Little Rock Beats Out Troy in Sun Belt Semis, 66-63

[Seminole Indian]

NEW ORLEANS – Looking to avenge its lone Sun Belt loss, top-seeded Little Rock women's basketball came out on top this time around as it defeated No. 4 Troy 66-63 in the semifinals of the Sun Belt Conference Championship on Saturday night at Lakefront Arena.

The victory sends Little Rock (22-9) to the Sun Belt's championship game for the eighth time in program history and the first time since 2016.

Ronjanae DeGray led the game with a near-season-high 22 points in addition to six rebounds and two steals while going 9-for-14 from the floor. Twin sister Raeyana DeGray put up 13 points with six rebounds and a game-high three steals. Monique Townson was the third Little Rock player in double figures as she finished with 11 points, five rebounds and a game-high five assists as the only player to play all 40 minutes.

Troy (18-13) also had three players in double figures as Kayla Robinson led the team with 14 points while tallying six rebounds. Amber Rivers had 11 points with nine rebounds and two steals, and Sky'Lynn Holmes tallied 10 points, nine rebounds and two steals.

With a 53-45 lead entering the final 10 minutes, Little Rock took its largest lead of the game at 56-45 thanks to a jumper and a good free throw by Ronjanae DeGray. The 11-point cushion was clutch for Little Rock as Troy battled back to bring the game within three points after a three-point basket by Jasmine Sanders with 10 seconds remaining. After a Troy foul, Little Rock missed two free throws, and Troy called timeout with six seconds remaining. Troy's Robinson took a three-point shot with one second remaining, but the shot never touched the rim and fell out of bounds. Following a Little Rock timeout, Little Rock put the ball in play to end the game. Little Rock was 3-for-6 from the floor in the final period and 7-for-14 from the foul line.

Little Rock outscored Troy for the third consecutive quarter at 21-18 after shooting a scorching 72.7 percent (8-for-11) in the period. Little Rock held Troy to 30 percent (6-for-20) despite Troy snatching up 11 offensive rebounds. Up 42-40, Little Rock went on a 5-0 run with two jumpers and a foul shot by Ronjanae DeGray. Troy countered with a 5-0 run of their own, but an old-fashioned three-point play by Yanina Inkina and a three by DeGray put Little Rock on a 6-0 run to end the quarter.

Little Rock ended the first half with a 32-27 lead after outscoring Troy 13-11 in the second quarter. Little Rock shot 46.2 percent (12-for-26) in the first half while keeping Troy at 30.3 percent (10-for-33). Little Rock held Troy to 18 rebounds through the first 20 minutes while tallying 24 of its own. Ronjanae DeGray led the half with 10 points and was 5-for-7 from the floor.

Little Rock led Troy 19-16 after the first 10 minutes of action. Little Rock shot 58.3 percent (7-for-12) while holding Troy to 31.6 percent (6-for-19). After Terrion Moore came out of the game briefly due to injury, Raeyana DeGray led Little Rock to five points in the quarter. Little Rock held the national leaders in rebounds to nine as Little Rock tallied 12 for the period. Fouls hurt Troy as Little Rock went into the bonus with over two minutes left to play. Down 14-8 after Troy went on an 8-0 run, Little Rock rocketed back with an 11-2 run to finish the quarter.

Inkina and Keanna Keys each finished with six points while Inkina tallied three rebounds and two assists. Moore finished the game with four points, four assists, six rebounds and two steals. Tori Lasker had three points, two assists and two rebounds, and Kyra Collier had four rebounds and one point in eight minutes.

Little Rock will now face No. 2 Texas State in Saturday's championship game at Lakefront Arena. The game will tip-off at 6 p.m. (CT) on ESPN3.

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