Little Rock's Joe Foley Earns 750th Career Win in Victory Over ULM
LITTLE ROCK – Head coach Joe Foley became the 12th Division I head coach in NCAA women's basketball history to earn 750 career wins as Little Rock defeated ULM 57-37 on Sunday afternoon at the Jack Stephens Center.

Among men's and women's coaches in Division I, Foley is just the 30th head coach to obtain 750 career victories.

"It means I've been coaching a long time," Foley said. "I've had some great kids and great teams. It hasn't been a two or three-year deal, it's been 30 years of coaching great kids."

Ronjanae DeGray put in a blistering performance for Little Rock (5-8, 2-0 Sun Belt) as she tallied a career-high 23 points and went 11-for-19 from the field with seven rebounds. Keanna Keys did her part with a season-high 16 points to go along with seven rebounds and one steal. Raeyana DeGray put up a career-high 11 boards with four points and three assists. Monique Townson tied her career high for rebounds with eight as she tallied four assists, three points and a game-high two steals.

ULM (3-10, 0-2 Sun Belt) had no players in double figures as Arsula Clark and Latangellia Walker led the Warhawks with eight points each.

Little Rock owned a 12-9 lead after one quarter of play behind Keys' six points. Both sides shot 33.3 percent from the field while the Trojans had a 14-8 lead in rebounds.

The Trojans upped their lead to 24-18 at the half after shooting 41.7 percent (5-for-12) in the second quarter. Ronjanae DeGray led the period with six points and upped her game total to 10. Tied at 14, the Trojans went on a 6-0 run with a layup by DeGray, a jumper by Townson and two free throws by DeGray.

The Trojans' lead increased to 15 after three quarters of play with a 42-27 lead. Little Rock shot 57.1 percent (8-for-14) in the third period as DeGray increased her game total to a career-high 19 points. Up 31-22, the Trojans went on a 9-0 run to take an 18-point lead at 40-22.

With a victory in their grasp, the Trojans took their largest lead with 11 seconds left in the game as Tori Lasker drilled a three to put Little Rock up by 20.

Lasker ended the game with five points, four rebounds and four assists while Anna Hurlburt had four points, four assists, three rebounds and a block.

The Trojans were dominate on the boards with a 47-25 advantage — the biggest margin since outrebounding Georgia State 36-16 in Jan. 2016. Little Rock had 18 offensive rebounds to go along with 29 on defense. Little Rock's 47 rebounds were the most in a single game since putting up 46 against Texas State in Feb. 2015.

Little Rock committed its fewest turnovers this season with nine while ULM had 13. The Trojans ended the game shooting 43.3 percent (26-for-60) while the Warhawks shot 31.9 (15-for-47).

The Trojans will now go on the road to face Georgia State in Atlanta on Thursday. The game will air live on ESPN3 at 4 p.m. (CT).

Cajuns Hold Off Red Wolves For First Conference Win
JONESBORO, Ark. – Clutch free throw shooting and a career high 25 points from senior Nekia Jones helped the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns women's basketball hold off a second half surge from the Arkansas State Red Wolves to win their first Sun Belt Conference game of the season, 77-75, here at the First National Bank Arena.

The win improves the Cajuns record to 6-8 (1-1 SBC) and it's the Cajuns second straight season where they got their first conference win of the season in Jonesboro, while the loss drops the Red Wolves record to 6-7 (1-1 SBC).

Seniors Simone Fields and Troi Swain poured in 14 and 12 points respectively, while sophomore Malachi-Seraphin Williams added 10 points to give the Cajuns four players in double-figures. Jones shot 8-13 from the field (5-6 from three-point range) while Fields was a solid 6-9 from the field as the Cajuns shot 47 percent from the field in the game.

HOW IT HAPPENED (First Quarter): Jones set the tone early for the Cajuns ending the Red Wolves first possession of the game with a steal and a quick transition basket to give the Cajuns the lead right off the bat.

Jones then proceeded to set the building on fire, going 4-4 from beyond the arc in the period scoring 14 points, which accounted for over half of the Cajuns points in the first quarter. Defensively the Cajuns were strong holding Arkansas State to 44 percent shooting, and only 17 percent from the beyond the arc as they took a five-point lead into the second period, with the score sitting at 22-17 in favor of Louisiana.

HOW IT HAPPENED (Second Quarter): One key to the Cajuns success in the first period, and they continued it through the second quarter, was their ball movement. They had 10 assists at the end of the second quarter, and that directly contributed to them extending their lead into double-digits.

