SAN MARCOS, Texas – Sali Kourouma scored a game-high 29 points, Little Rock shot 50% from the field and the Trojans led wire-to-wire in a 70-53 win at Texas State Saturday afternoon in San Marcos.
Kourouma ignited the hot start for Little Rock (15-9, 8-4 Sun Belt), scoring 14 points in the first quarter. She also grabbed seven rebounds and was credited with two blocks.
Mayra Caicedo added 12 points for the Trojans while dishing out nine assists and grabbing seven rebounds with a steal and a block credited to her as she played all 40 minutes.
The win pushes Little Rock into a tie for fourth in the Sun Belt standings with App State but the Mountaineers will grab the fourth and final bye in the seedings for next week's Sun Belt Conference Tournament by virtue of their tiebreaker advantage over Little Rock. The Mountaineers won the only meeting between the two teams this year, a 60-49 decision in Little Rock on Jan. 15.
It also prevents Texas State from recording their first-ever season sweep over Little Rock while the Trojans won their final regular season game as members of the Sun Belt Conference.
But on Saturday, the Trojans forced 17 turnovers off Texas State (14-13, 9-6), turning those into 22 points and turned in a defensive effort that frustrated Texas State on multiple levels. Da'Nasia Hood, who averages 17.0 points per game, was limited to just four points and was 2 of 7 from the floor. Jo'Nah Johnson led Texas State with 14 points.
Despite leading for nearly 39 minutes of action, Little Rock wasn't able to pull away until there was less than a minute left in the third quarter, when the Trojans pushed their lead out of the single digits for the final time.
If Texas State had any designs of making a comeback, Little Rock thwarted those designs as fourth quarter action got underway. Kourouma scored four quick points, prompting a Bobcat timeout, and the Trojans came out of the timeout continuing to control the pace of play. Little Rock scored five points off four Bobcat turnovers and limited the hosts to just 33.3% shooting in the quarter while Little Rock shot 41.7% in the frame.
The Trojans now set their sights on a final appearance in the Sun Belt Conference Tournament, which starts on Wednesday, March 2 in Pensacola, Florida.
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