The beginning of the final home stand of the season didn't go the way Little Rock would have liked, but they'll have a chance to split for the week when they play Tennessee Tech (13-12, 8-6) Thursday night at the Jack Stephens Center. The final two home games of the season will be played next week.
Thursday's game begins 25 minutes following the women's contest which tips at 5 p.m. Radio coverage can be heard on 106.7 Buz2 and will be streamed on ESPN+.
In addition, the women's team will be honoring breast cancer fighters and survivors with the annual Play4Kay game. The team will don special pink uniforms for the occasion and some honorees will be introduced during the men's game.
LAST TIME OUT
It was a frustrating outing Tuesday night for a team that was riding a three-game winning streak and had just swept a road trip. The cold-shooting Trojans fell to Southeast Missouri State 57-45 at the Jack Stephens Center.
The Trojans (16-10, 10-5) led for just over a minute in the contest.
Johnathan Lawson led Little Rock with 15 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists and 4 steals.
Ante Beljan contributed 12 points and 5 rebounds.
OVC STANDINGS UPDATE
As the regular season begins to wind down the Ohio Valley Conference standings are increasingly important as teams vie for the top two spots and the automatic byes to the semifinals.
With the loss to SEMO, Little Rock drops to third place at 10-5. SEMO leads with an 11-4 mark and SIUE is second with a 10-4 record.
LEADING THE LEAGUE
Sophomore big man
Ante Beljan is leading the OVC in shooting percentage. The Croatia native is shooting at a 59% clip per game. The 6-foot-8, 220-pounder is averaging 11.1 ppg and also pulls down nearly 5 rebounds per contest while dishing out 2 assists.
THE SERIES
The Trojans have dominated the Golden Eagles since they joined the OVC two years ago. They have won the past four meetings, including a 77-71 victory at Cookeville, Tenn., last month. Little Rock is 1-1 against TTU at the Jack Stephens Center.
SCOUTING REPORT: Tennessee Tech
The Golden Eagles, led by former University of Arkansas head coach John Pelphrey, have won two of their past three games after enduring a four-game losing streak last month. They fell 77-58 last Thursday to league leader SIUE on the road, but rebounded with a 59-54 win at Eastern Illinois.
TTU, who leads the league in turnover/assist ratio, turns to forward Rodney Johnson. He leads the Golden Eagles in scoring with 13.3 ppg. Jaylon Johnson isn't far behind with 12.7. Big man Daniel Egbuniwe, a former Little Rock player, averages just over 10 ppg and leads the team in rebounding with 6.7.
