Statistics add up as Sooners put UALR away early

The final stat line didn’t show all that much disparity. But the little things added up against UALR on Friday as the Trojans lost 101-81 at Oklahoma.

UALR (2-4) was led by 16 points and 8 rebounds from senior Will Neighbour.

While the statline wasn’t tremendously different, the final score reflected the actual outcome. Oklahoma held between a 15 and 20-point lead for most of the final 25 minutes of the game.

Turnovers, rebounds and the inability to get defensive stops ultimately undid the Trojans.

Oklahoma shot 46.5 percent to UALR’s 40 percent. The Sooners made 12 of 28 three-pointers to UALR’s 9 of 26 and 23 of 33 free throws to UALR’s 20 of 25.

UALR committed 17 turnovers to Oklahoma’s 10 but Oklahoma’s press gave UALR fits in the first half. Junior DeVonte Smith finished with 13 points in his absence, but junior J.T. Thomas’ poise against the pressure of the Sooners was missed. Thomas missed his second consecutive game with a strained groin.
UALR was only outrebounded 44-42, including 12-10 in offensive rebounds, but it seemed much worse. OU’s Ryan Spangler had 11 points and 10 rebounds while Cameron Clark had 22 points and 8 rebounds.

Oklahoma beat on Neighbour every chance they got. Neighbour appeared to fall on his injured shoulder early in the game. He took an OU shoulder to the teeth later in the first half. He made 4 of 7 field goals, 3 of 4 three-pointers and 5 of 6 free throws. But he also had 4 turnovers.

The Trojans closed to within 25-23 on a three-pointer by Neighbour with 9:38 left in the first half. Then Oklahoma went on a run that essentially put the game out of reach.

OU’s Cameron Clark hit a three-pointer, Isaiah Cousins, Clark and Buddy Hield all hit layups, all sandwiched around three missed layups by UALR to make it 34-23. The lead reached 23 points before a late run by UALR cut it to 59-44 at halftime.

UALR closed to within 76-65 on a three-pointer by Neighbour with 10:58 left. But OU’s Je’lon Hornbeak answered with a layup and D.J. Bennett converted a three-point play to push it back to 81-65.

The only drama late was whether or not UALR could keep Oklahoma from reaching 100. That occurred with 35 seconds left when OU’s Trey Slate converted a layup for a 101-78 lead.

Sophomore guard Josh Hagins, who has to split time at point guard with Thomas out, picked up two early fouls. He finished with 12 points. Senior Leroy Isler added 11 while sophomore James White had 8 points and 5 rebounds.

BTH Ballot: Who was today's UALR player of the game vs. Oklahoma














  
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BTH Live Tweetcast: UALR vs. Oklahoma updates at 2

UALR (2-3) travels to Oklahoma (4-1) for a 2 p.m. tipoff at the Lloyd Noble Center today. Watch the game live on Fox Sports Southwest, Fox Sports Oklahoma or some other places. The UALR Web site lists today's game on 103.7 The Buzz but it won't be. Try 106.7 if you're listening.

Click here for lineups, statistics and more
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Tweetcast Link: https://twitter.com/nottals/lists/ualr-vs-oklahoma

Who ya got? Today's UALR vs. Oklahoma predictions

Real Time RPI (2-2): Oklahoma 83, UALR 61
Jeff Sagarin Ratings (2-2): Oklahoma 88, UALR 69
CBS Sportsline (2-2): Oklahoma 84, UALR 63
The Sports Network (2-1): Oklahoma 78, UALR 60
----------------------
BTH Average (2-2): Oklahoma 83.3, UALR 63.3

BTH Gameday: Under-control Hagins still dominates for UALR

2 p.m. today
Fox Sports Southwest
It was kind of funny listening to UALR sophomore guard Josh Hagins talk in the postgame news conference last Tuesday. It sounded almost as if he was reciting from the Coach Steve Shields manual.


“It’s simply because I’m making the simple plays,” Hagins said after finishing with 18 points, 5 rebounds, 8 assists, 4 blocked shots and only 1 turnover. He made 7 of 8 field goal attempts including 4 of 4 three-pointers.
What it means is simply this. Don’t go for the thread-the-needle, home run pass. Don’t drive to the basket completely out of control and throw up an awkward shot that has very little chance of going in.
But do take what the defense gives you. Take the ball to the basket when there’s a seam. Force defenders to foul if they can’t stay in front of him. Make the decision to regroup the offense if it’s not there.  And when it is there, finish it off.
It showed some real growth by Hagins. Even though he's still tied for the team lead in turnovers, 1 turnover in 28 minutes on Tuesday was tremendous. He played under control and still dominated the game. And it’s exactly the way UALR needs him to play to be successful.

BURN UNIT

UALR gets another television appearance today. The UALR-Oklahoma game is being televised by OU’s television network. Fortunately for us, that means it’s available on Fox Sports Southwest and some other outlets today. Tip time is 2 p.m.

