Burn The Horse

Watch Chris Beard's Introductory Press Conference at UALR #LittleRocksTeam

2015-04-08T11:00:00.002-05:00

This was our non-winning entry in the UALR Fight Song contest

2015-02-09T08:20:00.001-06:00

So, we didn't win the UALR fight song contest. But I thought our entry was a pretty good one. This was what we submitted.

"Silver and Maroon"
Stand up and cheer for our mighty Trojans,
For the Silver and Maroon
Others may fight for red or white
But those colors make us blue
FIGHT! FIGHT!
When the fight's the hardest we'll stand up
as our Trojans fight to prove.
This is OUR TOWN! OUR STATE!
And we will ....
Paint it Silver and Maroon.
GO TROJANS!!!!!!

Max Morgan hosting the Mike Newell Show in 1986

2014-09-23T10:26:00.001-05:00

RIP Max Morgan

2014-09-23T10:14:00.002-05:00

2014-09-08T12:03:00.001-05:00

2014-09-08T12:02:00.007-05:00

2014-09-08T12:02:00.005-05:00

2014-09-08T12:02:00.003-05:00

2014-09-08T12:02:00.001-05:00

Up Next: UALR (12-14, 7-7) vs. Texas-Arlington (11-14, 6-7)

2014-02-21T09:31:00.001-06:00

TROJANS VS. MAVERICKS

WHEN 7 p.m., Saturday, Feb. 22

WHERE Jack Stephens Center, Little Rock
TICKETS CLICK HERE
LAST MEETING UALR 72, UTA 70 (Jan. 4 at Arlington, Texas)
ALL-TIME SERIES Tied 1-1
TV None
RADIO KABZ 103.7
TWEETCAST @burnthehorse

AND ONES

UTA won the only previous meeting between the teams in Little Rock. That game was the only loss in a 9-1 start to the nonconference season in 2007. ... Texas-Arlington features NCAA Division I transfers Reger Dowell (Oklahoma State) and Jamel Outler (Texas Tech). ... UALR won the first meeting this season on a buzzer beater by Josh Hagins.

BURN UNIT

A victory today would pretty much lock UALR into no worse than the fifth seed at next month's Sun Belt Tournament. A loss would nearly lock UALR out of a top three finish.
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KING PRIAM'S KEYS

Welcome back: We don't have any confirmation that Will Neighbour is a go for Saturday's game. Guess this is just wishful thinking. But if UALR is to make a late run in conference play, Neighbour is the key.

Free time: UALR needs to out free throw UTA. The Mavericks are 1-10 this season when making fewer free throws than their opponent.

Threes under 35: UALR has gotten better at defending the 3. UTA shoots 35 percent for the season but made just 21 percent in Thursday's loss at Arkansas State. UALR needs to keep UTA's three-point percentage below 35 percent.

Get to the 70s: If UALR gets to 70 points, its chances of winning go up. UTA is 5-0 this season when holding an opponent to less than 70 points. UTA has five more victories when the opponent scores between 70-79.

PREDICTIONS

Omni Rankings: UTA by 1
Las Vegas Line: UALR by 3
Real Time RPI: UALR 76, UTA 69
Jeff Sagarin Ratings: UALR 70, UTA 69
CBS Sports: TBA
The Sports Network: TBA

Take 3: Channel 49 to attempt to air Steve Shields Show at 6:30 tonight (maybe)

2014-02-20T16:11:00.002-06:00

Knock on wood, this week's episode of The Steve Shields Show will air at 6:30 p.m. tonight on Channel 49 in Little Rock. At least that's what we've been told.

I'm not even sure who to be mad at anymore. I'm even less sure that the show will air without technical difficulties.

You might remember Monday when the wrong show aired with the voices and video way out of sync. Then on the re-air on Wednesday, the correct show aired. But it apparently started around 6:15-6:20 and the voices and video were again out of sync.

