LITTLE ROCK, Ark.  – After being picked 11th in the preseason poll, Little Rock solidified its place as the Sun Belt Conference Champions, routing Louisiana 91-69 in the home finale at the Jack Stephens Center. The Trojans sit at 21-9 on the year and 15-4 in Sun Belt play, winning its first Sun Belt title since the 2015-16 season.
 
"I'm so proud of this team and for how they have bought into what we were trying to accomplish," said head coach Darrell Walker. "We've played with a chip on our shoulders from day one, but our job is not done. It's great to win the regular season title, now we have our sights set on New Orleans and playing for an NCAA tournament berth."
 
GAME NOTES
• Five players finished in double figures for the Trojans, led by 19 points from Markquis Nowell, who was 5-of-10 from the floor and 4-of-6 from three-point range. He also added five rebounds, seven assists and five steals in one of his most complete games of the season.
 
• Ruot Monyyong tallied his 16th double-double of the season, finishing with 13 points and 12 rebounds and shooting 6-of-10 from the floor with another block.
 
• Ben Coupet Jr. came on strong for Little Rock, finishing with 15 points and three rebounds while going a perfect 6-for-6 from the free throw line to help secure the win. Jovan Stulic also added 11 points while Nikola Maric finished with 10 points, eight rebounds and a pair of blocks.
 
• For the game, Little Rock shot 55.2% from the floor, including 66.7% in the second half. The Trojans were 10-of-19 from three-point range and 17-of-23 from the free throw line. Little Rock held Louisiana to 46.6% from the floor as the Ragin' Cajuns made just two of 20 three-point attempts.
 
• Little Rock closes out the year 13-2 at home, tied for the second-most wins at the Jack Stephens Center and one victory off the program's 14-win record set by the 2015-16 team.
 
FIRST HALF NOTES
• A quick start for the Trojans for the second-straight game, using a 9-0 run to build a 16-4 lead at the 15:00 mark. Nowell and Monyyong each had six of the first 15 for Little Rock.
 
• Little Rock missed eight-straight shots and were held without a point for over six minutes, committing five turnovers in the process, as Louisiana rattled off 12-straight, pulling even at 16-16 at the 9:24 mark.
 
• The game of runs continued as Little Rock answered with a 9-2 run of its own, reclaiming the lead by seven at 25-18 at the 7:43 mark. That was countered by an 8-0 run for Louisiana, who claimed its first lead of the game at 26-25 with 5:55 left in the opening half.
 
• As was the story of the opening half, the Trojans responded with a 7-0 run of its own turning the 26-25 deficit into a 32-26 lead with 4:22 remaining. But again, Little Rock's run was answered by one of Louisiana's on the other end, outscoring the Trojans 11-6 and getting to within a point at 38-37 with 27 seconds left on the clock.
 
• A pair of free throws by Nowell with 2.7 seconds left gave the Trojans the 40-37 lead at the break. Nowell finished with 11 in the opening 20 points, matched by Monyyong who also grabbed nine rebounds. The Trojans shot 45.2% in the opening half, contrasted by 50.0% for Louisiana.
 
SECOND HALF NOTES
• A rebound at the 19:24  mark for Monyyong gave him his 16th double-double of the season. Back-to-back threes from Coupet and Nowell helped the Trojans up its lead to eight at 46-38 less than two minutes into the half.
 
• Another offensive surge through the first media timeout of the second half helped Little Rock up its lead to 13, outscoring the Ragin' Cajuns 9-0 to take the 57-42 lead with 14:13 left in regulation. Nowell had eight points through the opening six minutes, including a pair of long threes.
 
• A 6-0 Ragin' Cajun run dwindled the Trojan lead to nine at 57-48, but a dunk from Coupet, a three from Stulic and a thunderous dunk from Maric gave Little Rock some breathing room, upping the lead to 64-50 at the midway point of the second half.
 
• The Trojan run extended to 15-3, including a 7-0 spurt over two minutes to get the Little Rock lead to 21 at 72-51 with 6:39 remaining. Maric helped spark the run with a dunk, two blocks and three rebounds.
 
• Little Rock kept Louisiana at bay over the final minutes, ultimately extending its lead to as many 24 and closing out the Ragin' Cajuns to claim the outright Sun Belt title.