| GAME 8 - SAN FRANCISCO |
| Date/Time |
Wednesday, Nov. 30 - 9 p.m. CT |
| Location |
San Francisco, Calif. |
| Arena |
War Memorial Gymnasium |
| Records |
Little Rock (2-5, 0-0 OVC)
San Francisco (6-1, 0-0 WCC) |
| Watch |
WCC Network |
| Listen |
106.7 FM The Buz2 |
| Live Stats |
StatBroadcast |
| Notes |
Little Rock | San Francisco |
LITTLE ROCK - Little Rock continues its challenging road trip, heading west to California, to face San Francisco on Wednesday, November 30, tipping at 9 p.m. CT from War Memorial Gym at the Sobrano Center. The game will stream live on the WCC Network with Trojan Hall of Famer Ray Tucker handling the radio call on 106.7 FM The Buz2, beginning at 8:45 p.m. CT.
GAME STORYLINES
• Little Rock and San Francisco meet for the first time as Little Rock is seeking its first win in the state of California since the 2015-16 season, sitting at 4-3 all-time in the Golden State with six of those seven games coming in the month of November.
• The Trojans are 6-7 all-time against current members of the West Coast Conference and will face a WCC school for the second-straight year, falling 82-63 at Loyola Marymount in Los Angeles on November 17, 2021.
•
D.J. Smith is coming off an 18-point performance at Miami (Ohio) as he averaged 19.0 points in the pair of games last week after scoring 20 at 11th-ranked Indiana.
•
Myron Gardner continues to lead the Trojans in rebounds, assists and steals and is second in scoring, currently ranking among the top-50 nationally in five statistical categories.
• Little Rock is still seeking its first road victory of the year, sitting at 0-5 away from the Jack Stephens Center. The Trojans are looking to end a seven-game losing streak in true road games, dating back to the 66-62 win at Troy on February 12, 2022.
• San Francisco is the second of seven opponents Little Rock will be facing for the first time this season. The Dons are also the second of three 2022 NCAA tournament teams the Trojans will face in a four-game road span, also playing at Indiana (Nov. 23) and at Memphis (Dec. 6).
• The Trojans continue a long road swing, playing six of seven away from the Jack Stephens Center, spanning five different states and over 7,000 miles traveled.
NEWS AND NOTES
SCOUTING THE DONS
2022-23: 6-1 overall, 0-0 West Coast Conference
Last Three Games: L at Davidson (80-89), W vs. Wichita State (67-63), W vs. Northern Iowa (75-69)
Head Coach: Chris Gerlufsen (Randolph-Macon, 1998). First season at USF and overall (6-1)
Key Players:
• #0 Khalil Shabazz (Gr., G): 15.1 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 43.2 FG%
• #1 Tyrell Roberts (Gr., G): 14.0 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 40.5 3FG%
• #15 Zane Meeks (Jr., F): 11.6 ppg, 6.7 rpg, 38.0 FG%
• #11 Josh Kunen (Jr., F): 7.1 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 51.4 FG%
• #55 Marcus Williams (So., G): 6.1 ppg, 2.4 rpg, 41.2 FG%
FOR THE FIRST TIME
Little Rock and San Francisco meet for the first time in program history Wednesday evening. It will be the Trojans' eighth game in the state of California in program history as Little Rock is 4-3 all-time in the Golden State. Little Rock's last win in California came in the 49-43 win at San Diego State on Nov. 21, 2015.
LAST TIME OUT
Miami (Ohio) raced out to a fast start, knocking down its first five three point attempts to set the tone for a long-shooting barrage to race pace Little Rock 80-67 in Oxford, Ohio Saturday. The RedHawks hit a season-high 14 threes against the Trojans and kept Little Rock at bay in a second half rally, holding off 18 points from
D.J. Smith and a season-high 17 points from
Nigel John.
CLOSING IN ON 100
Head coach
Darrell Walker is in year number five in Little Rock with an overall record of 53-70 at the helm of the Trojans. He registered his 99th win as a collegiate head coach against Jackson State Sunday, sitting at 99-88 overall. Walker boasts a pair of impressive accomplishments as he is the only coach in the nation that has served as a head coach at the NBA, WNBA, Division II and Division I ranks and is one of just five active head coaches that won an NBA title as a player.
COMING UP BIG
D.J. Smith came up big for Little Rock in the pair of games last week, averaging 19.0 points while shooting 44.8% from the floor and 70.0% from the free throw line. He had a team-high 20-points at 11th-ranked Indiana, the most points scored in a game against the Hoosiers this season, then led Little Rock with 18 points at Miami (Ohio), shooting 8-of-16 from the floor. The sophomore point guard averaged 38.2 minutes in the two games this week, playing all 40 minutes at Indiana.
STRONG SHOWING FOR NIGEL
Nigel John had his best game as a Trojan against Miami (Ohio) Saturday, knocking down 7-of-10 from the floor for a season-high 17 points in 22 minutes of work. John also pulled down five rebounds and went 3-of-4 from the free throw line. John ranks fourth on the team in scoring (9.3 ppg) and second in rebounds (5.4 rpg), shooting 50.0% from the floor on the year and sitting third on the team.
MYRON AMONG NATIONAL LEADERS
Senior
Myron Gardner continues to pace Little Rock in the early going of the season, ranking second on the team in scoring (12.9 ppg) and is first in rebounds (9.3 rpg), assists (4.1 apg) and steals (2.1 spg). Gardner enters the week ranked among the top-50 nationally in five statistical categories.
DOUBLE FIGURE TROJANS
Eight different Trojans have scored in double figures this season, led by six from
DeAntoni Gordon and five from
Myron Gardner.
Isaiah Palermo has the most on the team for his career with 20, followed by fellow senior
Jovan Stulic tied by Gardner with 14 for their Little Rock careers.
TROJANS AGAINST THE WCC
Little Rock has gone head-to-head against six current members of the West Coast Conference, posting an overall record of 6-7. This is the second-straight year the Trojans will face a WCC member, falling at Loyola Marymount 82-63 in Los Angeles on Nov. 17, 2021.
WESTWARD WOES
Heading west has been a tough venture for Little Rock in recent years as the Trojans are just 1-21 in games played west of the 501 area code since the start of the 2017-18 season. Little Rock is 0-2 in the state of California during that span, falling at San Diego (66-53 on Nov. 20, 2017) and at Loyola Marymount (83-62 on Nov. 17, 2021).
PLAYING FROM BEHIND
Little Rock has found itself playing from behind for the majority of the season thus far, leading for a total of 60:59 through the first seven games this season. The Trojans never led in four of their five losses as Little Rock has seen just six ties and 12 lead changes all year, 10 of which came in the first half in the 84-76 loss at East Tennessee State on Nov. 17. Little Rock has also found itself trailing by 15 or more points in all but one game this year (Arkansas Baptist).
TOUGH ROAD STRETCH
Little Rock heads back on the road as part of a challenging span of playing six of seven away from the Jack Stephens Center. That trip include three NCAA tournament teams (Indiana, San Francisco and Memphis), with games in five different states (Arkansas, Tennessee, Indiana, Ohio and California). Adding the trip to Illinois to start the season, Little Rock will travel approximately 7,500 miles in the first month of the season.
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