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Ro DeGray's late free throws seal win at UT-Arlington

Ronjanae DeGray made two free throws with 10 seconds remaining on the Trojans' final possession to give her team a gutsy 62-61 win over UT Arlington.
Credit: LR Trojans

ARLINGTON, Texas — Ronjanae DeGray made two free throws with 10 seconds remaining on the Trojans' final possession to give her team a gutsy 62-61 win over UT Arlington.
 
Ro. DeGray notched her seventh double-double of her career with a team-high 18 points and 10 rebounds. Kyra Collier played all 40 minutes and tallied 16 points on the night. Tori Lasker was excellent all night as she hit three three-pointers to grab 16 points of her own.
 
Collier wasted no time getting involved in the scoring with a tough baseline jumper to get things started for the Trojans. Lasker then hit back-to-back floaters in the lane to give Little Rock an early 6-0 advantage. Consecutive mid-range jumpers from Ro. DeGray and Collier capped off a perfect 5-5 start from the field for the maroon and silver. Little Rock would finish the first quarter shooting 80 percent (8-10) from the floor, but the Mavericks used some hot shooting from behind the arc to stay in the game. The Trojans took a 19-16 lead going into the second quarter.
 
The beginning of the second period featured some solid offensive play from both teams. A driving layup from Terrion Moore and short jumper in the lane from Raeyana DeGray started the second-quarter scoring for Little Rock. Collier then hit a floater to force a UT Arlington timeout after the Trojans regained the lead. The Mavericks would respond by making five of their next six shots from the field to take a four-point lead. Lasker would knock down a three at the four-minute mark, but picked up her third foul shortly after. Little Rock would shoot 57.1 percent (12-21) from the floor in the first half but went the final four minutes of the half without a field goal and UT Arlington was able to take advantage by getting out to a 36-30 lead at the break.
 
The Trojans started the second half on a quick 6-0 run and forced a UT Arlington timeout. Back-to-back jumpers by the DeGray sisters momentarily gave the Trojans a one-point lead, but the Mavericks would take the lead by the same margin just before the media timeout in the third period. A tough sequence transpired for Little Rock when the Mavericks hit a three and Moore was called for a charging foul. However, the Trojans would roar their way back into the game just before the end of the third quarter after another three from Lasker and two Ro. DeGray free throws. Little Rock would trail UT Arlington 52-51 going into the final ten minutes.
 
Little Rock instantly took the lead back in their first possession of the fourth quarter with a short jumper from Ro. DeGray. Lasker hit her third three of the night to tie the game at 58 with just over four minutes to play. It was a back-and-forth battle for the final three minutes and it would come down to the final possession. Lasker would launch a long three towards the end of the shot clock that was off the mark. But Ro. DeGray grabbed the offensive rebound and was fouled on her put-back attempt. The senior showed extreme poise and composure as she knocked down both free throws with 10 seconds remaining to give the Trojans the hard-fought win on the road.
 
Little Rock retains their spot at the top of the Sun Belt Conference and widen the gap between themselves and UT Arlington by a game.
 
The Trojans will cap off their Texas road trip when they head to San Marcos Feb. 16 at 2 p.m. to take on Texas State inside Strahan Arena.
 
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