LITTLE ROCK – Trailing by 17 in the second, Little Rock raced all the way back to take the lead late in the second half. But the potential game-winning shot at the buzzer just missed as the Trojans lose a 67-65 heartbreaker at the Jack Stephens Center. Little Rock falls to 10-11 on the season and 6-8 in Sun Belt play.
Game Notes
• After shooting 37.0% in the first half, Little Rock shot 55.1% in the second to finish the game at 45.5%. The Trojans were 7-of-22 from beyond the arc (31.8%) and 8-of-13 (61.5%) at the free throw line, contrasted by 55.1% from the Red Wolves and 8-of-16 (50%) from three.
• Four Trojans finished in double figures on the night, led by 16 from
Nikola Maric on 6-of-9 shooting and 4-of-5 from the free throw line. Maric added three rebounds and a pair of assists inside for Little Rock.
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CJ White scored a Little Rock career-high and tied his collegiate career-best with 15 points in his first collegiate start, adding three rebounds and three assists while hitting four threes for the Trojans.
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Marko Lukic added 14 points in his first collegiate start as sell, hitting 6-of-11 shots with three rebounds and a pair of assists.
Ruot Monyyong contributed 13 points with five rebounds, three assists and a block.
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Ben Coupet Jr. added seven points and led the team with both eight rebounds and four assists on the evening, playing all 40 minutes. They were the only five Trojans to score on the night as just eight players saw playing time.
• Little Rock committed just eight turnovers on the night, including none in the second half, while forcing 14 Red Wolves errors. The discrepancy led to just a 13-8 edge in points off turnovers for the Trojans.
• Arkansas State held a 30-25 rebounding edge but Little Rock held a slight 32-28 advantage in points in the paint.
First Half Notes
• Similar to Friday night's game, Arkansas State came out firing in the early going racing out to a 9-2 lead through the opening four minutes. Little Rock chipped away at the deficit, using a 6-0 run and keeping the Red Wolves off the scoreboard for over five minutes, pulling to within one at 14-13 off a jumper from White at the 8:27 mark.
• Arkansas State responded with a 14-5 run of its own, extending its lead to 10 at 28-18 behind a 7-0 run over a three minute stretch. The Trojans once again struggled to find their scoring touch, knocking down just one shot in a six-minute span, allowing the Red Wolves to extend their lead.
• Back-to-back layups from Coupet and Monyyong got Little Rock to within six at 28-22 with 0:25 remaining, but a pair of Red Wolves free throws gave Arkansas State the 30-22 halftime advantage. It was the second-straight game the Trojans were limited to 22 points in the opening 20 minutes, matching its lowest first half output of the season.
• Once again, Little Rock shot 37% over the opening 20 minutes, making 10-of-27 shots, while Arkansas State knocked down 58% (11-of-19). The Red Wolves were 4-of-6 from beyond the arc while Little Rock was just 1-of-8. Maric paced the Trojans with eight points over the first half, complemented by five each from White and Monyyong.
Second Half Notes
• A three from Lukic to start off the second half pulled the Trojans to within five at 30-25, but Arkansas State responded with eight-straight, including back-to-back threes, giving the Red Wolves their largest lead of the game at 38-25 at the 18:13 mark.
• Arkansas State extended its lead to 17 off a 7-0 run at the 13:55 mark, but that sparked a Little Rock run, starting with a three from White at the 13:41 mark. That jump started a 14-2 Trojan run, including a 11-0 spurt that closed the gap to 49-44 at the 11:07 mark. White knocked down a pair of threes as a pair of forced Red Wolf turnovers aided the run.
• The Trojan run reached 26-8 over a seven-minute span, taking its first lead of the game at the 7:04 mark off a layup from Maric. Lukic scored nine points during the run for Little Rock, as did White off a trio of three-pointers.
• Arkansas State reclaimed the five-point lead at 61-56 with 4:36 to go, and led by four at 65-61 with just over a minute remaining. A pair of Maric free throws, followed by a layup tied the game at 65-65 with 0:43 to go.
• Little Rock had a key defensive stop on the ensuing possession with Coupet blocking Marquis Eaton's shot, but the deflection ended up in A-State's hands, who converted a shot with 12 seconds to go. The Trojans had one final attempt, but White's shot at the buzzer just missed as the Red Wolves escaped with the 67-65 victory.
• Little Rock shot 53.6% in the second half, including 6-of-14 from three (42.9%) and committed no turnovers over the final 20 minutes. Lukic scored 12, White added 10 and Maric and Monyyong both finished with eight to spark the Trojan rally in the second half.
Up Next
• Little Rock gets set to embark on its final road trip of the regular season, traveling down to Monroe for a pair of games against ULM. Game one against the Warhawks is scheduled for Friday at 6 p.m. at Fant-Ewing Coliseum.
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