Trojans Race To Big Lead, Hold Off Late Husky Rally in 67-60 Victory

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Little Rock raced out to a substantial second half lead, then had to hold off a furious late rally from Northern Illinois to earn a 67-60 win over the Huskies at the Jacksonville Classic by Fabletics at UNF Arena. The Trojans improve to 4-2 on the year and place third in the Jax Bracket in the preseason event.
 
Little Rock led wire-to-wire Monday morning, leading by as many as 26 in the second half behind a career-high 16 points from DeAntoni Gordon who added nine rebounds and a pair of blocks. Gordon was one of three Trojans to finish in double figures, joined by Nikola Maric's 15 points on 7-of-9 shooting with seven rebounds and Marko Lukic's 11 points of the bench.
 
D.J. Smith added eight points and a pair of assists off the bench, including going 6-of-8 from the free throw line with three key makes in the final minutes. Jovan Stulic finished with seven points on 2-for-3 shooting with Isaiah Palermo adding six points and five rebounds.
 
Kevin Osawe was Little Rock's top rebounder, grabbing seven as the Trojans held a 42-32 rebounding edge on the morning. Defensively, Little Rock registered a season-high six blocks with Gordon, Stulic and Lukic each finishing with a pair.
 
For the game, Little Rock shot 40.0% from the floor, knocking down 22-of-55 shots, while hitting 41.7% of its three-point attempts, shooting 5-for-12 for the game. The Trojans were strong from the free throw line as well, making 18-of-25 (72.0%), including 12-of-16 in the second half to help close out the win.
 
After a pair of slow starts in its last two outings, Little Rock found its scoring touch in the early going, scoring the game's first five points to take control. Gordon scored the first seven from the floor for the Trojans, and the Little Rock defense frustrated the Huskies, holding the Huskies under 25% shooting for the first half.
 
Little Rock would lead by as many as 18 in the first half, going on top 34-16 following a 5-0 run off baskets from Smith and Palermo and a free throw from Stulic, taking a 34-18 lead into halftime. The Trojans shot 43.3% from the floor and knocked down two of their four three-point attempts in the first 20 minutes, led by nine from Gordon and six from Maric.
 
The Trojan defense held Northern Illinois to just 23.1% shooting from the floor as the Huskies were 6-of-26 from the floor and just 4-of-13 from beyond the arc. Little Rock's size also helped the Trojans hold a 24-16 rebounding edge and a 14-4 advantage in points in the paint.
 
Little Rock's offensive surge continued in the second half, using a 14-3 run to open the second stanza, including a 12-0 outburst, pushing Little Rock's lead to 26 at 50-24 with 11:58 remaining.
 
The Trojans appeared to be in control, leading 57-32 with 8:45 remaining, but Northern Illinois reeled off a 17-0 run down the stretch, keeping the Trojans off the scoreboard for over six minutes, getting to within seven at 59-52 with just over a minute remaining.
 
Little Rock forced a pair of key stops, then had clutch free throws from Gordon, Smith and Palermo over the final minute to earn its fourth win of the season and improve to 2-1 all-time against Northern Illinois.
 
Northern Illinois finished the game shooting 34.1% from the floor and 31.9% from three, putting up 31 from beyond the arc as the Huskies took just 21 two point attempts. NIU struggled from the free throw line, making just 11 of its 22 attempts, and were led by 15 points from Kaleb Thornton who was 3-for-3 from three point range.
 
After returning home for the Thanksgiving  holiday, Little Rock resumes its six-game, five-state, four-time zone road trip Friday night in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Opening tip against the Golden Hurricane is scheduled for 7 p.m.
 
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