ARLINGTON, Texas – Little Rock built a 21-point second half lead, then fought off a late UT Arlington run to earn a 66-59 victory over the Mavericks at the College Park Center Friday evening. The win is the first for the Trojans in the state of Texas since 2016 as Little Rock improves to 8-6 on the year and 4-3 in Sun Belt play.
"It was a good win for us on the road tonight," said head coach
Darrell Walker. "I wish we could have finished it off when we were up 21, but I'm proud of our players for holding off their late run an get a crucial road win. This was big for us, both from a standings perspective and for our confidence."
Game Notes
• Little Rock ended the game shooting 41.7% from the floor (25-of-60) while holding UT Arlington to just 28.1% shooting (18-of-64), the lowest shooting percentage of the year for a Trojan opponent.
• Four players finished in double figures, led by 14 points each from
Nikola Maric and
Marko Lukic. Maric added eight rebounds while Lukic drilled three from beyond the arc for the Trojans.
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Ruot Monyyong notched his sixth-straight double-double, his 10th of the year and 26th of his Little Rock career, finishing with 12 points and 14 rebounds on the night. Monyyong also added a season-high five blocks in 36 minutes for Little Rock.
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Markquis Nowell finished with 11 points, all of which came in the second half, while dishing out five assists in 25 minutes of play.
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Kris Bankston added six points on 3-of-5 shooting with four rebounds in 16 minutes of work.
• After leading for a combined two minutes over the weekend against Texas State, the Trojans held the lead for 37:35 against UT Arlington. Both teams finished with 43 rebounds on the night but Little Rock dominated in the paint, outscoring the Mavericks 32-21.
• The win for the Trojans was Little Rock's first in the state of Texas and the first west of Little Rock since 2016, snapping an eight-game and 12-game streak, respectively. The Trojans are now 3-0 on the season against the Mavericks.
First Half Notes
• Little Rock scored 13 of the first 20 points of the game, building a seven point lead at 13-6 off a three pointer from Lukic at the 12:01 mark. Maric scored five of the first 13 points for the Trojans as four different Little Rock players netted points in the first eight minutes.
• UT Arlington used a 9-2 run, including scoring seven-straight over two minute span, tying the game at 15-15 at the 8:20 mark. Three free throws from Monyyong, as well as a three pointer from Maric, helped Little Rock extend its lead back to four at 21-17 at the 3:55 mark.
• The Trojans matched their largest lead of the half at seven at 28-21 with under a minute to play in the first half, thanks to a layup from Bankston and five-straight points from Lukic. A pair of Maverick free throws trimmed the halftime lead to 28-23.
• Both teams struggled from the floor in the first half as Little Rock shot 32.3% (10-of-31) while UT Arlington connected on just 22.6% (7-of-31). Maric and Lukic both scored eight points in the opening 20 minutes for the Trojans as Maric added five rebounds. Monyyong posted five points and seven rebounds as Bankston added four points of his own.
Second Half Notes
• The Trojans scored 12 of the first 14 points of the second half, extending their lead to 14 at 40-26 off back-to-back Monyyong dunks at the 14:33 mark. Back-to-back threes from Lukic and Nowell then pushed the Little Rock lead to 18 at 46-28 with 12:21 remaining.
• Little Rock extended its lead to 21 off a Nowell three-pointer, holding a 56-35 lead with 8:27 remaining in the game. Six different Trojans scored through the opening 12 minutes of the second half, led by nine from Nowell off three three-pointers.
• Trailing by double digits with four minutes to go, UT Arlington used three-pointers on three-straight possessions, puling to within four at 61-57 with 1:11 to play. But a lay-up from Maric, followed by a pair of free throws from White and one from Lukic helped pave the way to the 66-59 victory.
• Little Rock found its scoring touch in the second half, knocking down 51.7% of it shots from the floor (25-of-60). But the Trojans still struggled from both beyond the arc (4-of-13) and the free throw line (4-of-10) over the final 20 minutes.
• Nowell led the Trojans with 11 second half points as Monyyong added seven points and six rebounds over the final 20 minutes. Maric also added six points with three boards in the second half.
Up Next
• Little Rock and UT Arlington close out their four-game 2021 series Saturday afternoon at 4 p.m. at the College Park Center. Opening tip is set for 4 p.m.
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