INJURY REPORT

We didn’t get an official update, but we don’t expect junior point guard J.T. Thomas to be available today. Thomas suffered a groin strain in last Friday’s victory over Southern. He did not play on Tuesday vs. Southern Arkansas.

KEYS TO VICTORY

R-E-B-O-U-N-D: UALR matches up very favorably with Oklahoma size-wise. The Trojans cannot afford to get dominated on the glass today.
White Lightning: Will Neighbour is the focus of every team’s scouting report on UALR. Expect double teams again today. That should leave some space for James White to work.
Answer the bell: UALR must get off to a good start. There’s no way around it.

WHAT HAPPENS IN VEGAS

Oklahoma opened as an 18-point favorite in Las Vegas. That number dropped to 16.5 points this morning.

BTH Up Next: UALR (2-3) vs. Oklahoma (4-1)

Trojans vs. Sooners

WHEN 2 p.m. Friday, November 29
WHERE Lloyd Noble Center, Norman, Oklahoma
LAST MEETING Oklahoma 80, UALR 56 (Dec. 11, 1999)
ALL-TIME SERIES Oklahoma leads 5-0
TV Fox Sports Oklahoma
RADIO 106.7 in Little Rock
TWEETCAST www.burnthehorse.blogspot.com

CLICK TO ENLARGE

BTH Analysis: Hagins (+39) one of four UALR players finishing +30 or better

UALR Coach Steve Shields switched up the lineup again on Tuesday, starting junior DeVonte Smith for the first time and getting sophomore Josh Hagins back in there. Smith's start came as a result of the injury to junior J.T. Thomas. Hagins found his way back in after a solid effort last Friday against Southern.

Hagins was one of four UALR players to turn in plus/minus ratings of +30 or better. UALR outscored Southern Arkansas 69-30 when Hagins was in the game for a +39. Senior Leroy Isler was +37, senior Will Neighbour +33 and junior Gus Leeper +30.

Here's a look at Tuesday's rotation.

BTH Morning After: UALR's post defense exposed in first half

Clearly, UALR is thin in the post. And for a while on Tuesday, NCAA Division II Southern Arkansas exposed it.

We got quite a helping of SAU’s undersized post man Alre’k Brown. He finished with 20 points, 11 rebounds, 3 blocked shots and 2 steals. And for the first half, he was the best player on the court as the Muleriders hung with the Trojans.


SAU's Alre'k Brown scores
2 of his 20 points.
But UALR made some halftime adjustments, dominated the paint in the second half, and ended up rolling to a 90-58 victory at the Jack Stephens Center.

UALR’s front line all had big numbers. Senior Will Neighbour had 17 points and 4 rebounds. Junior Gus Leeper had 9 points and 2 rebounds. Sophomore James White had 16 points and 6 rebounds. And freshman Maurius Hill had 4 points and 6 rebounds.

But they’ve got to defend the paint better than what they did in the first half on Tuesday.

NUMBERS NEVER LIE

UALR shot 57.4 percent from the field, 55.6 percent from the three-point line and 58.8 percent at the free throw line.

INJURY REPORT

Junior point guard J.T. Thomas was not in uniform on Tuesday. He couldn’t finish last Friday’s game against Southern with a strained groin. His status for Friday is unknown. We’ll also be keeping an eye on sophomore forward James White. He had 16 points and 6 rebounds on Tuesday but was injured while scoring his 16th point. It appeared to be an ankle.

GLASS HALF FULL

With junior point guard J.T. Thomas injured, sophomore Josh Hagins  had to split time at the point and shooting guard. He didn’t disappoint. Check out these numbers. He had 18 points, 5 rebounds, 8 assists, 4 blocked shots and a steal.

GLASS HALF EMPTY

UALR made only 10 of 17 free throws. The Trojans only shot 1.4 percent better at the free throw line than they did from the field.

UP NEXT

UALR travels to Oklahoma on Friday afternoon.

Watch UALR vs. SAU highlights

UALR energy picks up in second half as Trojans pull away for victory

The offense was fine. The defense, especially in the post, left much to be desired. The result was about what was expected as UALR rolled to a 90-58 victory over Southern Arkansas on Tuesday at the Jack Stephens Center in Little Rock.

UALR (2-3) led by just five points at halftime before pulling away early in the second half.

“We talked about having better energy in the second half. And we talked about rebounding the basketball,” said UALR Coach Steve Shields, speaking about his halftime talk. “When you give up nine offensive rebounds in one half you’re not going to have very much success.

“I thought our guys had a lot more energy in the second half. I thought we played with more passion. I thought we defended better.”

The Trojans were led by 18 points and 8 assists from sophomore guard Josh Hagins, who split time at both point and shooting guard with junior J.T. Thomas out injured. Hagins also had 5 rebounds, 4 blocked shots, 1 steal and committed just 1 turnover. He went 4 of 4 from three-point range and 7 of 8 from the field.
Senior Will Neighbour had 17 points while sophomore James White had 16 points and 6 rebounds.

