Collier scored double digit points in the second half for the second straight year against App State in the conference tournament.
 
Little Rock would take advantage of Appalachian's season-high 23 turnovers, turning them into 25 points.
 
 "I thought our defense was excellent," Foley said. "We stayed in front of the ball and they ended up turning it over. With 23 turnovers, you have a pretty good chance of making it happen."
 
That pretty good chance seemed impossible for three quarters. Through the first 30 minutes the Trojans were shooting just 18 percent from the floor and seemingly watched the ball go in and out of the basket over and over again. But then something changed as the fourth quarter began.
 
It all started with Tori Lasker's steal with 6:22 remaining. That led to a Kyra Collier layup – assisted by Lasker – that would drop Little Rock's deficit into single digits, where it would stay.
 
Trailing by eight as the game entered the final five minutes, Little Rock began to go on a run as Angelique Francis and Kyra Collier each made a layup to make it a 44-40 game before Gosnell hit her fourth 3-pointer of the game. Now trailing 47-40, Little Rock began its 8-0 run to finish off the game and the Mountaineers.
 
That run included a pair of treys by Lasker that gave Little Rock its first lead of the second half. Her second 3-pointer, coming with 1:10 remaining, would end up being the final points of the game.
 
"I stayed on her and told her that if you don't shoot it, then you won't know if you can win this game," Foley said of Lasker. "If you shoot it, you will know whether we will win or not. She had the guts to shoot it there at the end so thank goodness."
 
Little Rock out-scored Appalachian State 21-7 in the final quarter. And that 18% shooting? It spiked to 67% over the last 10 minutes as the Trojans went 8-for-12 in the final frame.
 
But it wasn't smooth sailing. Little Rock would give App State hope, missing four free throws and turning the ball over once in the final 15 seconds – but then took that hope away with a lockdown defense that Appalachian could not break free from.
 
Little Rock now advances to the quarterfinal round on Wednesday, March 11 at 7 p.m. The Trojans will face the winner of the No. 4 Louisiana vs. No. 9 Georgia Southern contest being played Tuesday night.
 
For the latest information on Little Rock Basketball, make sure to check out LRTrojans.com. You can also find the team on social media at @LittleRockWBB on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
 
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