BURN THE HORSE
Keys to victory
FREE JACK Louisiana-Monroe made it a point to try and shut down Courtney Jackson. For the most part they did as Jackson finished with 4 points and 6 rebounds. But Jackson also missed four free throws, failing to help his own cause. That effort by ULM left openings that UALR’s guards were able to take advantage of. Grade: C.
REBOUND Rebounds finished 37-37. That was good enough on Saturday but won’t be against better opponents. Grade: D.
BIG START UALR did get off to a good start and held a 33-28 lead at halftime. But there were so many fouls being called that the game didn’t have much of a flow. The Trojans are now 10-7 when leading at the half. Grade: A-
WILL TO WIN Will Neighbour did some good things, most notably 3 asists without a turnover and 2 steals in 23 minutes. But his shoulder is still limiting him. He finished with 6 points and 3 rebounds and did make a late free throw to help UALR hold on. Grade: C.
UALR was an 11-point favorite. That makes UALR a loser in Sin City.
Predictions
Everyone's a winner.
Stat of the game
32 of 46: UALR shot a whopping 46 free throws, making 32. That’s not fun for anybody.
Always negative
UALR shot 34 percent from the field, while allowing ULM to shoot 42 percent. That’s not going to be good enough most nights.
Keep it positive
17-4: UALR’s advantage in points off turnovers. The Trojans had only 7 turnovers on the night.
Player of the game
D’Andre Williams had 21 points, 4 assists and 2 steals. He made 11 of 12 free throws and had 6 rebounds while playing on a sore knee.
Up next
Game of the year on Thursday at Louisiana-Lafayette. If UALR can pull out a victory, the next game of the year will be on Saturday.
