LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – Sali Kourouma scored 21 points, Little Rock's defense was dominant once again and the Trojans clinched at least a share of the Ohio Valley Conference regular season championship Saturday with a 46-42 win over Eastern Illinois at the Jack Stephens Center.
Winning its 13
th regular season title in the past 16 years, Little Rock (18-9, 15-1 OVC) became the first school to win the conference championship in their first year in the league.
In doing so it also avenged an earlier season loss to the Panthers (20-6, 13-3 OVC), the only blemish on the Trojans' conference record so far.
To secure the win, Little Rock employed the suffocating defense that thrills Trojan fans and horrifies the rest of the league. EIU, a team that averages 70 points per game, was held to a season-low 42 points. That total was lower than their previous season-low mark, their 44 points scored in the Jan. 14 game against Little Rock.
It didn't hurt that the Trojans held Lariah Washington, the OVC's leading scorer that was averaging 17.2 points per game entering Saturday's contest, to just two points on 1-for-13 shooting. That is Washington's most anemic offensive performance since Nov. 26, 2019 when she was limited to two points at Wisconsin as a freshman.
The Panthers had no answer for Kourouma, who had 11 of her 21 points by halftime. She also grabbed four rebounds while being credited with two steals and two blocks. It was Eastern Illinois' first chance to experience the native Malian after she did not play in the previous meeting between the two teams.
Angelique Francis scored 12 points and grabbed seven rebounds with six of those points coming in the fourth quarter. Honored on the court before the game alongside
Toyosi Abiola and
Nikki Metcalfe, Francis drew four fouls and made any action in the paint extremely difficult for EIU. Metcalfe also matched Kourouma with a game-high two blocked shots while scoring four points.
Jaiyah Harris-Smith led all players with 11 rebounds and was one of three Trojans credited with four assists while
Jayla Brooks had six rebounds, six drawn fouls – including drawing her 11
th charge of the season – while also tallying four assists.
Eastern Illinois was led by Macy McGlone's 15 points while Taris Thornton added 13 points. Washington led EIU with eight rebounds.
While Little Rock has clinched a share of the OVC regular season title and a double-round bye in the upcoming OVC Tournament, the Trojans still have not wrapped up the No. 1 seed. Little Rock can secure that with a win Thursday at SIUE in a game that will be nationally televised on ESPNU. Tip-off is set for 4 p.m.
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