UALR shot 57 percent from the field and held a 37-30 advantage in rebounds. UALR had only 7 turnovers to 15 by Southern Arkansas.

All that was good. The fact that Southern Arkansas dominated the paint in the first half wasn’t. The Muleriders’ Alre’k Brown was unstoppable inside in the first half with 12 points and 9 rebounds. He finished with 20 points, 11 rebounds and 3 blocked shots.

And UALR led only 39-34 at halftime after letting an 11-point lead slip away.

“I thought we finished the first half very passive,” Shields said. “It didn’t feel like we played the right way.”
UALR held only an 18-14 advantage in points in the paint at halftime. The Trojans won that stat 18-6 in the second half.


Former UALR walk-on Tre’von Wilkerson, who redshirted last year with the Trojans, finished with 3 points and 3 rebounds for SAU.

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UALR beats SAU 90-58


BTH Live Tweetcast: UALR vs. Southern Arkansas updates at 7

UALR hosts Southern Arkansas at 7 p.m. tonight. at the Jack Stephens Center. No predictions for tonight's game as they don't do them for games against non-Division I opponents.

Get lineups, statistics and game info here.

And follow along with our Live Tweetcast starting at 7 p.m.

Watch the UALR 14-point in 76-second comeback vs. Southern U.

Here's most of the finish from last Friday's UALR victory over Southern. UALR trailed by 14 with 1:16 to play before rallying to tie the game on a late three-pointer by Josh Hagins. UALR went on to win in overtime.

Southern takes the 14-point lead at about the 2 minute mark of this video, which also includes the overtime.

BTH Up Next: Southern Arkansas (2-3) vs. UALR (1-3)

Muleriders at Trojans

WHEN 7 p.m. Tuesday, November 26
WHERE Jack Stephens Center, Little Rock
ALL-TIME SERIES SAU leads 7-3
LAST MEETING UALR 82, SAU 63 (Nov. 20, 2004)
TICKETS $7 End zone ($5 kids); $12 Level 200; $18 Level 100; $24 Leather; $38 Club
RADIO KHLR-FM 106.7 in Little Rock
TV None
TWEETCAST www.burnthehorse.blogspot.com
CLICK TO ENLARGE






UALR's comeback from 14 down in 76 seconds ranks among biggest last-minute comebacks

Last Friday, UALR rallied from 14 points down with 1:16 left to send the game to overtime, where the Trojans eventually won 85-82. But where does making a 14-point deficit rank with the biggest comebacks of all time? Unfortunately, that doesn't seem to be a readily available stat. One of the problems is the time standpoint. Not all games are the same.
  • Trailed  by 14 with 1:16 left (actually 1:09 left).
  • Trailed  by 11 with 1 minute left
  • Trailed  by 7 with 25 seconds left
  • Trailed  by 6 with 17 seconds left
  • Trailed by 6 with 10 seconds left.
Web site BroBible did a great list of the 11 greatest last minute comebacks. Most of their games are NCAA Tournament games. And they're mostly recent games. But UALR's game certainly belongs on a list like this one:

1. Illinois 90, Arizona 89 (2005): Illinois was down by 15 with four minutes left. But the Illini cut the lead to 8 with one minute remaining. The lead was still 8 with 20 seconds left. Illinois trailed by more with 20 seconds left but UALR was down more at the 1 minute mark

2. NC State 69, Pepperdine 67 (1983): NC State, on its way to the National Championship, was down 6 points with 53 seconds remaining. UALR trailed by 9 at the 53 second mark.

3. North Carolina 96, Duke 92 (1974): North Carolina trailed by 8 with 17 seconds left before winning. At the 17-second mark, UALR trailed by 6.

4. Miami 69, Virginia 62 (2011): Miami trailed by 10 points with 37 seconds left before Virginia completely fell apart. UALR trailed by 7 with 37 seconds left.

5. Chicago State 72, Missouri-Kansas City 69: Chicago State trailed by 3 points with 2 seconds left. Chicago State made a 3 to tie, stole the inbounds pass 2/3 of the way down the court and made a heave to win. UALR also trailed by 3 with 2 seconds left, just before Josh Hagins' 3 tied it. That Chicago State win sounds a lot like ORU's victory against UALR a few years ago.

6. Louisville73, Tennessee 72 (2001): Louisville was down 6 with 35 seconds left and won with a 3 at the buzzer. UALR was down 7 with 35 seconds left vs. SU.

7. Barton 77, Winona State 75 (2007): Barton trailed by 8 points with 38 seconds left and then scored the final 10 to win in regulation. UALR trailed by 7 with 38 seconds left.

8. USC 85, Oregon 84 (1999): Oregon led by 5 points with 2.8 seconds left. USC hit one three, stole the inbounds pass and hit a half-court shot to win. UALR trailed by 3 with 2.8 seconds left.