Yesterday on Twitter, I jokingly Tweeted this:

Maybe if Ch 49 aired the @ShieldsUALR Show every night, they'd finally get it right by Friday. #0for2thisweek @UALRathletics
— Burn The Horse (@burnthehorse) February 20, 2014

Well, hopefully they won't have to go until Friday.

Steve Shields Show to air at 6:30 tonight on Channel 49

2014-02-19T09:07:00.003-06:00

Due to technical difficulties with Monday's broadcast, ME-TV will re-run the Steve Shields show tonight at 6:30 PM.
— UALR Athletics (@UALRathletics) February 19, 2014

UALR hopes to have Neighbour back soon

2014-02-18T09:44:00.004-06:00

Knock on wood.

UALR hopes to be at nearly full strength when it hosts Texas-Arlington on Saturday at the Jack Stephens Center. Neighbour was injured at South Alabama on Feb. 1. He attempted to play in games on Feb. 6 vs. Georgia State and Feb. 8 vs. Western Kentucky but was not effective. So UALR put him in a protective boot and sat him out of last week’s games vs. Louisiana-Lafayette and Louisiana-Monroe.

“You have to credit Will’s passion to get back on the floor and help his teammates,” UALR Coach Steve Shields said. “But after going through a similar situation with James White recently, we believe rest is the best way to get him back healthy.”

Shields said when Neighbour went in for treatment on Monday, swelling had gone down enough for him to begin walking on it again.

“We’re in hopes of having him practice the latter part of this week,” Shields said.

Leroy Isler’s hamstring continues to be an issue as well. He sat out Thursday’s game at ULL but played on Saturday vs. ULM. And Mareik Isom was able to play in both games last week. He’s expected to be available this week as well.

One who won’t be back is Kemy Osse, who broke the patella bone in his knee. He’ll be out at least the next four months.

Read more of Shields' comments at www.steveshields.com.

If UALR wants to be big time, they need to start acting big time

2014-02-18T09:33:00.000-06:00

Last night, I settle in to watch The Steve Shields Show on Channel 49.

From the moment it started, the voices were out of sync with the video. And this is not the first time it has happened. So I Tweeted:

Is it too much to ask to get the voices and video in sync on the Steve Shields Show? #bruceleestyle @UALR_MBB
— Burn The Horse (@burnthehorse) February 18, 2014

But I really wanted to see the highlights from the Louisiana-Lafayette game. So I stuck with it. Then after the first commercial break, they go to highlights. It's the Georgia State game. From two weeks ago. I quickly realize this is the wrong show.

@UALR_MBB the wrong episode of the Steve Shields Show is airing #wantedtoseeULLhighlights
— Burn The Horse (@burnthehorse) February 18, 2014

I had seen a photo UALR posted on Facebook of Shields and Chris Peterson taping the show. So I was pretty sure they did indeed tape the show on Monday. And UALR sent out this Tweet:

Don't forget to watch the @ShieldsUALR Show tonight on ME-TV at 6:30 PM. And catch the Shields/Foley radio show on @SportsAnimal920 at 7 PM.
— UALR Athletics (@UALRathletics) February 18, 2014

I never did get a response from UALR. So I have no idea what happened. So what gives? I can't place any blame for this on Shields. He's merely fulfilling the requirements of his contract with the way the show is done. But it's awful. The video quality is terrible. The audio quality isn't very good. The highlight edits are bad. There is zero thought put into that program. And that's when it actually airs.

Oh and if I can even find it. My Dish Network program guide still lists it as M*A*S*H every Monday night. Perhaps UALR folks are hoping no one will see it.

And why isn't the show at least available on www.ualrtrojans.com?

Again, not Shields' fault. But if UALR wants to be respected as a big-time player, they need to start acting like it.

UALR falls at ULM

2014-02-15T17:31:00.002-06:00

UALR SPORTS INFORMATION
MONROE, La. – UALR pulled as close as six in the second half, but a cold-shooting night prevented the Trojans (12-14, 7-7 SBC) from getting any closer as ULM (8-12, 5-7 SBC) pulled away for a 65-49 win at Fant-Ewing Coliseum Saturday afternoon. Sophomore James White posted his third career double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds.

