JONESBORO (2/14/08) ? Three field goal attempts by Arkansas State all fell short as time ran out to leave the Indians with a heartbreaking 79-78 loss to New Orleans at the Convocation Center Thursday night.

ASU's Ryan Wedel, who finished the game hitting five three-pointers, launched one more attempt with the final seconds ticking off only to have the ball fall into teammate Kewain Gant's hands. Gant went up for a missed layup, and Shawn Morgan had the final try with the horn sounding, allowing UNO to take the win.

“We had our chances,” said ASU Head Coach Dickey Nutt. “We were trying to get in a rhythm. Our guys played hard the second half. We had the shots, but they wouldn't fall in.”

ASU now stands 9-16 overall and 4-10 in Sun Belt play, while the Privateers are 16-9 and 6-7. Yima Chia-Kur led the Indians with 18 points and Wedel added 17. Morgan had nine points and eight rebounds. However, Nutt was pleased with the efforts of the team.

After Morgan scored the first four points, the Privateers went on a small run to take a 7-6 lead for the first time at the 16:33 mark. Both teams traded leads until Wedel's three-pointer at 9:46 put the Tribe up by four. ASU extended its lead to 11 before UNO went on an ensuing run and took an eight-point lead, 41-33, of its own with a couple of minutes remaining in the half.

After Arkansas State whittled UNO's 10-point lead away early in the second period, the score seesawed until the end. The Privateers' Bo McCalebb, who finished the night with 31 points, scored the game's final basket with 23 seconds remaining. McCalebb was joined by Kyndall Dykes with 14 points and Ben Elias with 10.

Arkansas State will take a day off and resume play Saturday (Feb. 16) against Louisiana-Lafayette in another home matchup. Tipoff is 7:05 p.m.