LITTLE ROCK – After squandering an 11-point first half advantage, Little Rock used a 13-2 run over the final three and a half minutes to rally for a 66-62 victory over ULM at the Jack Stephens Center. The win improves the Trojans to 9-7 on the year and 5-4 in Sun Belt play, keeping Little Rock in the hunt for the West Division title.
Markquis Nowell and
Nikola Maric both finished with 17 points while
Ben Coupet Jr. added 12 points of his own as the Trojans won their third-straight against ULM, improving to 5-2 at the Jack Stephens Center this season.
Game Notes
• Little Rock shot 42.9% from the floor for the game, nearly matched by the 42.1% for ULM. The Trojans were 24-of-56, including 5-of-23 from three-point range (21.7%) and 13-of-19 from the free throw line (68.4%).
• Maric nearly posted his second double-double of the year, finishing with 17 points and nine rebounds on 8-of-12 shooting with a pair of blocks.
• Nowell's 17 points came on 5-of-13 shooting, including 2-of-6 from three and 5-of-8 from the line, adding six rebounds, three assists and three steals.
• Coupet was 3-of-7 from the floor for his 12 points with a pair of assists and a pair of steals.
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Ruot Monyyong just missed another double-double, finishing with eight points and nine boards for the Trojans, snapping a seven-game streak of double-digit rebounding totals. He was 3-of-5 from the field and 2-for-2 from the line, coming in the waning seconds to secure the victory.
• Little Rock outrebounded ULM 39-29, including 15-10 on the offensive glass, but the Warhawks held a 13-9 edge in second chance points. ULM also held a 26-22 edge on Little Rock in the paint.
• The Trojans made the Warhawks pay on the fast break as Little Rock's nine steals paved the way to a 17-1 edge in fast break points.
• Little Rock improves to 21-17 all-time against ULM, winning its third-straight over the Warhawks and improving to 13-6 against ULM in Little Rock. The Trojans have now won five of the last six against the Warhawks at the Jack Stephens Center.
First Half Notes
• After a tough shooting outing in Texas last week, Little Rock found its scoring touch early against the Warhawks, knocking down four of its first five shots to build a 9-2 edge on ULM at the 16:42 mark as four different Trojans scored early.
• ULM's three point attack kept the Warhawks within striking range, pulling to within two at 11-9, and three at 16-13. But Nowell began to find his scoring touch, scoring five of Little Rock's points in an 8-0 run, extending the Trojan advantage to 11 at 24-13 at the 7:59 mark. Coupet also knocked down a three during the run.
• A Coupet three matched one from the Warhawks, pushing the Little Rock lead back to 11 at 27-16 with 6:36 remaining. Three point shooting from ULM helped the Warhawks use a 15-7 run over the next six minutes, pulling to within three at 34-31 in the final minute. A jumper in the lane by Maric pushed the Little Rock lead to 36-31 heading into the locker room.
• Little Rock shot an even 50% in the opening 20 minutes, knocking down 14 of its 28 shots, while hitting 3-of-10 from three point range and 5-of-7 from the line. Nowell registered 10 points for the Trojans in the first half, grabbing three rebounds, while Maric added nine and Coupet added seven.
Second Half Notes
• ULM came out firing to open the second half, outscoring the Trojans 11-2 over the opening five minutes to take its first lead of the game at 42-38. A layup by Nowell, followed by a long three, helped the Trojans pull to within one at 44-43 before ULM responded with five-straight, pushing its lead to six at 49-43 at the 12:19 mark.
• Little Rock began to chip away at the Warhawk advantage, getting to within one on a pair of occasions at 51-50 and 53-52. But ULM responded with six-straight, upping its lead to seven at 59-52, aided by poor free throw shooting for the Trojans.
• ULM reclaimed a seven point lead on a pair of occasions, the last of which came at 60-53 with 4:36 remaining. A jumper from Maric, followed by a Nowell steal and a transition three from White cut the deficit to two at 60-58 with 3:21 remaining, sparking the Little Rock run.
• The Trojan run reached 9-0 behind a jumper from Monyyong at the 1:15 mark and a pair of free throws from Nowell with 48 seconds left, giving Little Rock its first lead since the 16:27 mark of the second half at 62-60. A jumper from the Warhawks with 39 seconds left tied the game at 62-62 with 39 seconds remaining but a layup from Maric and a pair of clutch free throws from Monyyong with four seconds remaining sealed the comeback for the Trojans.
• Little Rock struggled from the floor in the second half, shooting just 35.7% (10-of-28) and was 2-of-13 (15.4%) from three point range. But an 8-of-12 clip from the free throw line and a 22-17 edge in rebounding helped pave the way for the Trojan comeback.
Next Up
• Little Rock and ULM will meet again to close out the weekend series Saturday afternoon at the Jack Stephens Center. Tip between the Trojans and Warhawks is set for 4 p.m.
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