“We struggled to get going offensively,” said head coach Steve Shields following the loss. “Defensively, I thought we were good enough in the first half. We held them to 24 points, but we scored just 13 in the first half. We weren’t strong enough with the basketball inside. We had 10 turnovers in the first half, and I just felt like we never got any rhythm going offensively.”

UALR shot just 31.0 percent for the game (18 of 58), including 23.1 percent from 3-point range (3 of 13) while going 10 of 21 (47.6 percent) from the foul line. The Trojans finished the night with a 39-38 edge in rebounding, including a 12-8 advantage on the offensive glass. White led the team with five offensive boards.

ULM outscored UALR 30-14 in points in the paint and connected on 14 of 26 foul shots.

Junior Ben Dillard led the Trojans with 14 points in 27 minutes. Sophomore Josh Hagins and freshman Maurius Hill scored nine points each. Hagins added six rebounds, five assists and three steals.

ULM began the game on an 8-0 run, and UALR didn’t score its first bucket until Hill got loose inside at the 16:38 mark of the first half. The Trojans pulled within two on a couple of occasions in the first half, the last coming when White scored inside to make it 12-10 with 6:15 to play in the half. From there, the Warhawks scored six unanswered as part of a 12-3 run to close the half and make it 24-13 heading into intermission.

The Trojans pulled within six on a free throw by Hill that made it 39-33 with12:02 to play. That would be as tight as UALR would make the margin, as ULM scored 10 straight points to make it 49-33 with 8:49 to play. UALR got no closer than 12 the rest of the way.

Tylor Ongwae led ULM with 25 points on 8-of-17 shooting. Jayon James flirted with a triple-double, finishing with 12 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists.

The Warhawks shot 44.2 percent (23 of 52) from the field in the contest.

The Trojans will have Thursday off and return to action on Saturday when they face UT Arlington at the Jack Stephens Center at 7 p.m. Members of the Sun Belt Conference staff will make the trip to Little Rock for its stop on the #NOLABound Tailgate Tour.

Up Next: UALR (12-13, 7-6) vs. UL-Monroe (7-12, 4-7)

2014-02-14T15:21:00.001-06:00

TROJANS VS. WARHAWKS

WHEN 2 p.m. Saturday, February 15

WHERE Fant-Ewing Coliseum, Monroe, La.

RADIO 106.7 in Little Rock

TV None

TWEETCAST @burnthehorse

ALL-TIME SERIES UALR leads 14-8

LAST MEETING UALR 70, ULM 60 (Feb. 7, 2013 at Monroe, La.)

SERIES STREAK UALR has won 6 straight and 10 of the past 12

AND ONES

We don't know the status of UALR seniors Will Neighbour (ankle) and Leroy Isler (hamstring). ... UALR is expected to be without Kemy Osse (knee). ... ULM has been playing without Amos Olatayo, who averaged 13.2 points and 5.3 rebounds before being injured. ... UALR has only one more road game after this, Feb. 27 at Troy.

KING PRIAM'S KEYS

Rebound: ULM has a negative rebound margin for the season. Coming off UALR's dominant rebounding effort on Thursday at ULL, the Trojans can't afford a letdown.

Hang in there early: ULM has lost three straight, just like UALR. The Warhawks, playing at home, will want a fast start against the Trojans. UALR needs to hang in there during the first half.

3s below 35: ULm shoots only 31.9 from the three-point line. They went 8 of 24 vs. Texas-Arlington Thursday. UALR needs to keep them below that 35 percent mark.

Someone else: UALR got that something else on Thursday from Maurius Hill with 15 points. UALR needs someone else to give them something else tonight.