9. Vanderbilt 80, Pittsburgh 74 (1988):  Pitt led by 4 with 12 seconds left. Two three-pointers later Vandy had sent it to overtime. With 12 seconds left, UALR trailed by 6.

10. Anderson 92, Lees-McRae 91 (2009): Anderson trailed by 7 with 22 seconds left before hitting four consecutive three-pointers to win it. UALR trailed by 4 with 22 seconds left, though it would quickly go back to 6 on two Southern free throws.

11. Duke 98, Maryland 96 (2001): Duke trailed by 10 with 53 seconds to go. The Blue Devils tied it on three consecutive three-pointers and won it in OT. UALR trailed by 9 with 53 seconds left.

Smith, Hagins, Dillard, White Neighbour on court as rally started

With UALR trailing 66-52 with 1:16 left, UALR Coach Steve Shields brought sophomore guard Josh Hagins back into the game. With a lineup of Hagins, senior Will Neighbour, juniors Ben Dillard and DeVonte Smith and sophomore James White, UALR made its move. The Trojans outscored Southern 19-5 in the final 76 seconds to send the game to overtime. There UALR pulled out an 85-82 victory.

Dillard, playing his first minutes of the season due to injuries, was stellar. Not only did he make 9 of 10 free throws in the game, but his minutes on the court resulted in a 49-34 advantage for UALR. His +15 rating was by far the best for UALR on the night. 

Neighbour finished +8 and Hagins +7. Sophomore Kemy Osse also entered during that run and finished +6.

Here's the way the substitution patterns played out on Friday.

Season plus/minus statistics are updated in the right column of BTH.

BTH Morning After: Finish wasn't perfect (either way) in UALR victory

Let’s get it out of the way. Anyone who says they thought UALR could rally from 14 down in the final 76 seconds left is lying. That includes us.

(But we do find it ironic that right at the exact time when the Trojan Town message board declared the game over, that UALR rose from the ashes. That’s OK. We were preparing the postmortem. We were just smart enough not to press send.)

What’s really amazing about the comeback is that there was actually some room for error for UALR.
Southern didn’t go scoreless over the final 1:16. Southern actually went 5 of 9 from the free throw line during that span. But they missed three front ends of 1 and 1s that could have (should have) put the game out of reach.

UALR also wasn’t perfect.  The Trojans missed three field goal attempts, finishing the game by going 7 for 10 in the final 76 seconds. But each time they got it back. Junior DeVonte Smith missed  a layup but sophomore James White scored on the rebound. Sophomore Josh Hagins missed a three-pointer and senior Will Neighbour scored on a putback.  Hagins missed a layup and sophomore Kemy Osse scored on the rebound.

BURN UNIT

UALR senior forward Will Neighbour finished with 20 or more points for the third consecutive game. And he was a beast again on Friday.

ON FIRE

After going without a three-pointer in Monday’s loss to Middle Tennessee, UALR hit one on its first attempt of the night on Friday. Freshman Mareik Isom drilled his first attempt. UALR made 6 of 13 on Friday, including 4 of 7 by Hagins.

NUMBERS NEVER LIE

19-5. UALR outscored Southern 19-5 in the final 76 seconds (actually final 68 seconds) to force overtime.

INJURY UPDATE

UALR junior point guard J.T. Thomas went down with a strain of some sort in the second half and did not return. His status for Tuesday’s game is not known. Junior Ben Dillard returned from injury and saw his first minutes of the season. He made 9 of 10 free throws in the game.

GLASS HALF EMPTY

UALR let a second-half lead slip away when Neighbour went to the bench for a rest. It took a miracle finish to get the game into overtime.

GLASS HALF FULL

UALR outrebounded Southern 44-42. UALR’s total included 15 offensive rebounds, three of which saved possessions during the Trojans’ rally.

KEYS TO VICTORY

Win the 2: Josh Hagins had 19 points and Kemy Osse and Ben Dillard each had 9. Grade: A.
Re-do Rebound: It didn’t look great most of the night, but UALR pulled down two more rebounds than Southern. Grade: B+.
Free thinking: UALR couldn’t get to the line early but did so late. The Trojans made 25 of 35 free throws compared to Southern’s 24 of 39. Grade: B.

WHAT HAPPENS IN VEGAS

We never saw a line posted. But no doubt this was an upset victory for UALR.

UP NEXT

UALR hosts NCAA Division II Southern Arkansas at 7 p.m. on Tuesday at the Jack Stephens Center. 

Who was tonight's UALR player of the game vs. Southern U?














  
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Unlikely finish as UALR rallies from 14 down in final 76 seconds to win

Down by 14 points with 1:16 remaining, UALR needed an absolutely perfect finish just to have any hope.

They got it. Sophomore Josh Hagins’ three-pointer tied the game at the end of regulation and UALR won it in overtime, beating Southern University 85-82 in Baton Rouge, La.

UALR (1-3) avoided its first 0-4 start to a season since 1984 when rookie coach Mike Newell’s Trojans started that way.

