Defense takes toll on Trojans

FAYETTEVILLE — The pressure defense for No. 11 University of Arkansas finally wore down a confident, plucky Troy team in Monday’s 74-61 win at Walton Arena.

The Trojans led for more than 20 minutes, but the Razorbacks took over late with a 17-0 run in a span of 5:22. Troy missed 7 of its final 8 shots while Arkansas, sparked by one-on-one takes by Ricky Council, hit its last 7 shots.

The Razorbacks also turned 18 Troy turnovers into 19 points while holding the visitors to 25 points below their season scoring average of 86.

Troy Coach Scott Cross said the Trojans were not coming for a paycheck, that they were coming to get a win, and his team played like it for large stretches.

“We had a chance and

I felt like we could win it all the way through until probably the last couple of minutes,” Cross said. “I thought our guys, they did everything they could. They played hard. They battled. We just ran out of gas.”

The Trojans were without leading scorer Duke Miles, lost Nate Tshimanga to injury in the first half and forward Christian Turner was in and out with leg cramps.