LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (3/2/13) –  The Arkansas State University men's basketball team was whistled for a season-high 30 fouls as the Red Wolves would suffer a 78-71 regular-season finale loss to instate rival UALR this Saturday (March 2) night in a Sun Belt Conference (SBC) West Division encounter at UALR's Jack Stephens Center in Little Rock, Ark.

The finale was without question a physical one as both teams were assessed a combined 59 fouls by the three officials, which included seven technicals.  The Red Wolves' 30 team fouls were one more than what UALR was called for as five players fouled out between the two teams.  

“I feel bad we weren't able to get it done for our fans, who were here in numbers and great tonight,” said ASU head coach John Brady.  “We didn't score when we needed to and also had some defensive mistakes which hurt us.  All of the fouls called certainly made it not only a difficult game to play in, but also to coach in.

“I disappointed with the outcome but congratulate UALR on the win.  They were better than us in the second half and that was the difference,” added Brady.   

The Red Wolves now set their sights on the 2013 Sun Belt Conference Championship Tournament and will have a first-round bye as a result of winning the SBC West Division and receiving the tourney's No. 2 seed.  ASU will face the opening-round winner of Troy-Florida Atlantic contest next Saturday, March 9, at 9 p.m. (CT) in Hot Springs, Ark. ASU concluded the 2012-13 regular season at 18-11 overall with a first-place 12-8 SBC West Division mark.

The opening half featured a combined 26 fouls were assessed, including four technicals.  Arkansas State held an eight-point advantage at 24-16 with 6:44 to go on a three-pointer from Ed Townsel.  UALR then went on an 8-3 run in the next three minutes to draw into a 27-all tie with 3:18 left on the clock.  A pair of Marcus Hooten free throws broke the deadlock as the Red Wolves would go onto claim a 35-32 lead at intermission.  Hooten was the lone player on either team to score double figures at the break with 14 points.

ASU would hold the upper hand eight minutes into the second half, but its largest lead of the stanza of 10 points at the 12:37 mark would evaporate as the Trojans tallied 11 consecutive points in just under a two-minute span to take its first lead at 51-50 with 10:46 remaining in the game.  UALR would never trail the rest of the way as the Trojans maintained a single-digit lead and withstood a couple A-State rallies to pull out the victory.

 For ASU, senior guard Marcus Hooten led all scorers with a season-high 25 points, going 9-14 from the floor and hitting all three triples while making good on four-of-five at the free throw line.  Senior guard Trey Finn recorded 14 points to join Hooten as the lone Red Wolves in the double-figure scoring column.  Freshman guard Cameron Golden added eight points for A-State, which connected on 42.9% (21-49) of its shots while UALR posted 44.9% (22-49) for the game.

Senior forward Brandon Peterson's 10 rebounds was tops among both teams as the Red Wolves outperformed the Trojans on the glass by a 34-28 margin.

UALR was led by John Gillon's 24 points and Leroy Isler netted 13 as the Trojans improved to 17-14 overall and 11-9 in the SBC West.  The hosts outscored the Red Wolves 24-6 in the paint and produced a 45-25 bench-scoring advantage.  ASU led in second-chance points, 15-7.

The conference contest, played before a crowd of 5,337 fans, featured three ties and one lead change in what was the 76th all-time meeting between the two state schools.

Arkansas State will now get ready for the upcoming single-elimination conference tourney with the winner receiving the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.  Three victories by ASU in the tourney will result in the Red Wolves being crowned SBC Tournament Champions and thus represent the conference in the NCAA Tournament.  

“It's now a three-game season for us,” said Brady.  “We need to really concentrate and win the first one.  I like where we are, we just need to get better.”

AStATe Notes: Marcus Hooten netted a personal season-high 25 points to surpass his 18 points output at North Texas (2/28).  Hooten is averaging 21.5 points a game (43 total) in his last two outings ...  The Red Wolves' 30 team fouls exceeded 25 infractions whistled on two prior occasions - at Louisiana-Lafayette (1/12) and against South Alabama (1/31) ... ASU finished the regular season 13-2 at home and 5-9 on the road ... Brandon Peterson posted double digits in rebounds for the fourth time in his last six contests with 10 boards at UALR ... Trey Finn reached double-figure scoring for fourth time in his last six outings and is averaging 14.3 (86 pts.) during the six-game period ... Brandon Peterson established a personal career single-season high with 272 rebounds in 29 contests this campaign, which surpasses his previous-best 267 boards in 34 encounters a season ago.