Jefferson stars in Final Game as Trojans Roll Past Western Illinois in Home Finale

Senior guard Jordan Jefferson promised he'd "show out" on senior day against Western Illinois Saturday. And he did, it just took him a bit to get going. Jefferson scored 17 of his game-high 25 points in the second half and Little Rock overcame a 17-point first half deficit to roll past the Leathernecks, 75-61, as a large homecoming crowd of more than 2,000 watched on.
"It felt good, I haven't been in a zone like than in a while," Jefferson said. "I knew I had to [play well] in my last home game. I felt like I had something to prove."

Not only was the day festive celebrating the careers of Jefferson and fellow senior Mwani Wilkinson, but the victory also marked the 100^th win of head Coach Darrell Walker's seven-year tenure at Little Rock. 
"I didn't know [about 100] because I was just focusing on trying to win and stop this one-game losing streak," he said. "It's about staying in one place at one time. I have had some good years here, and I've had some in-between years. We had a great year, and COVID came and the transfer portal came. There's no doubt in my mind we've got the program going in the right direction. We've got some games to win this year, and we will keep going next year."

After trailing by 17 points late in the first half, the Trojans cut the deficit to 39-36 at halftime.
WIU led by five early in the first half, but that's when Jefferson started heating up. He made a floating jumper and was fouled and hit the free throw.
Moments later Wilkinson, who finished with 12 points and 8 rebounds, hit a three-pointer to give the Trojans a 45-44 lead with just over 15 minutes left, and they never relinquished it.
A 12-0 run, which also included a Jefferson 3-pointer, was capped by a Wilkinson jumper in the lane that gave Little Rock a 53-45 lead with 13:13 remaining. 

The lead hovered around 10 points the next few minutes, and WIU star guard Marco Maletic, who was held to seven points, hit two free throws to cut the margin to 57-49 with 10:39 remaining. 
That's as close as the Leathernecks got as the Trojans went on an 11-2 run. Jefferson's bucket in the lane with 4:30 remaining gave Little Rock a 68-51 lead. Jefferson's final hoop of the game was a triple with 48 seconds left. 

"He got warm," Walker said of Jefferson. "It was great seeing it. He is a great kid that comes from a great family."

Jefferson's second-half heroics may not have mattered had Tuongthach Gatkek not sparked the team in the first half. The 6-foot-9, springy forward practically dug the Trojans out of a hole himself in the first half. 
With Little Rock trailing 34-17 with 5:41 to play in the half, Gatkek responded with an 8-0 run by himself. His easy fast-break hoop following a turnover, cut the margin to 37-32 with 1:22 left in the half. Jefferson's jumper cut the lead to three with 34 seconds to go, but WIU went back up 5. Ante Beljan, who contributed 10 points and four rebounds, dunked home a miss with no time left to make it 39-36 at halftime. 
Gatkek finished with 15 points, 12 rebounds, 3 steals, 3 assists and 2 blocks. 

"It all started with Tuon," Walker said. "He just went berserk. He was jumping and tipping balls, and he was all over the place. We were running and trapping."
The Trojans finish the season with regular season with a road trip that begins at Eastern Illinois on Thursday and culminates at SIUE on Saturday.