Comeback Bid Falls Short As Mids Lose 61-57 :: Navy goes on 10-1 run with under two minutes left, but it's not enough to defeat Arkansas-Little Rock.

Navy goes on 10-1 run with under two minutes left, but it's not enough to defeat Arkansas-Little Rock.

Nov. 22, 2005

By NOAH TRISTER
AP Sports Writer

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. - Zack Wright had 17 points and 11 assists, and Arkansas-Little Rock held on for a 61-57 win over Navy on Tuesday night.

The Trojans led 56-45 with 1:41 remaining, but Navy went on a 10-1 run. Corey Johnson made the second of two straight 3-pointers to make it 57-55 with just under a minute to play.

Wright made a pair of free throws with 31.1 seconds remaining, and Johnson missed a wild shot in the lane. After Elijah Muldrow made a free throw to push the lead to five, Adam Teague drove for a layup to make it 60-57.

Wright made a free throw with 6.9 seconds remaining.

Muldrow and Lekheythan Malone each had 16 points for UALR, and Rashad Jones-Jennings had 15 rebounds. Johnson scored 16 points for Navy.

UALR (1-1) shot 16-of-33 from the free-throw line and was outrebounded 45-35, but the Midshipmen (0-2) turned the ball over 24 times and shot only 32 percent from the field.

The Trojans were playing their first regular-season game at the new Stephens Center, a $25 million on-campus facility paid for mostly by a contribution from the family of the late Jack Stephens. Before the game, fans watched a video tribute to Stephens, the former CEO of Stephens Inc.

Stephens attended the Naval Academy, and made a $10 million donation to the school in 2003. Some of his classmates from Navy were introduced during the game, and several Stephens family members watched the game from one of the luxury boxes high above the south sideline.