LITTLE ROCK – Facing a 10-point deficit in the second half, Little Rock once again staged a furious rally to get back in the game late. But this time, the Trojans were able to get over the hump, outscoring Morehead State 24-10 over a 10-minute span to knock off the Ohio Valley Conference leaders 72-68 at the Jack Stephens Center.
Five Trojans finished in double figures, tying a season-high for Little Rock, as six Trojans combined for 69 of Little Rock's 72 points on the night. That was led by a 15-point, nine-rebound performance for
CJ White, who scored 12 of his 15 in the second half, including two big threes and going 6-for-6 from the line, to help spark the Little Rock rally.
Myron Gardner finished with his OVC-leading 14th double-double, fittingly scoring 14 points with 14 rebounds. He also was a key spark for Little Rock in the second half, scoring 10 points and grabbing eight rebounds with three assists over the final 20 minutes.
DeAntoni Gordon and
D.J. Smith both finished with 11 points for Little Rock as Gordon was 5-of-6 from the floor with six rebounds. Smith was 4-of-8 with a pair of rebounds and three assists.
The final member of the double-figure club was
Nigel John, adding 10 points on 5-of-7 shooting, while
Isaiah Palermo added eight points with three rebounds, a steal and a crucial block to end the first half.
For the game, Little Rock shot 41.9%, knocking down 26-of-62, and struggled from three point range, going just 3-for-12. But Morehead State had a cold shooting night as well, shooting 38.3% and was just 5-of-20 (25.0%) from three point range as both teams shot in the low 70%s from the free throw line.
Little Rock outrebounded Morehead State 43-38, including a 23-17 edge in the second half. The two teams were even in nearly all the specialty categories with the Trojans holding a slight edge in points off turnovers, points in the paint and second chance points.
Welcoming Morehead State to the Jack Stephens Center, the Trojans and Eagles exchanged baskets in the early going with Little Rock getting to within two on five separate occasions. Morehead State held the Trojans without a basket for nearly five minutes, using a 6-1 run to build a seven-point cushion at 16-9 before a White three broke the scoring drought.
Trailing by seven at 23-16 with 7:10 to play, Little Rock put together an 11-2 run spanning two and a half minutes, highlighted by an 8-0 spurt, flipping the script to build its first lead of the game at 27-25 behind four points from Gardner and five from Gordon.
Morehead State used its free throw shooting to finish the half on a 5-2 run but the Trojans held the Eagles without a field goal for the final 4:49 of the first half, trailing 30-29 lead into the break on the Trojans. Palermo had a key block to end the half and White hit a three-quarter court shot, but let it go after the buzzer.
Both teams struggled from the field in the opening 20 minutes as Little Rock shot 36.7% from the floor, compared to 37.0% for Morehead State. All eight Trojans that saw action in the first half scored at least one point, led by seven from Gordon while Smith, Palermo, Gardner and John each had four, including six boards for Gardner.
A sluggish start by the Trojans in the second half helped Morehead State extend its lead to 10 at 41-31 behind a 9-0 run. But that was quickly answered by a Little Rock 8-0 run, including a pair from John, pulling the Trojans to within one at 41-39 at the 15:02 mark.
That run was answered by another 7-0 surge for the Eagles, pulling back in front by nine at 48-39 two minutes later. The Eagles had an eight point lead at 50-42 with 11:02 remaining, but a White three sparked a 15-3 Trojan run, including a 10-0 spurt to take a 57-53 lead with 5:55 remaining.
Following a Morehead State basket, back-to-back baskets at the rim from Myron gave Little Rock its largest lead of the game – 61-55 with 3:18 to play. The Eagles pulled to within one at 61-60, but a key three and then a pair of free throws for White pushed the lead back to six at 66-60 with just over a minute to play.
Free throw shooting would be key for the Trojans as Little Rock made its final eight free throw attempts over the final 1:07, leading by as much as seven on a pair of occasions including at 72-65 with 10 seconds left before a late Morehead State three trimmed the final margin.
Little Rock shot 46.9% in the second half, including 2-of-5 from three point range (40.0%) and went 11-of-12 (91.7%) from the free throw line, led by the combined 22 points for Gardner and White.
With the win, Little Rock is guaranteed a winning record at home this year, sitting at 7-4 in home games with two dates remaining. The Trojans moved into a three-way tie for eighth in the league standings with Lindenwood and Eastern Illinois with five games remaining.
The Trojans head back on the road, making the trek to Martin, Tennessee, for a showdown with UT Martin Saturday afternoon. The Skyhawks fell to Eastern Illinois 77-75 Thursday night and sit at 7-6 in league play, currently in sole possession of the number five seed. Opening tip from the Eblam Center is set for 3:30 p.m.
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