LITTLE ROCK -- For the second time in a week, Little Rock suffered a heartbreaking defeat at the buzzer, this time by Texas State as the Bobcats' shot as time expired handed the Trojans a 72-70 loss at the Jack Stephens Center.
Trailing by five with 27 seconds to play, Little Rock (5-14, 2-4 in the Sun Belt Conference) used an and-one from Malvern's Andre Jones to pull to within two points before forcing Texas State (12-7, 5-1) into a traveling call with 9.7 seconds left. Jones then played the role of distributor, sending a baseline feed to Oliver Black for the slam with 6.3 seconds remaining.
After a foul at midcourt with 3.7 seconds left, Texas State had one final attempt and made it count, connecting from just inside the arc to the left of the key to hand Little Rock its second buzzer-beating defeat in seven days.
Little Rock must now get set to close out the home stand with arguably its most anticipated game of the year when Arkansas State (6-13, 1-5) makes its yearly trek to the capital city. Opening tip against the Red Wolves is scheduled for 5:15 p.m. on Saturday at the Jack Stephens Center. The game will be the first on a three-game road trip for Arkansas State, which lost 97-71 to UT-Arlington (12-7, 3-3) in Jonesboro Saturday.
The loss by the Trojans overshadowed several standout performances, including a 19-point, five-rebound, four-assist effort from Jones. He finished a perfect 7-for-7 from the free throw line.
Cameron Corcoran and Kris Bankston both set career-highs in points. Corcoran finished with 16 on 5-for-6 shooting, going 4-for-5 from 3-point range.
Bankston just missed posting the first double-double of the season for Little Rock. He finished with 14 points and nine rebounds, complemented by four assists and three blocks against the Bobcats.
Ryan Pippins, of Little Rock Parkview, finished with nine points. Oliver Black, the team's second-leading scorer, added eight points, going 4-for-4 from the floor, with three rebounds.
As a team, Little Rock shot a season-high 57.8 percent from the floor, hitting 26 of its 45 shots, including going 15-for-24, 62.5 percent, in the second half. The Trojans were 5-for-12, 41.7 percent, from 3-point range and 13-for-17, 76.5 percent, from the free throw line, their third-highest percentage of the season.
Saturday night came down to offensive rebounds. Texas State had 14 offensive boards, compared to just seven for Little Rock, leading to an 18-8 differential in points off turnovers. The Trojans once again held the advantage in the paint, outscoring the Bobcats 38-34.
Texas State shot 47.5 percent, 29-for-61, from the floor and 45 percent, 9-for-20, from 3-point range and had four players finish in double figures. The Bobcats won 73-67 Thursday in Jonesboro.
Arkansas State could not overcome a hot-shooting Arlington squad that hit a First National Bank Arena opponent record 15 distance shots Saturday night. The Trojans defeated the preseason-favorite Mavericks 77-65 Thursday behind 24 points from Jones.
Senior guard Deven Simms led the Red Wolves with 14 points and seven rebounds on Saturday. The Mavericks finished with a 61.1 field goal percentage, including a 15-for-27, 55.6 percent, performance from beyond the arc. Arkansas State posted 35 rebounds to Arlington's 33 and committed four fewer turnovers, but could not keep pace with a 39.4 field goal percentage.
Sports on 01/16/2018