Just to make things interesting, coach Ryan Pannone elected to shake the Boggle wand when making his lineup, putting freshman Royal Blue Smith and Frenchman Fredy-Salam Sylla (he’s French!) on the floor to open the game, giving the team’s leading scorers TJ Caldwell and Chandler Jackson off-the-bench roles.

The French Connection (Sylla’s new name moving forward) immediately rewarded Pannone’s faith with a three, and he’d lead all Red Wolves scorers at the the half with 10 points. If you were worried about Caldwell and Jackson, they appeared after the first media time out and seemed just fine.

UA Little Rock was without the services of all their Robinson brothers, leaving the team behind an enormous eight-ball even before the tip. But the Trojans are not without skill, getting big first half threes from Johnathan Lawson (17 first half points) and significant paint presence from 6’8″ forward Kachi Nzeh.

The French Connection continued his war against the Trojans with an early second half three, which Jalen Hampton would follow with a dunk so savage he was hit with a technical. Still, those Trojans stuck around, riding Lawson and Nzeh to remain in striking distance. But a hoop-and-harm three-point play from TJ Caldwell at the 10 minute mark provided more distance between the teams.

However, somebody forgot to tell the Trojans they were cooked. With 5:30 on the clock, Lawson drilled another three to make it a five point game (77-72), compelling Pannone to call a time out. UA Little Rock pulled within three before another big bucket from Caldwell , and then a monster slam, reversed the momentum. The Trojans ran out of gas.

Red Wolves bench, lead by TJ Caldwell’s team leading 19, outscored the Trojan bench 36-0. The French Connection contributed 16, and 10 Red Wolves submitted numbers in the points column. Lawson and Nzeh of Little Rock pounded 33 and 30 points, making up 63 of the Trojans 78 points.