Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Bench providing a punch
Arkansas-Little Rock senior guard Bradley Douglas is averaging 10.6 points per game in his first season with the Trojans. A junior college AllAmerican at Santa Fe (N.M.) Community College in 2022, was known for his scoring ability before transferring to UALR after averaging 14 points per game last season at Florida Southwestern State.
Douglas started 14 games to begin the season, but UALR Coach Darrell Walker decided to start bringing him off the bench following a 90-82 loss at Tennessee State on Dec 30.
The move has already paid dividends. In the nine games since moving to the bench, Douglas is averaging 12.1 points per game and has scored in double figures six times.
“For some reason, I just have been feeling more comfortable coming off the bench,” Douglas said. “I like it. It doesn’t bother me and I’ve been playing well ever since.”
In Tuesday’s home win over Tennessee-Martin, Douglas scored a game-high 17 points in the 77-57 Trojans win. The second-leading scorer for UALR also came off the bench in senior center Makhel Mitchell, who finished with 14 points. Mitchell missed the first 11 games of the season with eligibility issues, but has since seen his role increase.
In the past six games, Mitchell has scored in double figures five times and also has been a defensive force by blocking shots. In many games, Douglas and Mitchell are the only players Walker plays off the bench and they have built a connection on the floor.
“Makhel makes a big difference and helps us out both offensively and defensively,” Douglas said. “With him being back, it’s just another plus for our team. We usually play off each other a lot. He gets me a lot of open shots in practice and we just translate that to the game.”