“That’s a big win for these guys,” UALR Coach Steve Shields said. “I felt like if that team continued to fight, if they’d hang together and keep fighting that good things would happen to them. Those guys in that locker room needed this.”

Again, UALR was down 14 with 1:16 to play.

“To have a situation like that, guys have to keep fighting, stay together and make the right plays,” Shields said. “There’s no 14-point plays. You can’t try to get it all back in one big play.”

Senior Will Neighbour had 23 points and 14 rebounds to lead UALR. Hagins had 19 points, including 4 of 7 three-pointers.

Junior Ben Dillard, playing his first minutes of the season, made 9 of 10 free throws and came up with a huge steal late in regulation and grabbed a key loose ball in overtime.

“Ben’s practiced twice in the last three weeks,” Shields said. “[Athletic Trainer Michael Switlik] has done a good job with him. He stepped up big and played a lot of minutes.”

Sophomore Kemy Osse, who hadn’t made a field goal all season, made a couple of big shots late.
But it didn’t look like it would happen when UALR saw its 40-37 lead turn into a 48-41 Southern advantage in the second half.

Southern continued to build its lead as UALR faltered. The back-breaker appeared to be a three-pointer by Yondarius Johnson with 1:33 left as the Jaguars took a 64-52 lead. After a missed layup, Southern’s Christopher Hyder hit two free throws to give Southern a 66-52 lead with 1:16 left.

Then the dream sequence started.

Hagins hit a three-pointer, Southern turned it over and James White tipped in a rebound to cut the lead to 66-57 with :57 left.

Southern missed a free throw and Neighbour hit a jumper to make it 66-59. Southern missed another free throw and Hagins scored on a layup to make it 66-61 with :29 left.

Southern’s Trey Lynch hit two free throws but UALR sophomore Kemy Osse answered with a three-pointer, his first field goal of the season for a 68-64 score with :21 left.

Southern led 70-64 with 17 seconds left. That’s when Hagins missed a layup and  Osse scored on a putback with 9 seconds left to make it 70-66. Dillard then stole the ball and was fouled  with 8.8 left. Dillard made both for a 70-68 score. UALR fouled Trelun Banks, the coach’s son.

Banks missed the first and made the second for a 71-68 score. UALR went to Hagins who dribbled down the court and drilled a three-pointer to tie the game with 4.6 seconds left.

After trailing by five in overtime, UALR took the lead at 79-78 with 1:09 to play. Neighbour set up, received the pass, spun and banked it in.

Then after a Southern miss, Neighbour dove to the floor after the loose ball and secured possession for UALR in the backcourt. He tipped the ball to Dillard and he was fouled with 35 seconds left.

“That was a championship play right there,” Shields said.

Dillard made both free throws as the Trojans took an 81-78 lead and Southern called timeout. After two free throws by Southern, Dillard made two more for an 83-80 lead. Southern missed and UALR’s James White skied for the rebound and was fouled with 5.1 seconds left.

White, who was only 1 of 4 at the free throw line on the season, stepped up and made both free throws to ice the game at 85-80.

“Just a total team effort,” Shields said. “That locker room’s an exciting locker room right now. I told them, ‘This has to start something.’ We’ve got to be ready to play Tuesday night when we go back home.”

UALR rallies from 14 down in final 1:16, beats Southern in OT

More to come. Unreal UALR victory tonight. Trojans win 85-82 in OT.

BTH Live Tweetcast: UALR vs. Southern updates at 7

UALR travels to Baton Rouge to take on Southern University at 7 p.m. tonight. We'll have as many game updates as we can get our hands on right here.

UALR-Southern lineups
UALR-Southern preview
UALR-Southern predictions


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Who ya got? BTH predictions for UALR-Southern game

The Sports Network (2-0): N/A
Real Time RPI (2-1): Southern 73, UALR 60
CBS Sportsline (2-1): Southern 74, UALR 68
Jeff Sagarin Ratings (2-1): Southern 78, UALR 68
-----------------------------------
BTH Average (2-1): Southern 75, UALR 65.3

BTH Gameday: Getting a read on UALR-Southern difficult

It didn’t take long for the comparing of scores to take place.
  • UALR lost by 2 to North Florida while Southern beat North Florida by 9
  • UALR lost to Middle Tennessee by 17 while Southern lost to Middle Tennessee by 3.
  • UALR lost to Florida by 30 while Southern lost to Florida by 14.

So it appears Southern has a huge advantage tonight as the Jaguars (1-4) host UALR (0-3) in Baton Rouge, La.

Maybe they do. Southern is better than the typical SWAC team. They nearly knocked off Gonzaga in last year’s NCAA Tournament. And I've seen them play twice on television. It will take a solid effort from UALR to win this game. But getting a read on the game by comparing scores is difficult.

I don’t like comparing scores because every game is different. One sequence in a game can turn it good or bad in a big way. It can make games that are blowouts seem much closer. And it can make games with close scores look like blowouts.

