KATV Channel 7 - The Spirit of Arkansas: Trojans Win In Overtime

The UALR men's basketball team outscored Troy 18-6 in overtime to earn a 74-62 victory in the final game at Sartain Hall on Saturday night. UALR (14-14, 11-3) hit nine three pointers in the win and moved one step closer to locking up its fifth Sun Belt Conference Division championship in nine years under head coach Steve Shields, while Troy falls to 8-17 (3-11 SBC) on the year.

UALR's bench kept the Trojans afloat in the first half as starters D'Andre Williams, Chuck Guy and Courtney Jackson went scoreless over the first 20 minutes. Troy held a 29-24 lead at the intermission after UALR's reserves outscored its starters 14-to-10 in the first half, but the trio of Williams, Guy and Jackson carried the Trojans in the second half by combining to score 30 of the team's 32 points.

Guy and Williams accounted for the team's final 17 points of regulation to help force overtime, the last 15 of which came off five three pointers. Troy led for nearly the entire game until a three pointer by Williams gave UALR its first lead of the night, 50-47, with 2:55 left to play.

Guy finished with a team-high 16 points off a 4-of-8 effort from three-point range, with Williams adding 13 points by going 3-for-5 from beyond the arc. Freshman Ben Dillard and Tramar Sutherland combined for 22 points off the bench, with Dillard totaling 12 points off a perfect 10-for-10 effort at the foul line.

Alan Jones led all players with 17 points in the losing effort, followed by 10 points from Justin Wright. Troy outrebounded UALR 37-to-36, despite a game-high 11 rebounds from freshman Michael Javes. The 6-10 forward added seven points and three blocked shots in the win.

UALR's offense failed to find a rhythm in the first half, as Troy built a 29-24 lead at the break after holding the Trojans to a paltry .231 field goal percentage over the first 20 minutes (6-of-26). UALR connected on just 1-of-7 three-point attempts in the first half, but offset its shooting woes by outscoring Troy 11-to-5 at the foul line.

UALR's bench outscored its starting lineup 14-to-10 in the first half, with Dillard and Sutherland combining for 14 of the team's 24 points in the opening session. Dillard drew contact on two three-point attempts and converted all six of his foul shots on his way to a team-high eight points at the break. Sutherland added six points in seven minutes of work by going 2-for-2 from the field and 2-for-2 at the foul line.

UALR trailed by just a point, 22-21, after a putback by Javes at the 3:15 mark of the first half, but Troy answered with an 8-0 run to take its largest lead of the half, 29-21. Alan Jones hit a three pointer during the run to help Troy build an eight-point lead, but UALR went 3-for-4 at the foul line over the final 33 seconds to make it a five-point game at the break.

UALR played from behind for nearly the entire second half, finally taking its first lead of the night with 2:55 remaining as a three pointer by Williams put the Trojans ahead 50-47. Troy led 45-39 with 9:12 left to play following a three-point play by Ray Chambers, but Guy hit a jumper from the corner and a three pointer from the wing to cut UALR's deficit to a point, 45-44. His three pointer marked the first of five UALR would hit to close out the half, the last of which he delivered with 34 seconds left to put the Trojans ahead, 56-54.

Two free throws by Emil Jones gave Troy a 47-44 lead, but Guy connected from beyond the arc to tie things up at 47-all, and Williams followed with a three pointer of his own to give UALR its first lead at 50-47. Williams delivered another three pointer moments later to put the Trojans on top by four, 53-49. Troy reclaimed the lead 54-53 with 1:07 remaining as Alan Jones followed two free throws from Will Weathers with a three pointer from the wing.

Guy's next three pointer put UALR back ahead by two, 56-54, and it looked like the Trojans would win in overtime after Tim Owens missed a point blank shot on the next possession and Sutherland was sent to the line for a one-and-one situation with nine seconds left. But Sutherland missed the first free throw, and Justin Wright drew a foul from Javes as he went for the rebound. Wright went to the line with 8.4 seconds to go and promptly sank both foul shots to tie things up at 56-all. UALR had a chance to end things in overtime, but a deep three-point attempt from Williams came up short.

UALR's momentum carried into the overtime period, as the Trojans opened the extra session on an 8-0 run and never looked back. Sophomore Will Neighbour and Guy hit back-to-back three pointers to start things off, and Sutherland followed with a fastbreak layup to give UALR a 64-56 lead it would never relinquish. UALR went 4-for-5 from the field in overtime (2-for-2 from three-point range) and converted all eight of its free-throw attempts.

UALR returns to action Thursday night when it welcomes North Texas to the Jack Stephens Center at 7 p.m.