LINES/PREDICTIONS

Las Vegas Line: ULM by 2

OmniRankings: ULM by 5

RealTime RPI: ULM 76, UALR 69

Jeff Sagarin Ratings: ULM 70, UALR 68

The Sports Network: UALR 74, ULM 68

CBS Sportsline: ULM 74, UALR 71

BTH Analysis: UALR future now looks a little brighter than before

2014-02-14T13:09:00.000-06:00

The most interesting aspect of last night's game was the glimpse into the future it gave UALR Trojan fans. UALR is scheduled to lose two seniors after this season in Will Neighbour and Leroy Isler.

Frankly, the future looked a bit murky with those two gone. However, those expected to return next year stepped up and showed they can more than compete in the Sun Belt Conference.

Playing on the road against a loaded team -- ULL has two potential first team all-Sun Belt players -- the UALR youth held it together. Heck, they almost pulled it out before losing 93-87 in double overtime.

One issue figured to be scoring. Isler and Neighbour are among the tops on the roster in team points scored while on the court. But others stepped up.

Stetson Billings got to a team best +7. And Maurius Hill (even), Ben Dillard (-1) and Gus Leeper (even) had valiant efforts. Josh Hagins was on the court for all but four UALR points that were scored.

I was contemplating just how I was going to justify the plus/minus ledger when UALR was playing with just four players last night. But neither team scored during those 10 seconds, so it ultimately didn't matter.

Louisiana-Lafayette won two of the four factors, taking free throw rate and effective field goal percentage. UALR dominated rebounding and both teams turned the ball over on 18 percent of their possessions.

BTH Morning After: Hardest playing team came up short on Thursday

2014-02-14T08:54:00.000-06:00

Basketball is sometimes a funny game. The team with the most talent should win, but doesn't always. The team that plays the hardest and overcomes the most odds doesn't always win. The latter happened on Thursday in UALR’s 93-87 loss at Louisiana-Lafayette.

I’ve been around the UALR basketball program for 12 years. The effort by the UALR players last night nearly brought me to tears. I’d dare say it was the best effort I’ve ever seen from UALR basketball players and coaches.

What do they have to show for it? Nothing. Unfortunately, that’s basketball.

“I thought our guys showed a lot of effort, togetherness and courage,” UALR Coach Steve Shields said.

Louisiana-Lafayette was at near full strength and riding a three-game winning streak into last night’s game. They also had Shawn Long and his 20 points and 10 rebounds back in the lineup (he missed the previous meeting with UALR due to suspension). That alone, on paper, should have made Louisiana-Lafayette a huge favorite (and they were at 8.5 points in Las Vegas).

UALR had to play without Will Neighbour (ankle injury) and his 16.7 points and 7.2 rebounds per game averages. Also missing was Leroy Isler (hamstring injury) and his 6.7 points and 3.2 rebounds. Isler would also be UALR’s best matchup defender. Of course, UALR lost starting point guard J.T. Thomas to a season-ending injury a while back.

It was even worse than that. Mareik Isom figured to get the start in place of Neighbour. But Isom was also injured. He didn’t start but ended up giving 17 minutes. Then Kemy Osse went down with a knee injury in the first half. He was being re-evaluated last night but the fear is that he has been lost for the season as well.

That left UALR with nine available players. And seemingly all nine were in foul trouble all night long. Eventually, five Trojans fouled out (Maurius Hill, Stetson Billings, James White, Ben Dillard and Gus Leeper). The remaining four players finished the final 10 seconds of double overtime for the Trojans.

And White had a subpar game mostly due to foul trouble. He finished with 5 points and 2 rebounds in 18 minutes. But he only had one field goal attempt the entire night.

Oh and by the way. Louisiana-Lafayette didn’t have a single player foul out. Officials whistled nine more fouls on UALR than the Ragin’ Cajuns. There’s no way UALR should have been within 30 points of Louisiana-Lafayette, which by the way has two potential first team all-Sun Belt players in Long and Elfrid Payton.

In today’s Daily Advertiser, ULL Coach Bob Marlin said he thought Osse’s injury “gave those guys some juice.”

