Around the Sun Belt – Saturday, Jan 2

There was a full slate of action Saturday in the Sun Belt Conference.  Here's a look at what happened around the league:

MEN

ARKANSAS STATE 89, SOUTH ALABAMA 67--A big night for Dante Thomas, who notched a triple-double (14 pts, 10 reb., 11 ast.)  to lead the Red Wolves (6-7, 2-0) to their second straight league win.  Anthony Livingston had a double double with 22 points and eleven rebounds.  Ken Williams had 23 for South Alabama (5-8, 0-2).

UT ARLINGTON 92, GEORGIA SOUTHERN 72--Kevin Hervey continued his torrid play with 25 points and 13 rebounds as UTA (11-2, 2-0) ran away from the Eagles in the  second half.  Guards Drew Charles and Erick Neal combined for 28 points.  Leading by just 42-39 at the half, UTA outscored Georgia Southern (4-8, 0-2) 26-8 to open the second half.

LITTLE ROCK 67, TROY 61--Little Rock won its seventh road game of the season despite trailing by five at the half in the battle of the Trojans.  Marcus Johnson, Jr. scored 22 points while Jalen Jackson added 18, as Little Rock improved to 12-1, 2-0 in the league.  Jordan Varnado had 18 for Troy (5-8, 0-2), which shot just 26 percent in the second half.

GEORGIA STATE 58, TEXAS STATE 46--The Bobcats shot just 5-22 in the first half and made just 3-20 from beyond the arc as the Panthers (8-3, 1-1) used their 2-3 matchup zone to get the win.  Jeremy Hollowell scored 18 points for Georgia State, while Kevin Gilder-Tilbury had 15 for Texas State (7-4, 1-1).

LOUISIANA 79, APPALACHIAN STATE 58--The Cajuns (5-6 1-1) ran away from the Mountaineers in the first half, building a 19 point lead at halftime.  Kasey Shepherd led four Cajuns in double figures with 19 points, while Shawn Long had his 59th career double double with 18 points and 15 rebounds.  App (2-11, 0-2) was led by Frank Eaves with 19 points.  It was the Mountaineers eighth straight loss.

WOMEN

LOUISIANA 60, APP STATE 51--Free throws were the difference as the Cajuns (9-2, 2-0) outscored App (4-7, 1-1) 28-6 from the free throw line as the Mountaineers were no match athletically for the Cajuns.  Kia Wilridge scored 15 points to lead the Cajuns.  App was led by freshman Kaila Craven, who scored 13 of her 17 points after intermission.

ARKANSAS STATE 66, SOUTH ALABAMA 53--The Red Wolves (8-3, 2-0) continued to roll as Khadija Brown-Haywood had a career high 25 points and added 13 rebounds while Amanda Lawson added 20.  It was the fourth time this season that Brown-Haywood has tallied 20 or more points.  Arkansas State led by as many a 25 points in the second half.  South Alabama is now 4-7, 0-2  in the league.

TROY 78, LITTLE ROCK 71--Ashley Beverly-Kelley scored 30 points as Troy (6-5, 1-1) defeated the defending champions.  It's the third straight season Little Rock (3-8, 1-1) has lost at Troy.  Both teams shot 53 percent for the game.   Kaitlyn Pratt and Sharde' Collins scored 17 points each to pace Little Rock.

TEXAS STATE 80, GEORGIA STATE 71--The Bobcats completed the sweep of the Georgia schools with the win over the Panthers.  Ericka May scored 19 points for Texas State (7-5, 2-0).  The Bobcats ran away early, taking a 54-25 lead at the half.  Kennesha Nichols had 12 points and eight rebounds to lead Georgia State (6-5, 1-1), who made the score respectable with a 33-12 fourth quarter advantage.

UT ARLINGTON 70, GEORGIA SOUTHERN 31--UTA (6-6, 1-1) rebounded after a tough league-opening loss to Georgia State to pound Georgia Southern (3-8 0-2).  The Lady Mavs (6-6, 1-1) allowed just 22 percent shooting and did not allow an Eagle to score in double figures.  Cierra Johnson and Amara Wainwright combined for 32 points for UTA.

(Information from sunbeltsports.org) was used in this story.)