NEW ORLEANS – Survive and advance. Top-seeded Little Rock women’s basketball punched its ticket to the NCAA Tournament as it won the Sun Belt Tournament Championship for the fourth time with a 54-53 victory over No. 2 Texas State on Sunday night at Lakefront Arena.

The victory sends Little Rock to the NCAA Tournament for the fifth time in program history and for the first time since 2015. This is the third time that Little Rock has won the regular-season championship and tournament championship in the same season.

Monique Townson was the star for the Trojans (23-9) with a team-high 17 points and eight rebounds in 40 minutes. She finished 7-for-13 from the field and 3-for-4 from three. Tori Lasker had nine points to go along with five rebounds and four assists while knocking down three three-pointers. Sisters Raeyana and Ronjanae DeGray each tallied eight points. Ronjanae had eight rebounds while Raeyana tallied five. Little Rock was 21-for-54 (38.9%) from the field, 6-for-17 (35.3%) from three and a perfect 6-for-6 from the charity stripe.

Townson and Ronjanae DeGray earned All-Tournament Team honors for their performance throughout the tournament.

The Bobcats (23-9) had three players in double figures as Tournament MVP Taeler Deer led the game with 20 points and eight assists. Toshua Leavitt tallied 11 points with three steals, and Brooke Holle had 10 points with seven rebounds. Texas State shot 35.2 percent (19-for-54) from the field, 29.4 percent (5-for-17) from three and 90.9 percent (10-for-11) from the foul line.

As it entered the fourth quarter with an 11-point lead, Little Rock’s offensive struggles from the third quarter carried over while Texas State’s offense continued to flourish. After Ronjanae DeGray made a jumper to put Little Rock up by 13 at the beginning quarter, it was all Texas State from there as the Bobcats went on a 13-0 run from 7:42 to 4:10. Yanina Inkina stopped the bleeding with a jumper, but Leavitt hit a three right after to give Texas State the 53-52 lead.

The Trojans’ defense finally stepped up in the final three minutes of action as it didn’t allow a single Bobcat point. The lead returned to Little Rock at the 2:30 mark as Townson put up the go-ahead layup. With Little Rock up 54-53, both sides missed three shots each in the final two minutes. With two seconds remaining in the game, Deer missed the go-ahead layup by mere inches. With 0.2 seconds left and Little Rock inbounding, the Trojans threw the ball into play off the Texas State defender’s leg to run off the clock and win the championship.

Texas State came out of the locker room ready to play in the third quarter as it outscored Little Rock 17-10 after shooting 58.3 percent (7-for-12). The Trojans shot just 21.4 percent (3-for-14) in the period. The Bobcats’ biggest run of the quarter occurred with 5:53 left in the period as Texas State went on a 9-0 run.

The Trojans ended the first half with an 18-point lead over the Bobcats after shooting 53.6 percent (15-for-28) in the first 20 minutes. Townson ended the half with a game-high 12 points as she went 5-for-5 from the field and 2-for-2 from beyond the arc. Little Rock held Texas State to 20 percent (6-for-30) in the half and kept the Bobcats’ three-point shooting at bay as they shot just 1-for-10. Up 33-20, Little Rock ended the half on a 5-0 thanks to two free throws by Keys and a layup and a free throw by Raeyana DeGray.

Little Rock got off to a scorching start as it led Texas State 20-7 after 10 minutes of play. Townson was sensational as she started the game 4-for-4 with one three-pointer and two rebounds. Little Rock shot 60 percent (9-for-15) for the period while holding Texas State to 17.6 percent (3-for-17). The Trojans were dominant on the boards as they outrebounded the Bobcats 13-7. Little Rock had two runs of seven points each in the period and finished the quarter on a 14-2 run.

Keanna Keys finished with six points, three rebounds, two assists, two steals and one block. Inkina ended up with six points, and Terrion Moore tallied four assists and four rebounds.

Little Rock had a 41-27 advantage in rebounds and a 13-12 advantage in assists. The Trojans led for just over 37 minutes while the Bobcats led for just under two minutes.

Little Rock will now prepare for the NCAA Selection Show on Monday at 6 p.m. in the Legends Room of the Jack Stephens Center. Festivities are set to begin at 5:30 p.m.