Swain's three-point basket (6:29) kick-started a stretch midway through the quarter that saw the Cajuns hitting two three pointers and a layup that all had assists. Freshman Skyler Goodwin assisted Swain's three-point basket, sophomore Kimberly Burton assisted Seraphin-Williams' three-points and Swain assisted a Goodwin basket all in a one minute stretch.

Not to be outdone Jones added another three-point basket and Swain joined the downtown adventure for the Cajuns, as they stretched their lead to 10 points down the stretch of the first half to head into the locker room with the score sitting at 45-35 in Louisiana's favor.

HOW IT HAPPENED (Third Quarter): Arkansas State came out of the locker room on fire, starting the quarter on an 8-2 run to cut deeply into the Cajuns lead. But Louisiana stayed strong and never let the Red Wolves get any closer than two points in the period.

The Cajuns were helped with a strong presence at the free throw line, going 8-8 at the line through the quarter to maintain their lead. They went 6-6 from the line during the final three minutes of the quarter, and a layup from Jones assisted by Fields at the 2:46 mark of the quarter helped Louisiana hold off the strong surge from the Red Wolves holding onto their four-point lead with the score sitting at 59-55 entering the final quarter.

HOW IT HAPPENED (Fourth Quarter): Arkansas State came out and hit a three-pointer to start the quarter to pull within one point of the Cajuns. But a quick response from the Cajuns kept them up by four points. But at the 6:31 mark of the quarter, the Red Wolves tied the game at 64-64, and a jump shot from Arkansas State put them up for the first time in the game.

For the next three minutes the Red Wolves held onto their small lead but the Cajuns never let them pull away. Powered by Fields' strong play down the stretch, including a layup at the 1:11 mark of the quarter with the score sitting at 71-70 in favor of the Cajuns, Louisiana wrestled back the lead they had all game long.

Fields scored six points down the stretch and grabbed three rebounds in the final five minutes of the game, and along with the Cajuns solid free throw shooting, helped the Cajuns fight off any late attempts by the Red Wolves to steal away their win and when the final whistle blew the Cajuns came away with their first conference win of the season with the final score sitting at 77-75.

NOTEWORTHY: Jones' 25 points was a career high and her five made three-pointers and eight shots from the field are both career highs; Swain's 12 points is a season high. Louisiana's eight three-pointers made ties a season high and the 50 percent is a season high and it's the first time the Cajuns have shot at least 50 percent from beyond the arc (at least 10 attempts) since Jan. 19, 2017 against UT-Arlington; The 17 assists are a season high; The Cajuns shot 82 percent from the line and it's the second time this season they've done that after attempting at least 20 free throws.

UP NEXT FOR THE CAJUNS: The Cajuns return to the court on Thursday, Jan. 4, 2018 as they host the Appalachian State Mountaineers in their first game of the new year. The game against App State is the first of three conference home games for the Cajuns.

They'll finish the weekend up playing the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers on Saturday, Jan. 6 and they'll wrap up the three-game home stand with a matchup against in-state rivals, the ULM Warhawks, on Saturday, Jan. 13.

FOLLOWING THE RAGIN' CAJUNS: Follow the Cajuns on twitter @RaginCajunsWBB for links to recaps and updates during the game. There will also be links to ways to follow all the action the Cajuns are in for the rest of the season.

SOUTH ALABAMA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL CLOSES OUT 2017 WITH A WIN OVER GEORGIA SOUTHERN; 2-0 IN SBC PLAY
MOBILE, Ala. – Led by 22 points from senior Chyna Ellis, the University of South Alabama women's basketball team (9-4, 2-0) defeated Georgia Southern (3-10, 0-2), 79-52, to close out 2017 and the opening weekend of Sun Belt Conference play. This is the first time since the 2012-13 season the Jags have started 2-0 in SBC action.

Ellis shot 9-of-13 from the field, including making all three of her three-point attempts and her lone free-throw, en route to the 22-point night. The center also grabbed six boards and had a trio of assists and rejections on the evening. This was Ellis' sixth game this season with three or more blocks.

Savannah Jones collected 13 points on 6-of-9 shooting, including 1-of-3 on three point buckets. The redshirt freshman guard also brought down six boards, while recording two assists, a steal and a block. Jones has had nine games with 10 or more points, including five of the last seven contests.

Antoinette Lewis scored 11 points, her second game of 10 or more points this season, to close out a trio of Jag double-digit scorers. The freshman forward made four of her seven shot attempts and went 3-for-3 at the free-throw line. Lewis also collected five rebounds and a rejection.

