EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Little Rock mounted a strong second-half comeback but could not overcome Lindenwood's advantage at the free-throw line as the Trojans fell to the Lions 72-62 Wednesday night at the Ford Center in the opening round of the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament.
Little Rock closes the season with a 12-20 overall record and a 9-11 mark in OVC play.
The Trojans outscored Lindenwood 41-37 in the second half and briefly grabbed the lead after erasing a double-digit deficit, but the Lions converted 28-of-43 free throws to secure the victory.
"We fought back and gave ourselves a chance," Little Rock head coach
Darrell Walker said. "I'm proud of how our guys competed in the second half. We just dug ourselves too big of a hole early, and it's tough to overcome that against a good team."
Little Rock struggled to find rhythm early in the game as Lindenwood built a 35-21 halftime lead. The Trojans committed 12 turnovers in the first half, which the Lions turned into key scoring opportunities.
Despite the early challenges, Little Rock showed flashes offensively.
Tuongthach Gatkek opened the scoring with a layup to tie the game at 2-2, and
Cameron Wallace energized the Trojans late in the half with a powerful dunk and later assisted
Kachi Nzeh for a layup.
The Trojans came out of the locker room with renewed energy and quickly cut into the deficit. Nzeh sparked the rally with a three-pointer at the 14:06 mark, tying the game at 42-42 as part of a 9-0 Little Rock run that briefly gave the Trojans the lead.
"We just talked about coming out and competing,"
Kachi Nzeh said. "We knew we had to bring more energy and play together. We made a run and gave ourselves a chance, but we just couldn't finish it."
Lindenwood responded with a run of its own and maintained its advantage down the stretch, using trips to the free-throw line to hold off the Trojan comeback.
Johnathan Lawson led Little Rock with 17 points, while adding five assists and four blocks. Wallace finished with 15 points and eight rebounds, and Nzeh recorded a double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds, including the key three-pointer that ignited the Trojans' second-half rally.
Gatkek added eight points and two blocks, helping Little Rock finish the game with seven total blocks defensively.
