Trojan Rally Falls Short in Triple Overtime

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – Little Rock rallied back from a 19-point second half deficit and forced the longest game in school history but Texas State escaped the Jack Stephens Center with a 69-65 triple overtime win Thursday morning.
 
The Trojans (8-7, 3-2 Sun Belt) had never played in a game longer than two overtimes prior to Thursday's epic battle and nearly didn't play beyond 40 minutes as Little Rock fell behind early. Texas State (9-11, 4-4) led by as many as 19 points midway through the second half behind a game-high 30 points from Da'Nasia Hood.
 
Hood, a senior, scored 21 of her 30 points in the first half before Little Rock began to limit her output. The Bobcats then turned to Sierra Dickson, who scored eight of her 12 points in the three combined overtime periods.
 
Little Rock was led by Sali Kourouma's 21 points while Dariel Johnson added 15 and Mayra Caicedo scored 11. Even though the Trojans kept pace in overall scoring, low shooting percentages from 3-point range at the free throw line allowed Texas State to extend the game.
 
The Trojans hit just 1 of 12 (8.3%) shots from beyond the arc and only 52.2% (12-for-23) from the charity stripe, including a 3-for-7 (42.9%) mark in overtime.
 
Little Rock used an 11-0 run in the fourth quarter to pull even with the Bobcats, a run that included six Texas State turnovers with two of those being shot clock violations as the Trojan defense stepped up its pressure.
 
But after holding serve with Texas State through two overtime periods, the Trojans started to see shots once again fail to fall. Little Rock was 2-for-5 from the field in the third and final overtime period, missing their last two shot attempts while also missing all three free throw attempts.
 
Meanwhile the Bobcats connected on 3 of 4 shots in the final overtime period with all three made baskets being high-percentage layups. Unable to fully pull away, Texas State kept Little Rock in the game over the final five minutes by missing 5 of 7 free throw attempts.
 
With a morning tip-off Thursday, Little Rock will take full advantage of the extra eight hours of rest before the next game when UT Arlington visits the Jack Stephens Center on Saturday. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m.
 
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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