Shaforia Kines recorded a game-high six assists, while scoring five points on 2-of-3 shooting, including a three-pointer. The sophomore guard also had five rebounds and a takeaway.

The Eagles's lone double-digit scorer was Hailey Dias-Allen, who had 12 points on a 5-of-15 shooting night.

GAME FACTS
- South Alabama came out strong hitting its first four three-pointers with the last three being part of an 18-0 run.
- USA scored 32 points while shooting 12-of-18 from the field, 66.7 percent, and lead the Eagles by 17 after the opening quarter.
- The Jags continued their dominance in the second outscoring Georgia Southern 19-9.
- India Hall made three-straight layups to give South Alabama a 14-0 run late in the second quarter, giving the Jags their largest lead of the game at 51-20.
- USA's run was broken up by the Eagles with four seconds left as they made pair of free-throws and a layup to end the half.
- USA shot a season-best 60.6 percent in the first-half as it led GS 51-24, with the 51 points being the most scored in a half this season.
- The second-half saw the Jaguars keep the Eagles at bay as they went point-for-point with each squad scoring 15 and 13 points in the third and fourth quarters, respectively.
- USA dominated the paint and scoring off the bench as it out scored GS 40-18 and 38-20 in each category.
- South Alabama recorded 51 rebounds and 23 assists, both season-highs.
- The Jags were 4-for-4 from the charity-stripe while the Eagles shot 14-of-20 from the free-throw line.

NOTES
- The Jags' 32 points in the first quarter were the most scored by the team in any quarter this season besting a mark of 28. They reached 28 twice this season with the last time occurring at Southern Miss in the fourth quarter on Nov. 30.
- South Alabama grabbed 50 or more rebounds as a team for the first time since Jan. 5, 2017, at Georgia Southern.
- USA is now 3-3 in day games.
- South Alabama has won five games this season by 20 or more points.
- The Jags are 8-1 when they score 60 or more points, including 5-0 when scoring 70 or more.
- Ellis' 22 points was her fourth game this season with 20 or more points, including her 11th game 10 or more points this season.
- The senior needs 17 more points to become just the 19th Jag in program history with 1,000 or more points in a career and 15 blocks to become all-time leader in SBC history.
- No Jag starter played more than 21 minutes and none saw action in the fourth quarter.
- Freshman Casey Ferguson made first-career basket as a Jaguar on a three-pointer in the fourth quarter, and grabbed a career-high three rebounds.

THEY SAID IT
USA head coach Terry Fowler
Opening statement: "I thought we came out and got off to a great start, and that set the tone for the rest of the game. The shooting became contagious, we passed the ball and shared it, we worked inside and outside, I thought that was the big key. They just started feeding off each other, it was a lot of fun out there when that was going on."

On the team's fast start: "It's awesome, and the thing about it is it is not like that before the game. I'm concerned if we are taking teams lightly, but they are just focused. Right before the game they really feed off each other with energy and that carried over as the ball was going in the basket. It was not just the ball going in the basket, it was how we were moving the ball and really sharing it. We always talk about the ball having energy, when everybody gets the chance to touch the ball everybody picks up and wants to play on the defensive end of the floor so it is two-fold."

On maintaining the advantage after the fast start: "I thought we rebounded the ball — we dominated the glass — and we were able to get the ball inside in the second half, we got some good high-low looks to start out the third quarter. The big key was we went from shooting it outside to getting easy layups, and we finished it out on the defensive end of the floor."

On going on the road after winning the first two Sun Belt Conference games: "We had to take care of home court, that's always the goal. We have confidence and the way we are playing with each other, we are not dependent on one person, we can get it from different combinations on any given night. That's what is a lot of fun, and they understand as well that maybe it's not my night but someone else is going to pick up my slack."

Senior C Chyna Ellis
On team's start in the game: "We were passing the ball, the ball had energy. After seeing one person make it, then another person make it, and another person — I think we hit four in a row — it was just contagious, we were ready to see the next person make it. We were sharing the ball and having fun."

On the team's confidence level: "I think we are the most confident that we have ever been, I feel that this is the best team that we've had since I've been here as far as chemistry, having fun and playing well with each other."

Freshman F/C Antoinette Lewis
On the team when it plays well early: "It's a lot of fun. We get up on the bench and go crazy when you see people making shot after shot, assist after assist. It's a lot of fun to see us get along that well."

On the in the locker room: "We're all playing around and dancing, normally the last person to walk into the locker room has to dance. That's just how we show our excitement."