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LITTLE ROCK – In head coach Joe Foley’s 1,000th career game as a collegiate head coach, Little Rock women’s basketball pummeled Georgia Southern by a score of 92-52 to earn its 10th consecutive win on Thursday night at the Jack Stephens Center.

The Trojans’ 92 points tied the program record for most points scored against a Sun Belt Conference opponent. Little Rock (13-8, 10-0 Sun Belt) last put up 92 at ULM last season. Little Rock’s 38 made field goals and 72 attempted field goals were the second-most in the Division I era (1999-present).

Ronjanae DeGray had herself a night with a game-high 21 points in addition to four rebounds and two steals in just 21 minutes. Tori Lasker scored all five of her buckets from beyond the arc as she finished with 15 points, three assists and two rebounds. Yanina Inkina finished with a career-high 14 points, five rebounds and two blocks. Monique Townson commanded the Trojans’ offense with eight assists in addition to six points, four rebounds and two steals. Little Rock ended the game shooting 38-for-72 (52.8%) from the field, 8-for-19 (42.1%) from three and 8-for-9 (88.9%) from the charity stripe.

The Eagles (4-17, 1-9 Sun Belt) also had three players in double figures. Nakol Franks led Georgia Southern with 13 points and two steals while Alexis Brown had 11 points. Hailey Dias-Allen was the third Eagle in double figures as she ended up with 10.

The Trojans took their largest lead of the game at 42 points with 2:16 left to play after Kira Shepard’s second three-pointer of the quarter. Shepard led the fourth quarter with six points and three assists as Little Rock shot 40 percent (8-for-20) from the field and 37.5 percent (3-for-8) from three. Of Little Rock’s 19 points in the fourth period, 17 came from the bench.

The already large lead moved to 35 points at the end of the third quarter as Little Rock took a 73-38 lead. The Trojans were 8-for-18 (44.4%) in the period as DeGray and Terrion Moore had four points each.

Little Rock ended the first half with 53 points — its most since scoring 54 against Louisiana in Jan. 2010. The 30-point first-half lead over the Eagles was the largest by the Trojans this season. Little Rock ended the half with three players in double figures as DeGray had 17, Lasker had 12 and Inkina had 10. The Trojans were 10-for-15 (66.7%) in the second period and were 22-for-34 (64.7%) in the first half.

Little Rock began the game with a 9-0 run and escalated the lead to 28-10 by quarter’s end. DeGray had 11 points and went 5-for-6 in the period. The Trojans shot 63.2 percent (12-for-19) from the field and were 3-for-6 from beyond the arc. Fourteen of Little Rock’s 28 points in the quarter came from the Eagles’ seven turnovers.

Keanna Keys ended the game with nine points and six rebounds while Moore finished up with six points, three rebounds, three assists and two steals. Shepard ended up with six points and three assists, and Raeyana DeGray had six points with five rebounds. Teal Battle tallied four points and four assists while Anna Hurlburt finished with six rebounds, two points, two assists and two blocked shots. Kiara Scott had three points, and Sydney Chastain had two rebounds and an assist.

Little Rock will look to sweep the season series against Georgia State on Saturday at 3 p.m. at the Jack Stephens Center.

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CONWAY, S.C. – A shot from the baseline by Ronjanae DeGray with one second remaining allowed Little Rock women’s basketball to survive a 51-49 thriller on the road at Coastal Carolina on Saturday afternoon at The HTC Center.

With the victory, Little Rock (12-9, 9-0 Sun Belt) has won nine consecutive games this season and 14 consecutive Sun Belt games dating back to last season.

DeGray finished the game with 13 points, four rebounds and two steals. Keanna Keys was the Trojans’ leading scorer as she posted her second-most points this season with 14 while earning two steals and a team-high five rebounds. Monique Townsonwas the third Trojan in double figures as she finished the game with 10 points and two steals while going 2-for-2 from three and 4-for-4 from the foul line.

Jas Adams was the leading scorer for the Chanticleers (11-10, 5-5 Sun Belt) as she came away with 14 points and two steals. DJ Williams came up a point shy of a double-double with nine points and a game-high 11 rebounds. Alise Davis was a rebound shy of a double-double with nine rebounds and 11 points.

