"Nobody cares about that."
It's been the same refrain all season when Darrell Walker's been asked about injuries. And with seven guys in tracksuits again Thursday night, Walker was dealing with yet another undermanned University of Arkansas-Little Rock men's basketball team.
Missing leading scorer Nikola Maric along with two more starters, the Trojans were unable to muster enough offense in a 69-59 loss to Texas State at the Jack Stephens Center in Little Rock.
UALR got 13 points apiece from Myron Gardner and C.J. White, but the Trojans were never able to dig out of a double-digit hole, trailing by as many as 22 points in the waning moments of the first half before drawing close late.
"I thought that was a great basketball game," Walker said. "You saw a team out there that was very shorthanded with five guards on the court and ... we had a chance to win the game."
UALR (6-9, 1-2 Sun Belt Conference) lingered around, trying to generate some momentum down 60-45 with more than seven minutes remaining. The Trojans then canned three straight three-pointers, the latter two coming from White to get back within 10 for the first time since the Bobcats scored 13 straight in the first half to break the game open.
UALR seemed to find some momentum, taking advantage of Texas State mistakes caused by the Trojans' press.
But there just wasn't enough left in the tank for UALR, which never got closer than eight.
"I had to be really selective about when I wanted to press and get after it," Walker said. "I had guys in foul trouble and guys were gassed out there. You've got to understand, some of these guys are coming back from covid. They're getting tired very fast."
One of the Trojans that did have covid was Maric, and while the Bosnian big man was hoping to be back after a positive test almost two weeks ago, he was not cleared by doctors to play against the Bobcats.
That, plus an untimely foot injury for Marko Lukic during Wednesday's practice, put Walker without two of his three leading scorers. Marko Andric came out to the bench in a boot and on crutches, knocking out one of UALR's primary ballhandlers.
So up against Texas State (12-4, 3-1), which was projected to finish third in the conference prior to the season, the Trojans turned to junior college transfer Myron Gardner for some early offense. The Detroit native took three of his team's first four shots and set a new Division I career-high less than 10 minutes into the game.
Foul trouble kept him off the court for a while, however, and UALR's comeback bid was certainly not helped when Gardner fouled out with more than six minutes to play.
"He can create off the dribble, he can get in the lane, he can finish," Walker said of Gardner. "We made some mistakes that we shouldn't have made down the stretch and lost the basketball game. But I'm proud of the way that these guys played."
Texas State;M;FG;FT;O-R;PF;A;PTS
Small;25;4-6;2-2;1-5;1;1;10
Adams;33;1-4;0-0;0-1;1;1;2
Asberry;30;5-11;7-7;1-8;5;1;19
Martin;16;2-5;1-2;3-6;2;1;5
Harrell;31;3-10;4-4;1-5;0;5;10
Dawson;9;0-1;0-0;0-0;0;0;0
Coleman;7;1-1;1-1;0-2;0;1;3
Morgan;15;3-6;2-2;3-6;2;1;8
Ceaser;22;6-7;0-0;1-5;2;0;12
Lacewell;2;0-0;0-0;0-0;0;0;0
Drinnon;9;0-2;0-0;1-2;3;0;0
Team;;;;1-2;;;
Totals;200;25-53;17-18;12-42;16;11;69
PCT — FG 47.2, FT 94.4. 3-PT — 2-12, 16.7 (Asberry 2-6, Adams 0-1, Dawson 0-1, Drinnon 0-1, Small 0-1, Harrell 0-2). BL — 2 (Ceaser, Coleman). TO — 14 (Asberry 4). ST — 3 (Adams, Asberry, Small).
UALR;M;FG;FT;O-R;PF;A;PTS
Palermo;26;1-6;6-6;0-2;4;1;9
White;38;4-10;3-4;0-2;3;3;13
Jefferson;8;0-2;0-0;0-1;1;0;0
Gardner;31;5-12;1-4;1-5;5;2;13
Osawe;35;2-6;2-2;1-3;1;1;7
Smith;34;3-6;3-4;1-2;3;4;10
Stulic;23;2-5;2-2;0-0;1;1;7
Besovic;5;0-0;0-0;0-0;0;0;0
Team;;;;1-5;;;
Totals;200;17-47;17-22;4-20;18;12;59
PCT — FG 36.2, FT 77.3. 3-PT — 8-20, 40.0 (Gardner 2-4, White 2-5, Smith 1-1, Palermo 1-2, Stulic 1-3, Osawe 1-5). BL — 1 (Stulic). TO — 10 (Gardner 3). ST — 3 (Palermo 2).
Halftime — Texas State 43, UALR 24
Officials — Evans, Lenox, Pettigrew
Attendance — 1,979
UALR’s Myron Gardner (15) goes up for a shot while guarded by Texas State’s Tyrel Morgan during the first half of the Trojans’ 69- 59 loss on Thursday at the Jack Stephens Center in Little Rock. More photos at arkansasonline.com/121ualrtsu/ (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/Thomas Metthe)Gallery: UALR vs Texas State Men's Basketball