UP NEXT
The Jags travel to San Marcos, Texas, to take on Texas State in their first SBC road contest of the season. Opening tip is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. on Thursday.

Coastal Holds Off Texas State, 65-64
CONWAY - The Coastal Carolina women's basketball team withstood a surging Texas State team, including 34 individual points by Toshua Leavitt, to defeat the Bobcats 65-64 Sunday afternoon at the HTC Center.

Coastal (8-5, 2-0) relied on solid shooting to remain ahead of Texas State (8-5, 1-1), coming in at just under 50 percent from the field while the Bobcats struggled at 36 percent. Outside of Leavitt, Texas State received 12 points from Brooke Holle and 18 from the rest of the team.

Jas Adams scored 24 points to lead the Chants, and grabbed seven rebounds. DJ Williams scored 14 points with six assists, and Naheria Hamilton provided 11 points.

Alise Davis led all players with nine rebounds as the Chants dominated Texas State on the boards, 42-27. Coastal further dominated down low by outscoring the Bobcats 30-14 in the paint.

The Chants committed only nine fouls throughout the game -- a season low -- allowing Texas State just two attempts at the line.

Coastal led throughout the first three-and-a-half quarters. Texas State did not earn its first lead until the 4:40 mark of the fourth quarter after Leavitt made her ninth 3-pointer of the game to put the Bobcats ahead by one. That lead was quickly erased by Williams at the line, and the Chants outscored the Bobcats 6-2 over the next three minutes to lead 65-61 with two seconds remaining. Leavitt added a final 3-pointer in the last second to bring the final margin to one.

Williams and Adams scored eight and seven points, respectively, in the opening quarter as Coastal shot 62 percent from the field as a team and took an early 21-15 lead over the Bobcats. Coastal led for the entirety of the quarter, and went ahead by as many as nine points following an 8-3 run.

Coastal earned over half of its points in the paint in the first quarter, but used all areas of the court in the second quarter to take its first double-digit lead of the game. Adams hit a trio of shots from beyond the arc to lead the Chants with nine points in the frame and bring her total to 16 at the half, while Hamilton and Alise Davis combined for six points from below the basket and at the line.

Coastal remained in front throughout the third quarter, though its lead was trimmed to three at the conclusion of the 10 minutes. The Chants made just six baskets in the frame while Texas State made seven total, including four 3-pointers from Leavitt.

Up next, Coastal plays its first road games of the season when it heads to ULM (Jan. 4), and Louisiana (Jan. 6).

UTA Blocks Away App State To End 2017
BOONE, N.C. - It was a battle at the Holmes Convocation Center on New Years Eve, but UT Arlington escaped Appalachian State with a 64-60 win to close out 2017 on Sunday.

A 12-2 App State run to open the fourth overturned UTA's seven-point lead heading into the final 10 minutes, but a strong finish by the Lady Mavericks held off the charging Mountaineers. UTA went to 7-6 overall for the season, improving to 1-1 in league play, while App State went to 2-11 and 0-2 to start conference action.

Daiane Machado followed up her career-high 16-point effort from Friday with a team-high 14 points on Sunday, including scoring eight in the third as part of UTA's push into the lead. Rebekah VanDijk tied her career-high with six blocks, moving within just one of second in UTA history with 165 in her career. A part of a milestone day, VanDijk moved into 13th in Sun Belt history with 959-career rebounds, as well as into 15th in the league for blocks. VanDijk is just one shy of tying for second in UTA block history.

Aysia Evans, getting her first start since November, responded with a season-high 11 points, going perfect from 3-point range in knocking down two, hitting on 5-of-6 free-throw attempts.

The Lady Mavericks remain perfect against App State in the team's seven meeting, as well as improving to 4-0 in Boone. The teams will meet again on Feb. 1. The win returned UTA to form on the East Coast, helping UTA end a three-game losing streak in the time zone to go 13-3 under coach Krista Gerlich. The Lady Mavs return back to Collge Park Center for its league home opener when they welcome the league's defending champion Troy on Thursday at 5 p.m. on ESPN3.

HOW IT HAPPENED
First Quarter: A slow start saw the Lady Mavs in an early deficit, but Daiane Machado would help UTA claw back to spark a 6-0 run, scoring four of the points. The Lady Mavs had a chance to take their first lead of the game with under a minute in the quarter, but a turnover would give App State back its three-point edge. Shelby Richards trimmed it down to one with a 15-foot jumper at the buzzer.

