Men's Basketball | 1/6/2017 3:21:00 PM

Braves Travel for Showdown at Jackson State

Alcorn Game Notes | Live Radio

JACKSON, Miss. – In its first conference road game of the season, the Alcorn State University men's basketball program will make a short trip north to face Jackson State at 5:30 p.m. Saturday at Lee E. Williams Athletic and Assembly Center.
 
Alcorn (4-9, 1-1 SWAC) will look to duplicate its strong defensive performance from Wednesday when it defeated Prairie View A&M 66-55. The Braves held the Panthers to just 16-for-49 (.327) shooting and 3-for-15 from beyond-the-arc.
 
JSU (6-9, 2-0 SWAC) is riding a three-game winning-streak with victories over Fisk 94-62, Alabama A&M 63-51 and Alabama State 63-60. The Tigers have also been able to shut down their opposition as they've held opponents to a league-low 55.5 points per game in conference action.
 
The Braves are led by their "sixth man" junior Reginal Johnson who averages 15.4 points and 7.4 rebounds per outing. He's shooting .521 from the field and is on a streak of 12 consecutive double-figure scoring games including at least 18 points in each of the last three contests.
 
Senior Marquis Vance puts in 10.9 points per outing and is the team's leading rebounder with 8.3 per game. In SWAC play, Vance leads the league in both rebounding (10.5 drpg) and defensive rebounds (9.0 rpg). He's second in blocks with 1.5 per contest.
 
Freshman Maurice Howard is averaging 10.5 points through two conference games. He scored 10 points against Texas Southern and 11 vs. PVAMU. On the year, Howard is Alcorn's top three-point threat with a .390 shooting mark.
 
The Tigers have one of the league's top scorers in Edric Dennis who tallies 17.0 points per game. He's aided by Paris Collins and Yettra Specks who both averages 13.3 points per outing. Janarius Middleton is the team's leading rebounder with 7.4 per contest and scores 5.5 points per game.
 
As a team, JSU has been strong with the ball as it leads the conference in turnover margin (+3.7) and assist:turnover ratio (1.0).
 
The game can be heard via radio on 91.7 WPRL FM with Charles Edmond as the voice of the Braves.
 
NOTES
- Alcorn is looking to win at Jackson State for the second year in a row after finishing on top 72-64 on Feb. 6, 2016.
 
- The Braves are coming off a 66-55 victory over Prairie View A&M on Wednesday. Alcorn turned a one-point halftime lead into a double-digit win as it held the Panthers to just 16-for-49 (.327) shooting and 3-of-15 (.200) from beyond-the-arc.
 
- Through two conference games, Alcorn leads the league in blocks (4.0 bpg) and defensive rebounds (30.0 drpg). The Braves rank second in scoring defense (61.0 ppg), field goal percentage defense (.361), three-point percentage defense (.219) and rebounding margin (+8.0).
 
- Johnson has pulled down at least five rebounds in every game this year. In conference games, Johnson leads the league in offensive rebounds (4.0 orpg) and is fourth in total rebounds (7.5 rpg).
 
- Vance has tallied 59 career double-figure scoring games and eight double-doubles. He's Alcorn's newest member of the 1,000-point club after he surpassed the mark against Blue Mountain on Nov. 22, 2016.
 
- Averaging just under double-figures for the Braves, senior Denzel Dulin nets 9.5 points per contest. Dulin scored a career-high 20 points at Colorado State which upped his previous best of 16 set in the game before against Blue Mountain. He's coming off a 10-point performance against PVAMU.
 
- Junior A.J. Mosby is the only Brave to start in every game this year. He leads the team in both assists and steals.
 
- Senior DeAndre Davis returned to the lineup for conference play after missing the previous nine games with a hand injury. He posted 12 points and five rebounds against Texas Southern in his first game back. Through two league games, Davis ranks third in the conference in field goal percentage with a .778 mark.
 
- The Braves have won a pair of weekly awards this year, both coming in the same week. On Dec. 27, Johnson was named SWAC Player of the Week, while Mosby earned College Sports Madness Player of the Week. Johnson ended non-conference play with back-to-back double-doubles of 12 points and 10 rebounds at Grand Canyon and 19 points and 12 rebounds vs. Rust. Mosby registered a career game of 19 points and 10 rebounds against Rust as both figures were career-highs.
 
- Freshman Yalen Reed has been hot from the field. He's shooting 14-for-21 (.667) over the last eight games and 21-for-34 (.618) on the year. Reed ranks sixth in the SWAC in blocks with 0.8 per outing. He ended non-conference play with an 11-point affair against Rust where he went 5-for-7 from the field.
 
- Junior Avery Patterson missed the first two games of the season but came back to score 14 points in each of his first two games returning. He concluded non-conference play with a strong performance of 12 points and six rebounds against Rust where he went three-for-six from long-range.
 
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