Eastern Illinois women eke out victory at Little Rock

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — The Eastern Illinois University Panthers were able to eke out a 59-56 victory Saturday afternoon on the road at the Stephens Center at the University of Arkansas Little Rock.

Eastern could hold Little Rock without a field goal in the final 5:31 of the game, which included a potential game-tying shot that rolled off the rim with four seconds remaining. Had the game been tied at 58, the game would have gone to overtime.

Alex Rouse gave the Panthers a 58-56 lead with 48 seconds remaining.

Macy McGlone, who became Eastern’s career leader in double-doubles with 35, was able to secure one of two shots at the foul line for the final point.

McGlone reached the milestone midway through the third quarter, finishing the game with 19 points and 16 rebounds.

Eastern took advantage of several Little Rock lapses during the game, building a 25-23 lead at the half. They had a 12-point lead at some point in the third quarter following a three-pointer by Lalani Ellis.

Little Rock battled back to cut the lead down to five points to conclude the third quarter courtesy of consecutive baskets by Faith Lee. Lee finished the game with 12 points, one of two players on the Little Rock squad that scored in double figures.

Jayla Brooks made the line three-pointer for Little Rock to open the fourth quarter, which cut the lead to two points. Brooks would later tie the game 54-54 with a pair of free throws, finishing the game with eight points.

Sydney-James Desroches gave Eastern a 56-54 lead with two minutes remaining, only for Little Rock’s Sug Williams to tie the game with a pair of successful free throws to set the table for the final 60 seconds of action.

Eastern was 5-for-13 from three-point territory with two coming from Tiny Lewis. Meanwhile, they were 14-for-19 on the free-throw line.

Kiyley Flowers had nine points for the Panthers, followed by Rouse and Ellis with eight points. Desroches contributed seven points in the game.

The victory brings Eastern Illinois to 2-0 in the Ohio Valley Conference and 5-6 overall in the 2024-25 campaign. Little Rock falls to 3-8 overall, and 1-1 in conference action.

Jordan Holman led Little Rock with 18 points followed by Brooks with eight points and nine rebounds.

Eastern Illinois returns to action on Thursday, January 2 at Groniger Arena as they host Lindenwood University. Tipoff is set for 5 p.m. with broadcasts slated for ESPN+ and Hit Mix 88.9 WEIU.

The men’s matchup between Eastern Illinois and Little Rock was to take place on Saturday, but it was postponed, citing the tragic loss of Little Rock’s student manager Josh Claxton in a car accident.

That matchup will be rescheduled, pending the outcome of a rescheduling meeting between the two schools and the Ohio Valley Conference.

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