Take UALR’s and Southern’s games against Florida.

UALR and Florida were tied 26-26 and the game was still a five-point contest with 12 minutes remaining. Then Florida went on a big run and blew UALR away by 30 points.

Florida and Southern was just the opposite. Florida jumped on Southern from the start and held an 35-19 lead at halftime. Florida had extended that lead to 18 points two minutes into the second half. That’s when the Gators lost their point guard to injury. Southern outscored Florida 33-31 the rest of the way and it ended up being much more respectable in the box score with a 67-53 final. That 14-point final margin was the closest the Jaguars got in the second half.

And Middle Tennessee lost at Florida last night with Florida still playing without its primary point guard.

What does it mean? It means that comparing scores without comparing the way the games were played can be meaningless.

BURN UNIT

Southern is a dangerous opponent. Calvin Godfrey had 18 points and 9 rebounds against Florida. And Malcolm Miller, who might be the best scorer on the Jaguars, only had 2 points and 5 rebounds against the Gators. But he’s much better than that.

KEYS TO VICTORY

1.       Win the 2: UALR hasn’t had much production from the 2 guard position at this point. But there is potential. Tonight’s the night when UALR needs a boost here.
2.       Re-do Rebound: UALR was sold rebounding the ball against Middle Tennessee. It can’t afford a letdown tonight.
3.       Free thinking: The fact that UALR went to the free throw line so many times against Middle Tennessee had nothing to do with the new NCAA rules. It was about the aggressive nature with which the Trojans attacked the basket. UALR needs to attack Southern again tonight.

WHAT HAPPENS IN VEGAS?


There doesn’t appear to be a line yet but we’d expect Southern to be favored by a couple of points.

Up next: UALR (0-3) vs. Southern (1-4)

Trojans vs. Jaguars

WHEN 7 p.m., Friday, November 22
WHERE F.G. Clark Activity Center, Baton Rouge, La.
ALL-TIME SERIES UALR leads 9-5
LAST MEETING UALR 75, Southern 60 (Nov. 30, 2004)
RADIO KHLR-FM 106.7 in Little Rock
click to enlarge



Building for Sun Belt play remains focus for UALR

Will Neighbour
Remember back when UALR lost its home opener to North Florida? We told you that loss hurt because of the future schedule. And so far that’s come to pass. UALR is now 0-3 heading into a road game Friday night at Baton Rouge, La., against Southern.

But building for Sun Belt Conference play remains the focus (it has been all along) for the Trojans.

“It’s not an overnight thing. What you are right now is not important compared to what you are at the end of the season,” UALR Coach Steve Shields said.

But you also don't want to dig your season record so far into a hole that you can't get out. And UALR sill has nonconference road games remaining against Memphis, Tulsa and Oklahoma. Getting victories now is important. And Friday’s game marks the third consecutive game against a team from last year’s NCAA Tournament.

There has been visible improvement in UALR’s play. But there hasn’t been the consistency required to win games. UALR’s rebounding was awful on opening night and has been better in each of the past two games.
“That’s one area of significant improvement that has to continue for us,” Shields said.

Another area of concern is shooting the basketball. But that is an area Shields feels will work itself out.
“We have guys on our team that aren’t shooting the ball well through three games who I feel certain will be good shooters for us over the long term,” Shields said. “What’s important is that the ball is moving and we’re getting good looks.”

The ball movement was most obvious against Middle Tennessee.


“The ball had to move well for us to get to the foul line 42 times against a very good defensive team in Middle Tennessee,” Shields said. “As long as we keep doing that, I think our shooting will get better.”

BTH Morning After: Thomas one bright spot early for UALR

The bright spot early this season appears to be the play of junior point guard J.T. Thomas.

Through three games, Thomas is averaging 7.7 points, 2.2 rebounds and has turned the ball over just three times (twice on Monday vs. Middle Tennessee).

One area we’d like to see go up are his assists. He has only five in three games. But when your teammates are only shooting 36 percent from the field, it’s difficult to get assists.

BURN UNIT

UALR continues to get nothing out of the 2 guard position. It got so bad on Monday that UALR played about three minutes with junior DeVonte Smith at the point and starting point guard J.T. Thomas at the 2.  Last night’s numbers from the 2 guard included sophomore Josh Hagins with 4 points in 23 minutes and sophomore Kemy Osse with 1 point in 16 minutes. Thomas, who finished with 11 points, didn’t score in his three minutes at the 2.

NUMBERS NEVER LIE

0 made three-pointers. Perhaps someone else will research the last time UALR didn’t make a three-pointer in the game. The closest in the past four seasons came when UALR made 1 of 14 vs. Florida Atlantic in 2011-2012. That same season the Trojans made 1 of 8 vs. Oral Roberts.