Second Quarter: A scoring drought of more than three minutes by App State helped UTA take its first lead with Laurynn McGowen flying through the lane for an easy lane in. Brooke Alexander knocked down a corner trey to give UTA a five-point edge. Shooting would go cold for both teams with a pair of App State free throws all to show for a three minute stretch.

Despite just one field goal in the second quarter, a run of free-throws helped App State to a two-point edge at the break, despite shooting 22.2 percent from the field in the opening 20 minutes.

Third Quarter: Neither team clicked offensively through the first five minutes of the second half. After Aysa Evans connected on a 3-pointer to open the half, UTA would go five minutes without another shot falling, allowing App State to regain the lead in the game's 10th lead change.

Machado would be the spark to light a fire for UTA late in the quarter. Machado paced the offense in the third stanza with eight points, knocking down three consecutive buckets late. Shelby Richards gave UTA its largest lead of the game at seven points on a jumper at the buzzer.

Fourth Quarter: App State quickly flipped the game's script to start the final quarter, outscoring the Lady Mavs 12-2 in the first four minutes, including a go-ahead 3-pointer to send UTA to call an early timeout. The teams would exchange blows, neither being able to pull more than a two point advantage to the 3-minute mark.

A 6-0 run by UTA, including a 3-pointer by Aysia Evans, sent UTA to a four-point lead with 30 seconds left. Evans would knock down two of her free throws in the final seconds, leaving App State behind despite a late 3-pointer to trim it to four points.

KEY STATS: UTA hit at a 40.7 percent clip, improving to 4-1 when hitting above 40 percent. App State was just 29.8 from the field… UTA improved to 6-0 when holding a lead entering the final 10 minutes… Crystal Allen scored 10 to help UTA have four in double figures.

Troy Fights Off Feisty Georgia State, 90-86
TROY, Alabama – After suffering an eye-opening loss to Georgia State at home last season, the Troy women's basketball team was prepared for test on Sunday and came away victorious, 90-86, in Trojan Arena.

Senior Chelsey Gibson, a Marquette transfer, turned her best overall performance of the season with 16 points and 10 rebounds including a jumper with 2:06 to play to give Troy the lead for good. Gibson scored 17 points against Montevallo on Dec. 9, but was averaging just 4.5 points per game entering the contest.

"When you look at the stat sheet, Chelsey isn't one that really catches your eye," Troy head coach Chanda Rigby said. "But I felt like Chelsey was going to have a great performance tonight, she's always ready to go, and she came out and did it."

The Trojans (7-6, 2-0 Sun Belt) trailed by as many as nine points in the second quarter, but Gibson's 3-pointer with 59 seconds left in the half gave Troy the lead and set the tone for the final 20 minutes.

Georgia State (4-9, 0-2) rallied from an early 11-point deficit – highlighted by three consecutive Troy 3-pointers to open the game – with a 15-0 run. The Panthers continued to make life difficult for the home team knocking down 12 threes in the contest led by Janessa Murphy, who was 7-for-9 from beyond the arc and had 25 points on the day. Kierra Henry was 9-of-14 from the field to tally a game-best 28 points.

Amber Rivers made back-to-back baskets down the stretch of the third period to open a seven-point lead. Rivers finished with 16 points and 10 boards marking the first time Troy had two players finish a game with a double-double since Caitlyn Ramirez and ArJae' Saunders did it against Arkansas State in January.

With the game tied at 84-all and 2:09 to play, Gibson knocked down a jumper and the Trojans forced a pair of turnovers to essentially ice the game.

Two days after striking down three 3-pointers against Georgia Southern, Harriet Winchester was again deadly from distance making 6-of-13 shots from outside the arc and ended with a team-high 18 points.

QUOTABLE
"They (Georgia State) are a team that is really similar to us, we both try to do some of the same things, so it's always a battle as to who can out their game plan the best," Troy head coach Chanda Rigby said. "They did a great job tonight, we were on the ropes the whole time. It was just a great game to be a part of."

UP NEXT
The Trojans are back on the road next week with a two-game Texas swing. Troy takes on UT Arlington on Thursday at 5 p.m. before venturing to San Marcos for a date with Texas State on Saturday at 2 p.m.

NOTEWORTHY
• After making 11 threes on Friday, Troy was 12-for-33 from 3-point range on Sunday.

• Troy outrebounded Georgia State 54-34 marking the second time this season the Trojans have posted a +20 or greater rebounding margin.

• The Trojans hauled in 23 offensive rebounds leading to 23 second chance points. Troy entered the game second in the nation averaging 23 offensive boards per game.