Although Coastal Carolina shot 48.7 percent (19-for-39) compared to Little Rock’s 35.2 percent (19-for-54), turnovers ended up making all the difference. The Chanticleers committed 23 for the game — tied for the most by a Little Rock opponent this season. The Trojans capitalized by scoring 22 of their 51 points off turnovers.

It was all on the line in the fourth quarter as both sides remained within six points for the duration. After Little Rock made it a six-point game at 46-40 with two free throws by Townson, Coastal Carolina surged with a 9-2 run to take a 49-48 lead with 2:07 left to play. Still up by one with 15 seconds to play, Adams fouled Keys and sent her to the line. Keys made one of her two free throws to knot the game at 49, but the ball went off the Chanticleers and out of play on the ensuing rebound to give the Trojans possession once again. With one second remaining on the clock, DeGray made a jumper from the corner to give Little Rock the lead. After the Chanticleers took a timeout, Coastal missed its last-second jumper and sent Little Rock home with the win. The Trojans shot just 18.2 percent (2-for-11) in the final quarter, but the Chanticleers defeated themselves by committing seven turnovers. All seven of Little Rock’s fourth-quarter points came off turnovers.

Despite being outscored 18-15 in the third quarter, the Trojans ended the period on an 8-2 run to stay up 44-40. Little Rock shot a game-high 54.5 percent (6-for-11) from the field and was 2-for-3 from three. Townson tallied both of the Trojans’ three-point shots in the quarter and led the team with six points.

The Trojans outscored the Chanticleers 14-8 in the second quarter to take a 29-22 lead to the locker room. Tied at 16, Little Rock went on a 9-0 run to go up 25-16. ­­The Trojans shot just 30.8 percent (4-for-13) in the period, but they went 5-for-6 from the foul line. Keys had a game-high 11 points at the break.

Little Rock held a narrow 15-14 lead after the first 10 minutes of action, and Tori Lasker led the quarter with five points. The Trojans shot 36.8 percent (7-for-19) while the Chanticleers were much more accurate at 50 percent (6-for-12). Little Rock’s largest lead of the game was nine points with 5:16 left in the period.

Lasker finished the game with eight points, three rebounds and three assists. Terrion Moore had three assists to go along with two points and two steals. Yanina Inkina and Teal Battle each had two points while Inkina had four boards.

Little Rock will return to the Jack Stephens Center to face Georgia Southern for the second time this season on Thursday at 5 p.m.

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COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Cold second-half shooting doomed Little Rock women’s basketball as it fell 66-49 to No. 19 Texas A&M on Wednesday night at Reed Arena.

Ronjanae DeGray led the Trojans (1-2) with a season-high 17 points and was 8 for 16 for the night. Monique Townson tallied nine points and led the game with three assists and four steals. Raeyana DeGray had a career-high eight points while tying her career high for rebounds with five. Anna Hurlburt put up a game-high three blocks with four rebounds. Keanna Keys ended the game with seven points and a career-high two blocks.

The Aggies (3-1) had four players in double figures as they were led by Danni Williams’ 18 points. Anriel Howard earned a double-double with 13 points and 12 rebounds, and Chennedy Carter had 17 points. Khaalia Hillsman was the final Aggie in double figures as she tallied 10 points and came up a rebound shy of a double-double.

Little Rock got off to a hot start as it led Texas A&M 22-14 at the end of the first quarter. Ronjanae DeGray and Townson each tallied six points for the Trojans while Hurlburt put up three rebounds. Little Rock shot 52.9 percent in the quarter while Texas A&M shot 30. The Trojans committed just one turnover compared to the Aggies’ three.

A&M played Little Rock tougher in the second quarter as it outscored the Trojans 16-8. The Trojans shot just 27.3 percent in the quarter while the Aggies’ shot warmed up to 40 percent. DeGray ended the half with 10 points while sister Raeyana DeGray earned eight points and five rebounds — four of which were on offense. Hurlburt led the half with two blocks.

Little Rock’s offense was ice cold in the third quarter as it shot just 21.4 percent (3 for 14) while Texas A&M shot 63.6 (7 for 11). A&M began the quarter on a 10-0 run before Keys got a layup to fall. The Aggies ended the quarter with a 52-38 lead after outscoring the Trojans by a 22-8 margin.