GLASS HALF FULL

Middle Tennessee double teamed Will Neighbour every time he touched the ball. And he still was almost unstoppable last night. Neighbour finished with 21 points and 8 rebounds. He made 5 of 7 field goals and 11 of 16 free throws. Neighbour is now averaging 18 points and 6.7 rebounds per game.

GLASS HALF EMPTY

While Neighbour has been good, the inconsistent play from UALR’s other forwards has hurt. James White was bad vs. North Florida and good against Florida. He had 5 points and 8 rebounds in 28 minutes last night. Gus Leeper was good against North Florida and bad against Florida. He had 4 points and 3 rebounds in 8 minutes last night. And Mareik Isom was good against North Florida and bad against Florida. He had 3 points and 1 rebound in 8 minutes last night.

REPORT CARD

Glass Cleaner: UALR outrebounded Middle Tennessee 37-31, including 12-7 in offensive rebounds. Grade: A.
Value the Ball: UALR had 13 turnovers to Middle Tenneseee’s 10. Grade: B.
Two solid: See Burn Unit Above. Grade: F.

WHAT HAPPENS IN VEGAS

UALR entered as a 12-point underdog and Middle Tennessee pulled away late to secure that number. Betting on the Trojans vs. the spread this season would leave you 0-3 at this point.

UP NEXT

It gets no easier. UALR travels to Baton Rouge, La., to face Southern on Friday. Southern dropped to 1-4 with a 67-53 loss at Florida last night. Southern trailed 35-19 at halftime.

UALR gets to the line, can't make a 3 in loss to Middle Tennessee

UALR took full advantage of the NCAA’s new rules. But it was an old one that caught up with the Trojans on Saturday.

UALR went without a made three-pointer on Monday in a 76-59 loss to Middle Tennessee at the Murphy Center in Murfreesboro, Tenn.  The loss drops UALR to 0-3 to start the season, the first 0-3 start for the Trojans in 29 years.

Senior Will Neighbour had 21 points and 8 rebounds to lead UALR. And junior J.T. Thomas had 11 points. Those two combined to make 64 percent of UALR’s made field goals in the game.

That’s because UALR made only 14 of 47 from the field. Eleven of those 33 missed shots were blocked shots by Middle Tennessee. Eleven more came from the three-point line where the Trojans were 0 for 11.

The only reason the game was even that close was because UALR exploited the new NCAA defensive rules to perfection. UALR drove hard to the basket all game, battled for rebounds and put Middle Tennessee in bad situations defensively. The Trojans made 31 of 42 free throws in the game.

UALR fell behind by 17 points early and trailed by 15 at halftime. But the Trojans crawled back in the second half behind Neighbour, who was double-teamed every time he touched the ball. A converted three-point play by senior Leroy Isler cut the lead to 59-53 with 6:33 left.

But Middle Tennessee responded on a jump shot by Shawn Jones to push the lead back to 8. The Blue Raiders were able to pull away from there.

Neighbour made only 5 of 7 field goal attempts. But, after making 100 percent of his free throws coming in, he made only 11 of 16 at the line.

UALR once again got very little out of its 2 guard position. Sophomore Josh Hagins started and went 1 of 7 from the field to finish with 4 points. Sophomore Kemy Osse finished with one point and has still not made a field goal in three games this season.

One positive: UALR outrebounded Middle Tennessee 38-31.

UALR Coach Steve Shields shortened the rotation for the first time this season. Sophomore Stetson Billings and freshman Maurius Hill didn’t play until mop up time at the end.

BTH Ballot: Who is tonight's UALR player of the game vs. Middle Tennessee?

  
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BTH Live Tweetcast: Live updates from UALR vs. Middle Tennessee game

UALR (0-2) vs. Middle Tennessee (3-0)
7 p.m. tonight
Murfreesboro, Tenn.

CLICK HERE FOR LIVE VIDEO

CLICK  HERE FOR LINEUPS, FACTS
CLICK HERE FOR GAME PREVIEW
CLICK HERE FOR GAME PREDICTIONS





Who ya got? UALR vs. Middle Tennessee predictions

The Sports Network (1-0): Middle Tennessee 75, UALR 69
CBS Sportsline (1-1): Middle Tennessee 80, UALR 62
Real Time RPI (1-1): Middle Tennessee 79, UALR 57
Jeff Sagarin Ratings (1-1): Middle Tennessee 82, UALR 70
OmniRankings (0-0): N/A
-------------------------------
BTH Average (1-1): Middle Tennessee 79.0, UALR 64.5

Mailbox Monday: Why doesn't UALR have a two guard who can average double figures?

Q: I think its ridiculous that UALR doesn't have a two guard who can average double figures. Why?

They do have one. His name is Josh Hagins. The sophomore is averaging 10.0 points per game through the first two games of the season.

Hagins didn't have a good game against Florida. But that's just one game against an opponent with size unlike most of what UALR will face this season. If he bounces back tonight against Middle Tennessee, it's all good.

