Malith scores 21 as SIU-Edwardsville defeats Little Rock 73-65 for second in OVC

EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. (AP) — Ring Malith's 21 points helped SIU-Edwardsville defeat Little Rock 73-65 on Saturday to clinch the second seed in the Ohio Valley Conference tourney.

.The tournament starts Wednesday in Evansville, Indiana, but the Cougars got a double-bye into the semifinals on Friday as the second seed. The Trojans dropped to fourth and play in the quarterfinals on Thursday.

Malith also contributed seven rebounds for the Cougars (20-11, 13-7 Ohio Valley Conference). Ray'Sean Taylor scored 11 points and added six rebounds, five assists, and three steals. Arnas Sakenis had nine points and shot 2 of 4 from the field and 5 of 8 from the free-throw line.

Jordan Jefferson led the Trojans (18-13, 12-8) in scoring, finishing with 21 points and four steals. Isaiah Lewis added 15 points and nine rebounds for Little Rock. Johnathan Lawson also put up 12 points, four steals and two blocks.

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.