The Trojans shot slightly better in the fourth quarter at 31.3 percent (5 for 16), but the Aggies still had the hot hand as they shot 54.5 (6 for 11).

Little Rock ended the night shooting 34.5 percent and was 20 for 58 from the floor. Texas A&M shot 43.9 and was 25 for 57. The Trojans had the upper hand in free-throw percentage (100-86.7), assists (12-8), blocks (5-2) and steals (8-5) while also committing fewer turnovers (19-15). The Aggies had the advantage in rebounds at 44-26.

Little Rock will now travel to Houston to face Rice in a Black Friday matchup at 2 p.m.

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LITTLE ROCK – The Trojan women’s basketball team is still unblemished in Sun Belt Conference play, and this year’s team is now in the program record book.

Little Rock handled Coastal Carolina 79-47 at the Jack Stephens Center on Saturday evening, winning their 11th straight game to begin Sun Belt Conference play and tie themselves with the 2010-11 Trojans for most consecutive wins to start the conference slate in team history.

The Trojans (17-6, 11-0 Sun Belt) used a strong defensive effort in the first half to build a lead over Coastal (9-12, 4-7) and put up 45 points in the second half to win their 16th consecutive conference game at the Jack Stephens Center dating back to last season.

With a loss by UT Arlington on Saturday, Little Rock is now 2.5 games ahead of the second-place Mavericks and the Troy Trojans (both 8-2 in the Sun Belt) with seven conference games remaining.

Kaitlyn Pratt reached a milestone during the game, scoring the 1,000th point of her career in the third quarter. The senior led the Trojans on the night with 19 points and had five rebounds. Ronjanae DeGray scored 13 points, and Carolee Dillard set a new career high with 11.

Kyra Collier was Little Rock’s top rebounder with six rebounds and also had six steals and five assists. Sharde’ Collins scored 8, had five assists and two steals. Monique Townson had 8 points as well with three assists and four rebounds. All told, 10 different Trojans players scored.

Little Rock committed a season-low six turnovers while Coastal had 24 total turnovers that resulted in 32 Trojan points. Little Rock recorded 18 assists while Coastal had just nine.

Little Rock’s defense was stifling right from the beginning of the game as Coastal managed just 6 points in the first period on 2 of 10 shooting. The Trojans faced six Chanticleer turnovers and shot 7 of 13 from the field themselves, giving the home team a 16-6 edge after 10 minutes.

In the second quarter, the Chanticleers scored 4 quick points but were unable to score again for seven minutes. Coastal committed nine turnovers in the second quarter and had an 0-for-6 streak from the field as Little Rock went on a 16-0 run and go up by more than 20 points. At halftime, the Trojans led 34-13.

Little Rock’s lead only grew in the second half, getting as large as 35 with 4:28 to play.

The Trojans will attempt to set a new school record for consecutive wins to start Sun Belt play on Thursday when they travel to UT Arlington. Tipoff between the Trojans and the second-place Mavericks is scheduled for 11:30 a.m.

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LAFAYETTE, La. – Ronjanae DeGray had the best scoring day of her career, Sharde’ Collins broke the 20-point barrier for the third straight game and the Little Rock women’s basketball team improved to 9-0 in the Sun Belt Conference with a 82-64 victory over Louisiana at the Cajundome on Saturday evening.

DeGray got 25 points on 10-of-11 shooting, only missing a shot in the final two minutes of the game. DeGray added six rebounds and a personal-best six steals to her career days as well. Collins finished the night with 23 points, Kaitlyn Pratt scored 16 and had six rebounds and Monique Townson  had 14 points, six rebounds and three assists.

Little Rock (15-6, 9-0 Sun Belt) has scored 80 points in back-to-back games for the first time ever as a Division I program. The Trojans last got to 80 in consecutive games in January 1985 when it scored 80 against Rhodes College and 104 against Arkansas Baptist.

The win tied this year’s Trojan team with the 2014-15 squad for the second-best Sun Belt start in program history at 9-0. Only the 2010-11 team had a better start to league play with an 11-0 record before losing.