BTH UALR Gameday: Trojans facing first 0-3 start in 29 years

UALR looks to avoid its first 0-3 start to a season in 29 years tonight when the Trojans (0-2) travel to Middle Tennessee (3-0) for a 7 p.m. game in Murfreesboro, Tenn.


UALR has opened the season with losses to North Florida and Florida. The last time the Trojans started a season 0-3 was the 1984-1985 season. That year was the first for rookie Coach Mike Newell.

Newell’s group lost at Iowa, at Oklahoma, at Southeastern Louisiana and in Montana against Northeastern. The Trojans got their first victory in Game 5 with a victory over Georgia State while still in Montana. UALR went on to finish 17-13 that season.

UALR actually played Georgia State, which was also a member of UALR’s Trans America Athletic Conference, three times that season.  UALR won all three.

If not for a non-Division I game it could have happened in 2009-2010. The Trojans opened that season with road losses at Ole Miss and Tulsa before winning a home game against non-Division I St. Gregory’s. UALR then lost two road games at Creighton and Louisiana Tech to drop to 1-4.

BURN UNIT

It really seems way, way too early in the season for a trip to Murfreesboro, Tenn. But with the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders abandoning the Sun Belt Conference for Conference USA, here we are. This game actually came about as part of UALR’s summer trip to Canada. UALR was paid $60,000 for its participation. Out of that money, UALR had to fund its travel to Calgary, Canada; Gainesville, Fla.; Murfreesboro, Tenn.; and Baton Rouge, La. UALR heads to Baton Rouge later this week for a game against Southern.

KEYS TO VICTORY

1.       Glass Cleaner:  The rebounding effort was better vs. Florida on Saturday. It will need to be solid tonight vs. Middle Tennessee.
2.       Value the Ball: Turnovers come in different levels of bad. An offensive foul isn’t bad. A backcourt turnover that leads to a dunk is the worst. It seemed like the majority of UALR’s 18 turnovers vs. Florida were of the bad to worst variety. Need to clean that up today.
3.       Two Solid: UALR needs production out of the 2 guard spot. Josh Hagins leads the Trojans in turnovers and Kemy Osse hasn’t made a field goal. Both need to be productive tonight.

WHAT HAPPENS IN VEGAS

Middle Tennessee is a 12-point favorite tonight.

BTH Up Next: UALR (0-2) vs. Middle Tennessee (3-0)

WHEN 7 p.m. Monday, November 18
WHERE Murphy Center, Murfreesboro, ,Tenn.
ALL-TIME SERIES UALR leads 13-11
LAST MEETING Middle Tennessee 66, UALR 61 (Feb. 16, 2013)
VEGAS SAYS TBA
RADIO KHLR-FM 106.7 in Little rock
TV None
TWEETCAST www.burnthehorse.blogspot.com
CLICK TO ENLARGE

BTH Morning After: Guards not pulling weight early for UALR

Perhaps there are plenty of good reasons for it. But the bottom line right now is that UALR is getting very little production out of its guards early in the season.

Take Saturday’s 86-56 loss at Florida. Forwards Will Neighbour and James White scored 37 of the 56 points. They also grabbed 17 of the 36 rebounds.

Take away a solid eight-point effort from point guard J.T. Thomas and it gets pretty dismal. Sophomore Josh Hagins had 6 points in 20 minutes. His backup, sophomore Kemy Osse, had 1 point in 21 minutes. Senior Leroy Isler and sophomore Stetson Billings combined to score 2 points at the 3 guard spot.

If UALR is going to be a Sun Belt Conference contender this year, it has to get something from its guards.

BURN UNIT

We appreciate the effort of senior forward Will Neighbour. His shoulder is banged up and he’s giving the best effort he can. On Saturday that was 21 points and 8 rebounds in 26 minutes.

NUMBERS NEVER LIE

25-2: Florida held a 25-2 advantage in points off turnovers. The Trojans had 18 turnovers to Florida’s 9 for the game.

REPORT CARD

Rebound: Florida outrebounded UALR 40-36 for the game and both teams finished with 12 offensive rebounds. UALR even finished with a 15-8 advantage in second-chance points. Grade: B+.
Bombs Away: We thought UALR needed to shoot the three-pointer well to stay in this game. They didn’t.  UALR made just 2 of 11 three-pointers, both by Neighbour. Grade: F.
Value the Ball: 18 turnovers was way too many and led to easy transition baskets. Grade: F.

GLASS HALF EMPTY

Through two games, and 30 minutes of game action, sophomore Kemy Osse doesn’t have a made field goal.

GLASS HALF FULL

Sophomore James White had 16 points, 9 rebounds and 2 blocked shots in 28 minutes.

WHAT HAPPENS IN VEGAS

UALR was a 20-point underdog and Florida ended up easily covering.

CRYSTAL BALL

All four predictors predicted an easy Florida victory. They all ended up winners.

UP NEXT

UALR continues to look for its first victory of the season when it travels to Middle Tennessee on Monday.