Battered in the paint and unstable in its shooting, the University of Arkansas at Little Rock women’s basketball team lost 58-49 to Louisiana Tech on Thursday night at the Jack Stephens Center.
It was the Trojans’ second loss in three games.
UALR (3-5) was within 5 points with 7:09 left in the game, but the Trojans shot 2 of 14 (14.3 percent) in the final quarter, which allowed Louisiana Tech (5-4) to maintain the lead to end its three-game losing streak.
The Trojans, who trailed 22-7 after the first quarter, were outscored 28-16 in the paint, finished the game 18 of 48 shooting (22.2 percent), and gave up 21 points off 17 turnovers.
“The way we started was the same way we ended,” UALR Coach Joe Foley said. “We just couldn’t get one in the hole, weren’t very smart on defense, didn’t look to me like a whole lot of concentration.”
Louisiana Tech’s first-quarter lead was built on dominance in the paint. Senior forward Alexus Malone scored the first two baskets of the game after backing down a UALR defender near the baseline, and freshman guard Amber Dixon scored a layup from the left side to give the Lady Techsters a 6-0 lead.
Malone finished the game with a team-high 13 points and six rebounds, and UALR junior forward Yanina Inkina came off the bench in the first quarter to help stop her.
“We let their post players score really easily,” said the 6-2 Inkina, who helped hold Malone to two points in the second quarter. “Second-chance shots, we missed a lot of offensive block outs and everything. This is what made us struggle.”
UALR missed its first three baskets of the game, and the Trojans finished 2 of 11 shooting (18.2 percent) after the first quarter.
At the start of the second quarter, UALR began to set screens to free up open shots, and freshman guard Tori Lasker made a three-pointer at the start of the second quarter.
Junior forward Raeyana DeGray also made a three-pointer and scored nine points in the second quarter to bring Louisiana Tech’s lead down to 36-27 by halftime.
DeGray finished with a game-high 14 points.
UALR came within 6 points during the third quarter, when the Trojans scored 5 points off 4 Louisiana Tech turnovers. UALR graduate senior forward Keanna Keys scored 8 points in the third, and she helped the Trojans to a 7-0 run with a layup with 1:06 left to bring UALR within 47-40.
UALR’s tightened defense held Louisiana Tech without a field goal for the last 2:56 of the third quarter, which continued in the fourth, when the Trojans pulled within five points on a free throw by Lasker with 7:09 left in the game.
But Louisiana Tech made the shots necessary to pull away: junior guard Kierra Anthony made a mid-range jump shot as the shot clock expired to go ahead 51-44 with 6:19 left in the game. Then, after a missed UALR jumper, Anthony spun into a layup that pushed the lead to 53-44.
Louisiana Tech maintained that margin until the end.
UALR will next play at No. 3 Mississippi State on Sunday.
Sports on 12/08/2017