Seriously? Juice? It put them in what should have been an insurmountable hole. That’s where the effort put forward by UALR’s players and coaches should be recognized.

Josh Hagins finished with 24 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists. He seemingly took every shot down the stretch as all potential scorers continued to foul out. By the way, after coming in at the four-minute mark, he played the final 46 minutes.

Hill had 15 points and 5 rebounds after scoring only 30 points the entire season coming in. Billings had 5 points and 11 rebounds. DeVonte Smith had 16 points.

UALR held Long to 7 points and 3 rebounds, well below his average. And the Trojans held a 44-36 advantage in rebounding, 19-9 in offensive.

“We felt like we needed to win the glass and we won it by 8 tonight,” Shields said. “Our guys played hard. They played together.”

Marlin summed it up by saying, “We’ll take it. Four in a row.”

Unfortunately, despite their effort UALR has now lost three in a row.

INJURY REPORT

The Daily Advertiser reported that Kemy Osse tore a patella tendon. UALR Coach Steve Shields wouldn’t confirm that postgame.

“Not exactly sure what that is. The doctor that came in and looked at it said it needed to be re-evaluated. We’ll get it re-evaluated tonight and see where we go from here,” Shields said.

We don’t know the status of Neighbour or Isom for Saturday’s game at Louisiana-Monroe. Neither’s status was discussed postgame.

BURN UNIT

It ultimately didn’t matter because ULL hit two free throws at that point to make it a six point game, but UALR finished the final 10 seconds with only four players – DeVonte Smith, Josh Hagins, Andrew Poulter and Mareik Isom. UALR Coach Steve Shields said it’s the first time he can remember having to do that.

“There were a lot of fouls called in this game. Seventy-three is a lot of free throws. And when you have a lot of free throws you’re going to have foul trouble,” he said.

KING PRIAM’S KEYS

Rebounds: We hoped UALR could just keep rebounding close. Instead, the Trojans dominated the glass. Grade: A.

From the start: We had no idea who was going to be missing from the UALR lineup. Still, a good start seemed necessary. Instead, UALR went down 19 points early. Grade: C.

Threes under 35: UALR needed to keep ULL under 35 percent from the three-point line. ULL finished 8 of 26 for 30 percent. Grade: A.

WHAT HAPPENED IN VEGAS?

If you were gutsy enough to bet on UALR, you did get the win in Las Vegas.

Short-handed UALR falls in double OT to ULL

2014-02-13T22:25:00.002-06:00

If basketball was scored on effort alone, UALR would have won going away Thursday night. Alas, attrition finally caught up with the Trojans in a 93-87 loss to Louisiana-Lafayette in double overtime at the Cajundome in Lafayette.

Almost unbelievably short-handed UALR rallied from 19 points down to force not one, but two overtimes before finally succumbing. The Trojans finished the final seconds of the game with just four players available.

That’s because UALR entered the game without senior forward Will Neighbour (ankle) and senior guard Leroy Isler (hamstring). During the game, UALR lost sophomore guard Kemy Osse to a knee injury. And in the game, James White, Stetson Billings, Ben Dillard and Maurius Hill fouled out. That left the Trojans with just DeVonte Smith, Josh Hagins, Mareik Isom and Andrew Poulter to finish the game.

“We came down here to win this game,” UALR Coach Steve Shields said. “I’m very proud of our basketball team. We never use excuses. I thought our guys showed a lot of effort, togetherness and courage.”

Josh Hagins had 24 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists to lead UALR. Smith added 16 points and Dillard had 10. But UALR gut an unreal effort from freshman Maurius Hill with 15 points and 5 rebounds. Hill entered the game having scored only 30 points the entire season.

The loss of Neighbour, UALR’s leading scorer and rebounder, and Isler, UALR’s best defender, should have been enough to take the Trojans completely out of the game. And early on it looked that way with Louisiana-Lafayette jumping out to a 19-point first-half lead. But the Trojans didn’t quit, mounting a massive comeback.

