Troy Drops Sun Belt Opener at UALR

Thursday, November 29

Little Rock, Ark.

7:30 p.m.

Troy University

UALR

11/29/2012 10:26:00 PM | Basketball (M)

By: Joe St. Pierre

Box Score

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – Deonata Jethroe's shot as time expired fell just short, as Troy men's basketball (4-4, 0-1) was defeated by UALR (5-3, 1-0), 58-56, in Little Rock, Ark., on Thursday night.

“We had the last shot and we tried to drive to the basket,” said head coach Don Maestri. “But we weren't able to get it to there. We're still not shooting the ball well. We need to shoot better if we want to be competitive.”

UALR chipped away at Troy's halftime lead down the stretch, before taking a lead of its own in the final minutes. Troy had an opportunity to tie the game, getting the ball down just two with under 10 seconds remaining, but the final play was stifled, forcing Jethroe to take a contested jumper at the buzzer.

Troy cut the UALR lead to one point with just 10.7 seconds remaining, as Hunter Williams drained a deep 3-pointer. UALR's Josh Hagins hit 1-of-2 from the free throw line on the ensuing play, giving Troy a chance.

Williams led the team with 11 points and a season-high seven assists, while Emil Jones scored 10 points and grabbed three boards, despite missing most of the first half. Ray Chambers had a great day on the glass, grabbing 11 boards, including seven offensive, to go with his eight points.

Troy shot 38.1 percent (24-of-63) from the field and 27.3 percent (6-of-22) from 3-point range. The rebounds were close, with UALR taking a 38-36 edge, but Troy took just two free throws to UALR's 22.

UALR finished the game 20-of-52 (38.5 %) from the field and 4-of-15 (26.7%) from range. Troy kept its turnovers in check, finishing with 11 to UALR's 10.

Troy took a 33-28 lead into halftime, despite poor shooting from beyond the arc. Troy played impressive defense, holding UALR to just nine field goals in the opening 20 minutes.

Jones was held to a season-low seven minutes in the first half, due to foul trouble, but the rest of the team stepped up. Chambers showed off his shooting game, hitting a pair of mid-range jumpers, while Williams proved to be the facilitator, with six assists in the opening frame.

The Trojans return home on Saturday to face Western Kentucky at 7:30 p.m., ending the stretch of four games in seven days. The game will be part of a double-header with the women's team and both will be featured on ESPN3 and ESPN Full Court.

For more information on Troy Athletics, be sure to check out TroyTrojans.com. Fans can also find Troy on Twitter at @TroyAthletics or on Facebook at Facebook.com/TroyAthletics.