When Champion Christian guard Ariyon Williams cut to the basket and finished a layup to put the Tigers ahead 6-4 early Friday night, Darrell Walker shook his head and waited on the bench for his players when the horn sounded for the first media timeout.
"I told them that they had to get better," the University of Arkansas at Little Rock men's basketball coach said. "We have Missouri State coming up and then we have the Sun Belt Conference coming up. We have to get better."
The Trojans were better after the timeout, scoring 23 unanswered points and running away from the visitors for a 78-50 victory at the Jack Stephens Center to move to 4-2 on the season.
Junior Markquis Nowell paced the Trojans with a team-high 17 points and recorded his fourth consecutive double-double with 10 assists.
On a big night for the bench, UALR had 11 players who scored and got a big contribution from SMU transfer C.J. White, who scored 12 points in his first game since gaining NCAA eligibility.
The Trojans next head to Missouri State on Monday to close out their nonconference schedule before jumping into Sun Belt play.
"Coming off the bench and being productive is always a blessing for us because we need that production off the bench," Nowell said. "Seeing them grow and seeing them learn throughout the process is a good feeling. I know that they can add value to our team and that they will down the line."
The Trojans started sluggish in their first action in 12 days, missing six of their first eight field goals. The Tigers pulled ahead, led by Xavier Legington, who finished with 13 points.
After the timeout and a word from Walker, UALR came to life. Back-to-back baskets from Jovan Stulic and Nikola Maric jolted the Trojans. Eight scorers contributed to the 23-0 run over a 7:32 span that put UALR ahead 27-6. The run was headlined by a pair of slams from senior Ruot Monyyong, the second of which came on a through-the-legs pass from Nowell.
"I think we guarded a bit better," Walker said. "And we turned the ball over a bit better. That put us out in the open court, and when we get out in the open court, we're a pretty good, entertaining basketball team to watch."
Junior Kris Bankston, still finding his legs after missing nearly all of the 2019-20 season with a back injury, showed off his explosiveness on the way to seven points. Freshman Yacine Toumi, a forward from France, flashed poise in the paint and around the basket, finishing with seven points. Sophomore Isaiah Palermo had 6 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists.
But it was White who shined brightest. The junior who played at Little Rock Parkview delivered energy, defense and shooting off the bench, grabbing 3 rebounds and 2 steals to go along with 12 points, including 3-of-3 shooting from three-point range.
"I thought [White] played very well," Walker said. "I think he's going to be a really good basketball player for us because he's another guy who can make plays with the basketball."
Walker said the Trojans delivered the sort of performance he craved after the layoff, although he said he still is not pleased with the team's defense.
"We came out on top, but we've still got some work to do," Walker said.