A late first-half run cut the halftime lead to 47-35 but with 7:45 remaining, UALR still trailed by 11 points. But they kept chipping away. And down 3 with less than a minute to play, Hagins delivered a three-pointer to tie the game 72-72. UALR then survived a missed jumper late by Louisiana-Lafayette’s Elfrid Payton to send the game to overtime.

UALR trailed most of the overtime period as well before tying it 78-78 on a layup by Hagins with 26 seconds left. Louisiana-Lafayette went to Payton again and he delivered a bank shot from the top of the key to give the Cajuns a 2 point lead with 2 seconds left.

UALR tried to inbound the ball to Hagins but Payton unbelievably grabbed him and a foul was called. After multiple timeouts by Louisiana-Lafayette, Hagins hit both free throws to send the game to double overtime.

Louisiana-Lafayette led 83-82 in the second overtime when the game’s key sequence came up. Hagins turned the ball over for UALR with a chance for the lead. On ULL’s possession, Shawn Long threw the ball away on a dunk attempt but it squirted right to teammate Kevin Brown. He missed a three-pointer by Bryant Mbamalu grabbed the rebound and scored for an 85-82 lead. UALR turned it over again on its next possession and Mbamalu scored on a layup as he was fouled. His free throw made it 88-82 with 41 seconds left.

UALR got to within 91-87 on a three-pointer by Smith with 10 seconds left. But the Trojans had to foul and Hill committed his fifth foul. With no more available substitutes, UALR had to play the final seconds with just four players.

Up Next: UALR (12-12, 7-5) vs. Louisiana-Lafayette (15-9, 6-5)

2014-02-13T09:55:00.000-06:00

TROJANS VS. RAGIN' CAJUNS

WHEN 7:05 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 13
WHERE Cajundome, Lafayette, La.
ALL-TIME SERIES ULL leads 22-18
LAST MEETING UALR 80, ULL 69 (Jan. 30, 2014, at Little Rock)
RADIO 106.7 FM
TV None

ROTATIONS/STATISTICS

AND ONES

We haven't heard a single injury report on Neighbour, but he is expected to play. ... Long didn't play in the first meeting due to suspension. Neither did White, who was injured.

KING PRIAM'S KEYS

Rebounds: ULL is a very good rebounding team and Long might be the Sun Belt's best rebounder. UALR can't afford to get killed on the glass.
From the start: UALR needs to get off to a good start. When they've done that on the road, they've been able to hang in and steal some games.
Threes Under 35: ULL shoots 35.4 percent from the three-point line. UALR needs the Cajuns to shoot less than that tonight.

PREDICTIONS

Las Vegas Line: ULL by 8.5
OmniRankings: ULL by 11
Real Time RPI: ULL 84, UALR 73
The Sports Network: ULL 78, UALR 70
CBS Sportsline: ULL 78, UALR 71
Jeff Sagarin Ratings: ULL 77, UALR 68

BTH Analysis: UALR wins 3 of 4 factors, still loses to WKU

2014-02-10T14:12:00.003-06:00

It's not often you can completely dominate three of the Four Factors To Winning and still lose. But that's exactly what happened to UALR during Saturday's 79-78 loss to Western Kentucky at the Jack Stephens Center in Little Rock.

UALR was seven percent better in effective field goal percentage, three percent better in turnover percentage and destroyed WKU in free throw rate. So how could they have possibly lost?

It's pretty easy. WKU obliterated UALR in rebounding. The Tops got back 37 percent of their misses to UALR's 19 percent. Throw in a couple of missed free throws in the final minute (four actually) and the Trojans lost their second consecutive game.

Mareik Isom had 11 points off the bench for UALR. He also missed two free throws and was covering Trency Jackson when Jackson hit the game winning three-pointer at the buzzer. But Isom's minutes were still among the most productive on the night for UALR. The Trojans outscored the Hilltoppers 41-32 with Isom on the court. The only better mark was the +10 put up by Leroy Isler.

