Russell Harrison drive vs. Little Rock 2022
Luke Richard/ULM Athletics
72
Little Rock LR 6-8,1-1 Sun Belt
80
Winner La.-Monroe ULM 9-6,1-2 Sun Belt
Little Rock LR
6-8,1-1 Sun Belt
72
Final
80
La.-Monroe ULM
9-6,1-2 Sun Belt
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Little Rock LR 35 37 72
La.-Monroe ULM 37 43 80

Game Recap: Men's Basketball |

Harrison's Double-Double Helps ULM Claim First Sun Belt Win

By ULMWarhawks.com Online Columnist Paul Letlow

MONROE La. – In a game with more changes than our Louisiana weather, Russell Harrison was a constant threat for ULM on Thursday night.

Harrison scored a career-high 28 points with 12 rebounds to lead the Warhawks to an 80-72 win over Little Rock at Fant-Ewing Coliseum. The double-double was the sixth of Harrison's career.

"We really needed someone, and I'm glad it was him, to carry us in stretches of that game," ULM coach Keith Richard said. "I really thought he did."

The Warhawks (9-6, 1-2 Sun Belt) improved to 6-0 at home this season and have an eight-game winning streak at Fant-Ewing Coliseum, dating back to last season. Little Rock fell to 6-8, 1-1 in the Sun Belt.

"Conference games are tough," Richard said. "That was like pulling teeth out there tonight. But that's how they all are and are going to be in this conference."

Little Rock native Andre Jones, who began his collegiate career with the Trojans, added 16 points and nine assists for the Warhawks. As a team, ULM finished with 20 assists and shot 57 percent from the field. Koreem Ozier scored 12 points with five rebounds and five assists.

"It was good to score and stuff and it's fun to watch your teammates do good things," Harrison said. "To me, Koreem had a really good game because he was passing and getting everybody involved."

Harrison reached the 20-point mark for the fourth time this season and sixth time in his career. He was 11-for-16 from the field and 5-of-8 from 3-point range.

"We've got six people deep that could score 15-plus for us," Harrison said. "You never know. We all come in and don't care who gets that high score. We play together and just want to win."

The first half featured a series of runs by both teams, resulting in 10 lead changes and one tie over the first 20 minutes.

ULM opened the game with a 9-0 blitz, but Little Rock rode a 9-0 run to claim its first lead at the 12:11 mark. The Trojans stacked a 13-2 run after that and extended their advantage to 25-18.

With a 10-0 spurt, ULM was back ahead 32-27 on a Thomas Howell layup with 2:37 showing in the half. Harrison, who led ULM with 15 first-half points, stroked his third 3-pointer at the buzzer to give ULM a 37-35 edge at halftime.

The Warhawks stormed out of the locker room with a 12-2 surge and held a 49-37 lead with 15:59 to go in the game.

After trailing by as many as 14 points, Little Rock clawed back to tie the score at 64-64 with 6:29 remaining on a 3-pointer by C.J. White.  The Trojans used an 8-0 run to close the gap.

"I thought we got to messing around a little it," Richard said. "We thought the game was over and we didn't have the same defensive intensity that we had to get the 14-point lead. I thought we relaxed on that end, and next thing you know, they're right back in it. Hopefully, that's a learning lesson for us."

ULM finished with a 16-8 run to top a tough foe.

"To get better, we've got to take a 14-point lead and stretch it to 20," Richard said. "That's when you know you've got a really good team when they can do that kind of stuff."

Nikola Maric led Little Rock with 24 points with Isaiah Palermo adding 19.

Up next: ULM plays host to Arkansas State on Saturday, Jan. 8. Tip-off is 2 p.m.

Tail feathers: Former ULM basketball standout Kenny Natt, a longtime NBA assistant coach, was spotted in attendance.  … Guard Elijah Gonzales was unavailable for ULM due to Covid-19 protocol. … Nika Metskhvarishvili made his first ULM start. …  Little Rock assistant coach Charles Baker was part of Richard's staff at Louisiana Tech. … ULM has three-straight wins over Little Rock.
 
Print Friendly Version