On Saturday, the Trojans led by as many as 20 points early in the fourth quarter, but the Cajuns cut that advantage down to 10 points with a 10-0 run in a two-minute span. With their lead down to 65-55, Little Rock went on a 15-4 run in the next four minutes to get more distance on Louisiana. The Trojans would eventually lead by as many as 21 before the final buzzer.

Louisiana led for a good chunk of the first half, taking a 7-0 lead early before Little Rock managed to score. But that would be the Cajuns’ largest lead of the game as Little Rock came storming back. The Trojans took a lead with seven minutes left in the first half as Collins and Louisiana’s Jaylyn Gordon battled for offensive supremacy.

By the end of the half, Collins got help from the rest of her teammates in scoring. DeGray put in 8 points in the first half on 4-of-4 shooting, Pratt scored 6 points and Townson added 4 including a buzzer-beater to end the half to go along with Collins’ 18 points. That was enough to give the Trojans a 36-29 lead at the break while.

On the other side of the ball, Gordon had 21 of her team’s points and two just other Cajuns managed to score in the first half. Gordon would go cold in the second half, scoring just 8 to finish with 29.

After ending the first half on a 6-0 run, the Trojans continued their offensive burst to start the third quarter. Little Rock scored 9 of the first 11 points including a 3-pointer by Townson that forced a Cajuns timeout with the Trojans leading 45-31. DeGray continued her dominance inside in the period, making all five of her field goal attempts and two more at the free-throw line to reach 20 points on the night.

The Trojans return home to the Jack Stephens Center next week, beginning the two-game homestand with Appalachian State on Thursday at 6:30 p.m.

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TULSA – The Little Rock women’s basketball team trailed by as many as 15 points in the second half, but an offensive and defensive resurgence allowed the Trojans to storm back for a 63-58 victory over Tulsa at the Donald W. Reynolds Center on Sunday afternoon.

Tulsa (4-8) shot nearly 47 percent from the field in the first half and took a 33-22 lead into the break. But Little Rock (6-5) held the Golden Hurricane to just 37 percent from the field in the second half while outscoring Tulsa 41-25 in the final 20 minutes.

Kyra Collier scored a career-high 15 points and more than doubled her career high in rebounds with 17 for her first collegiate double-double. Sharde’ Collins tied for the team lead in scoring with 15 points, and Kaitlyn Pratt added 15 points as well and nine rebounds. Ronjanae DeGray was Little Rock’s fourth double-digit scorer, putting up 10 points.

Little Rock’s 63 points were the most it has scored all season, and Sunday marked the first time this year that Little Rock had four players reach double-figure scoring.

The Trojans also dominated the Hurricane on the boards, pulling down 51 total rebounds to Tulsa’s 32. That margin included a 21-5 edge for Little Rock on the offensive glass. Little Rock last recorded more than 50 rebounds against Incarnate Word on Dec. 10, 2013.

For nearly two thirds of the game, things appeared to be destined for a Tulsa win. But Little Rock completely turned things around midway through the third quarter. Tulsa led 45-34 with 5:21 to play, but Little Rock closed the period on an 8-2 run to make the Hurricane’s lead a manageable 47-42 entering the fourth.

It took the Trojans another five minutes of chipping away at Tulsa’s lead before they finally broke through, but a Collins jumper with 4:29 remaining finally put Little Rock ahead for the first time all game. Tulsa’s red-hot shooting dried up in the period as the team went just 4 of 15 from the floor.

In the fourth quarter, Collins scored 6 points and Pratt added 7. Collier added 4 points of her own as Little Rock went 7 of 14 from the field in the fourth quarter.

Tulsa began the game on a 9-0 run before a pair of Collier free throws 4:30 into the game got the Trojans on the board. The Trojans got within one at 19-18 early in the second quarter by scoring its first 4 points, but the Hurricane followed with a 12-0 run and entered halftime leading 33-22.

Carolee Dillard scored 4 points for Little Rock, recording her first points since 2013. Monique Townson had a team-high four assists in 38 minutes. The Trojans scored 34 points in the paint.

The Trojans play one more non-conference game this season on Wednesday, squaring off against the Tigers of LSU. Little Rock and LSU are set for a 7 p.m. tip at the Maravich Center.

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