It was interesting that Will Neighbour, playing with an injured ankle, went to the bench early in the second half and didn't return. The plus/minus shows why. UALR was outscored 44-34 in Neighbour's minutes. That's pretty atypical for the senior forward.

For the season, UALR's most productive offensive players in terms of team points scored while they are on the court are: 1. Leroy Isler; 2. Josh Hagins; 3. Will Neighbour; 4. Ben Dillard; 5. DeVonte Smith. UALR's most productive defensive players in terms of team points allowed while they are on the court are: 1. Stetson Billings; 2. Mareik Isom; 3. Gus Leeper; 4. Will Neighbour; 5. Josh Hagins.

Updated Sun Belt Conference standings/tournament seeding

2014-02-10T09:24:00.002-06:00

BTH: 2 Mornings After: Jackson not the first WKU player to beat UALR at buzzer

2014-02-10T09:22:00.002-06:00

Trency Jackson isn’t the first Western Kentucky player to crush UALR with a last second-shot at the Jack Stephens Center. In fact, he’s the third.

Jackson’s buzzer beating three-pointer allowed Western Kentucky to beat UALR 79-78 on Saturday after UALR led by as many as 13 points in the second half. The shot will be memorable though not unique in the games between the schools.

In 2011 at the Stephens Center, WKU’s Jamal Crook grabbed a loose ball and scored on a layup with 0.8 seconds left as the Hilltoppers beat UALR 61-59. WKU had run a play for Steffphon Pettigrew but as he attempted the shot, UALR deflected the ball away. It fell right to Crook who kind of tipped it in for the win.

And in 2006, WKU’s Courtney Lee hit a pull-up jumper with 1.6 seconds left to give the Hilloppers a 74-73 victory over UALR. Lee, who went on to play in the NBA, hit the shot with De’Andre Eggins’ hand in his face.

BURN UNIT

UALR’s pair of losses to Georgia State and Western Kentucky likely take the Trojans out of the running for a top two seed and double bye in next month’s Sun Belt Tournament in New Orleans. At 7-5, UALR still sits in third place. They could drop to fourth tonight if Arkansas State beats Western Kentucky in Jonesboro. UALR then plays the current fifth place team Louisiana-Lafayette on Thursday in Lafayette, La.

STAT OF THE GAME

Western Kentucky outrebounded UALR 36-29, including 14-5 in offensive rebounds.

TROJAN MAN

UALR sophomore Josh Hagins had 20 points, 6 rebounds, 7 assists, 3 blocked shots and a steal on Saturday. Hagins made 7 of 11 field goals.

GLASS HALF FULL

Mareik Isom had a breakout game of sorts, finishing with 11 points off the bench for the Trojans.

GLASS HALF EMPTY

Isom missed two free throws with 26 seconds left and UALR leading 76-73. He also gave too much space on the final play of the game to WKU’s Trency Jackson. And when Isom slipped, Jackson pulled up and hit the game winning three-pointer.

KING PRIAM’S KEYS

Threes Below 35: Western Kentucky made 12 of 30 three-pointers for 40 percent. Grade: D-.

Win the Boards: WKU held a 36-29 rebounding advantage. Grade: F.

Handle the Pressure: UALR had 15 turnovers to WKU’s 17. Grade: B+.

Free Josh: Hagins was spectacular most of the game. But he did only make 2 of 4 free throws in the final 11 seconds. Grade: B.

WHAT HAPPENED IN VEGAS?

Western Kentucky was a 1.5-point favorite. If you were inclined to bet on UALR, you still won on Saturday.

WKU buzzer beater knocks off UALR

2014-02-08T21:35:00.004-06:00

UALR SPORTS INFORMATION LITTLE ROCK – A smothering 15-0 run midway through the second half seemed like it was going to be more than enough for the UALR men’s basketball team to defeat WKU at the Jack Stephens Center on Saturday evening. However, the Hilltoppers closed the game on an 18-5 run that was capped by a Trency Jackson 3-pointer as time expired to lift WKU to a 79-78 victory.

