Target on first-place UALR grows

FILE — UALR guard Markquis Nowell (front) drives to the basket against Appalachian State guard Donovan Gregory while teammate O’Showen Williams (4) looks on in this Feb. 2, 2020 file photo.
FILE — UALR guard Markquis Nowell (front) drives to the basket against Appalachian State guard Donovan Gregory while teammate O’Showen Williams (4) looks on in this Feb. 2, 2020 file photo.

On the first day of February, the University of Arkansas at Little Rock's men's basketball team is showing no signs of slowing down.

Behind junior guard Ben Coupet's 23 points, the Trojans defeated Appalachian State 93-86 on Saturday afternoon at the Jack Stephens Center in Little Rock.

UALR (17-7, 11-2) has won six consecutive games and is atop the Sun Belt Conference at 11-2. Two of the Trojans' six victories during the streak have come against Appalachian State, and they have not lost since Jan. 11 at South Alabama.

Trojans Coach Darrell Walker said his team now has a target on its back.

"Everybody's going to come in here and try to get a win," Walker said. "We're going to get the best from everybody. There's nothing wrong with that.

"If you want to be a good team, you have to accept that. Take their best and you've still got to go win."

After the game, Coupet and sophomore guard Markquis Nowell were asked about the Trojans' winning streak. Both players knocked on the wood of the podium in the Jack Stephens Center media room.

"You jinxing us right now?" Nowell joked with a reporter. "We're locked in. We're taking it one game at a time."

Coupet's 23 points on 9-of-13 shooting were a season-high for him in his first year with the Trojans after transferring from UNLV.

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"He was really aggressive," Walker said. "He attacked the basket. I think that was the best he's played since he's been here. He's very capable of doing that."

Along with Coupet, four other Trojans scored at least 10 points Saturday.

Nowell finished with 17 points and 13 assists. Junior forward Ruot Monyyong, sophomore forward Kamani Johnson and freshman guard Marko Lukic all had 12 points apiece for UALR, which shot 60.7% (34 of 56) from the floor and made a season-high 13 three-pointers Saturday.

"We were hitting shots today," Coupet said. "We put up a lot of shots in practice, so I think that was the key today."

The Mountaineers (12-11, 6-6) were led by junior guard Justin Forrest, who scored 23 points. Senior guard O'Showen Williams had 18 points. Isaac Johnson, also a senior guard, finished with 17 points and 9 assists, while freshman forward Kendall Lewis added 11 points.

UALR led 44-40 at halftime after outscoring Appalachian State 15-2 in the final 9:04 of the first half.

The Trojans opened the second half on a 7-0 run, including a dunk by Kamani Johnson to make it 51-40 with 18:29 left to play. They extended their lead to 59-44 with 15:49 remaining on Kamani Johnson's layup.

Walker said he believed the first five minutes of the second half were crucial for the Trojans on Saturday.

"I was sitting next to Preston [Laird], one of my assistant coaches, and I said, 'It would be nice if we were to go on a 6-0 run,' " Walker said. "It winded up being more than that. I just wanted a 6-0 run to get their attention and to get our juices flowing."

Appalachian State pulled within 68-59 with 11:50 remaining on Isaac Johnson's three-pointer.

But the Trojans used an 8-0 run, including a three-pointer and a three-point play by Coupet and Monyyong's slam dunk, to increase their lead to 76-59 with 10:14 left to play. It was UALR's largest advantage Saturday.

UALR is off until Saturday when it hosts in-state rival Arkansas State University at 2 p.m.

Walker said he is enjoying the Trojans' success in conference play and hopes it continues as they attempt to win their first regular-season Sun Belt title since 2016.

"We've got great chemistry," Walker said. "These guys hang out together. They crack jokes, they play pranks and they mess with me all the time. It's a different team. They've bought into defending.

"We play a fun style of basketball. We've got a good group of guys. I love coaching them. They probably don't like me all the time, but I love coaching them."

The Trojans won despite the fact that the Mountaineers shot 32 of 44 from the floor (72.7%), 12 of 19 from the three-point line (63.2%) and 10 of 14 on free throws (71.4%).

Sports on 02/02/2020

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