UALR 70, ARKANSAS STATE 57
This one didn't require a large comeback.
The UALR men's basketball team built a lead with its three-point shooting and was never really challenged as it cruised Thursday night in finishing a sweep of its in-state rival for the first time in three years.
The Trojans made six first-half three-pointers then used a run early in the second half when Arkansas State was trying to draw close to finish off a 70-57 victory in front of a season-high crowd of 3,629 at the Jack Stephens
Center.
The victory came three weeks after a 75-65 victory over ASU in Jonesboro, one in which UALR had to rally from a 13-point first-half deficit. This was also UALR's third victory in its last four games and kept its spot in next month's Sun Belt tournament.
The Trojans (11-15, 6-10), with Texas State?s loss, are now seventh in the Sun Belt standings, with four games remaining. ASU (9-15, 4-11) is now tied with Troy for last place in the league standings.
"We're continuing to progress and continuing to learn," UALR Coach Steve Shields said. "We've got to take it one game at a time and we've got to try to win some games finishing up."
Unlike the first meeting between the two teams, ASU never made areal threat in its fourth consecutive loss in Little Rock.
The Trojans jumped to a 17-11 lead eight minutes into the game and never trailed. After a three-minute stretch in which Mareik Isom made two threes, Ben Dillard made another three and James Reid scored in transition, they
led 30-17 and they led 36-26 at halftime.
UALR shot 45.6 percent from the floor, had 17 assists and just six turnovers.
"We were just locked in on the scout and today we just wanted to make sure our energy was up," Isom said. "Last time we came out flat and this time we came out wiht energy and took them out of it."
Isom earned his first start in a month because Shields thought his 6-7 frame would help with UALR's rebounding. The Trojans were minus-11 on the boards in the last meeting, and though they were outrebounded 35-30 on Thursday, most of it had to do with Anthony Livingston's 19 rebounds.
Isom finished with a team-high seven rebounds and also added a career-high 15 points on 6 of 11 shooting in 22 minutes. Isome had five points in UALR's loss to ASU last month, and 14 in a four-overtime loss to ASU in the Sun
Belt tournament last year.
"Isom is a guy who scores 5 points per game except when he plays us," ASU Coach John Brady said. "I don't know, maybe Steve should be playing him more."
Josh Hagins was limited to nine points after scoring 28 on ASU last month, but Isom and Maurius Hill, who had 17, picked up the offensive slack. Hill and Isom were a combined 13 of 22 from the floor.
"You can't let anybody who doesn't score it a lot be their main guy, and that's what happened with Hill and Isom," Brady said.
ASU, which has lost five consecutive games, got within 39-35 with a basket by Livingston with 10:51 left, but J.T. Thomas scored on UALR?s next possession to start an 8-0 run and end ASU's final threat.
ASU?s inability to make a steady run spoiled one of the best individual performances of the season. Livingston finished with 20 points and 19 rebounds, coming just short of scoring 20 points with 20 rebounds in a game for the second time this season.
Livingston had little other help, though. Nouhoum Bocoum added 12 points, but no other ASU player had more than Cameron Golden?s eight as it finished 22 of 55 shooting and committed 13 turnovers.
"We need a couple of other guys to match something close to that," Brady said of Livingston's production.
Roger Woods and James Reid each finished with 11 points and Hagins was 3 of 3 from three-point range to finish with 9 points for UALR. Hagins was one of five Trojans to make a three and they finished 8 of 23 for the game.
UALR is now in position to earn the seventh seed in next month's Sun Belt tournament. ASU is alone in last place in the standings, a half-game behind Texas State for the last spot with five games remaining.
"Better late than never," Isom said of UALR's surge. "We just wanted to come out and play hard and not have any regrets. There was no question about effort."
Sports on 02/20/2015