With seven minutes to play and a 13-point lead, UALR cooled off as WKU heated up and eventually claimed the win. Jackson’s buzzer-beater capped the Hilltoppers’ comeback that was aided by UALR making just three field goals in the final eight minutes and missing five of eight free throws in the final 44 seconds.

UALR (12-12, 7-5 Sun Belt Conference) had five players score in double figures including Josh Hagins(20), James White (14), Leroy Isler (13), Ben Dillard (11) and Mareik Isom (11), but WKU (16-7, 8-3) made 12 3-point baskets to help narrow the gap.

After the Trojans’ huge 15-0 run was erased by an 18-5 run by the Hilltoppers and the game was knotted at 73-73, White slammed home his second dunk of the evening to give his team a two-point lead with 103 seconds to play. Dillard then went 1 of 2 from the free-throw line and Hagins followed suit, making it a 77-73 advantage for the home team with only 11 seconds left on the clock. But in that span, Isom also missed two free throws.

A 3-pointer from Brandon Harris brought WKU back within one at 77-76 with five seconds to play, and Hagins got fouled when the Trojans inbounded the ball next. He made just one free throw to put the Trojans ahead 78-76, but Jackson nailed his 3-pointer from the left wing as time expired.

Besides his 14 points, White led UALR with nine rebounds and nearly earned a double-double. In addition to his career-high 20 points, Hagins had a game-high seven assists and also added a game-high three blocks. DeVonte Smith added five assists of his own. UALR shot an impressive 7 of 10 from long range and was over 50 percent from the field at 24 of 46, but the Hilltoppers made the same number of total baskets and had five more 3-pointers.

The final score was much closer than it appeared it was going to be midway through the half when the Trojans went on their 15-0 run and brought the crowd to its feet.

In a game that was tight the entire way to that point, the Trojans finally got some separation on that run that only lasted four and a half minutes. Things began to go the Trojans’ way just after coach Steve Shields earned a technical foul and UALR went behind 55-53.

That technical seemed to fire up the team, as four consecutive made free throws were followed by Isler rattling home a 3-pointer from the left wing early in the run and causing the Hilltoppers to take a timeout down 60-55. But after the timeout, Hagins completed a steal with a full-court layup on a spin move. The Trojans got a steal from Isom on WKU’s next shot, and White slammed home a monster dunk in transition. After another WKU timeout, White stuffed a shot and earned Hagins a second transition layup, putting the lead at 11 for UALR.

When the run finally ended with about eight minutes to play after two Isler free throws, UALR had gone from a two-point deficit to a 13-point lead at 68-55. All told, the run featured two UALR blocks, a steal, four defensive rebounds and three WKU turnovers in just over four minutes.

But that run was far from the end of the game. The Hilltoppers scored 18 of the next 23 points, tying the contest at 73-73 with 1:45 to play and setting up their come-from-behind victory.

Way back in the first half, the Trojans had a small advantage in the early going. The team took a 10-5 lead when Dillard drained a 3-pointer just six minutes into the game. But from there, the Hilltoppers controlled much of the rest of the half. WKU scored seven of the next eight points to go ahead 12-11, and they extended their lead for the rest of the period.

Thanks to an impressive 7-of-15 performance from behind the arc and a 17-13 edge on the glass, the visitors led by as many as 10 points with 3:31 to play.

UALR closed out the half strong, though, narrowing the gap to just four points at the break. Isler hit two free throws, Hagins had a 3-pointer and two free throws and Smith added two from the line over the final three minutes to make it a 36-32 lead for WKU at halftime.

The Trojans return to action on Thursday at Louisiana, playing the Ragin’ Cajuns at 7:05 p.m.

Who was today's UALR player of the game vs. Western Kentucky?

2014-02-08T19:03:00.001-06:00

Who was today's UALR player of the game vs. Western Kentucky?
	Josh Hagins
	James White
	Mareik Isom
	Leroy Isler
	Ben Dillard
	DeVonte Smith
	Will Neighbour

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