Box Score
FORT SMITH, Ark. – The UAM men’s basketball team defeated the Northeastern State RiverHawks 61-50 tonight in the UAFS Lions’ Classic.

The game was close throughout the entire first half, with neither team able to get a double-digit lead on the other. NSU was up 26-25 with 44 seconds to play in the half when Lonnie Cottrell connected with a layup in traffic that drew the foul, giving the Weevils the slim 27-26 lead going into the break.

The second half started much as the first half had ended with both teams trading fouls and baskets. A jumper from Northeastern’s Justin Johnson gave NSU a 34-33 lead with just under 16 minutes to play, but it would turn out to be their last of the game.

L.A. Farmer retook the lead for the Weevils with a layup at 13:37, 35-34. It sparked a 14-4 run by UAM that put them up 11, 49-38, after a pair of Farmer free throws. From there the lead climbed as high as 14 (twice) as the Weevils controlled the clock and wore down the RiverHawks to the final buzzer.

Four different Weevils scored in double figures tonight, with Ricardo Hall leading the way at 14 he added six assists, four steals, and two blocked shots. Sergio Crowe and Lonnie Cottrell each had 13 points while Kori Forge added 12 and had a game-high six rebounds.

UAM improved on their 38-percent shooting in the first half, going 12-of-22 in the second for 55-percent. They finished 23-of-51 on the game for 45-percent. NSU shot 17-of-49 for 35-pecent on the night. Both teams were chilly from three, UAM 5-of-14 and NSU 5-of-18. The RiverHawks hit one more free throw (11-of-13) than UAM (10-of-14).

The Weevils return to action tomorrow afternoon as they take on UA-Fort Smith at 3:00 p.m.