LORMAN, Miss. – Trailing at the half, the Alcorn State University men's basketball program came out hot in the second to beat Fisk University 77-69 Tuesday at the Davey L. Whitney Complex.
 
The Braves (3-8) were behind the Bulldogs (7-3) 33-29 at the intermission when they outscored them 48-36 in the second frame. Alcorn shot .594 (19-32) from the field in the second half, compared to a .353 (12-34) mark in the first.
 
Senior A.J. Mosby led the charge with 19 points, eight rebounds and five assists. He committed just one turnover in 31 minutes, and 15 of his points came in the second half. Mosby was 8-for-12 from the field in the contest.
 
Mosby was one of four Braves in double-figures along with junior Dante Sterling with 15 points, freshman Troymain Crosby with 12 points and a career-high seven rebounds, and senior Avery Patterson with 11 points.  
 
Alcorn committed just eight turnovers which was a season-low.
 
The Bulldogs, who lost 60-53 to Jackson State last night, were guided by Ryainni Scott's double-double of 16 points and 11 rebounds.
 
Patterson scored the first seven points for the Braves and got them out in front 7-2 early. Alcorn was on top 11-6 when the Bulldogs went on a 9-0 run to take a 15-11 edge at the 10:49 mark.
 
After a layup by Mosby cut the deficit to 23-19, Fisk responded with a 10-2 spurt to take its biggest advantage of the game 33-21 with 3:15 left. The Braves ended the half on an 8-0 run which included three-pointers by Sterling and Crosby.
 
Alcorn tied the game 35-35 on a layup by Sterling with 17:47 remaining. The Braves took the lead for good on a layup by Mosby to go up 41-40 at the 14:44 mark.
 
An 11-3 run by Alcorn created some separation at 52-43 after a three-pointer by Crosby with 12:07 to go. A long-range shot by Patterson increased the edge to 61-45 with 7:56 left.
 
Fisk made one last push and got the deficit down to single-figures, 72-64, with 1:43 remaining. The teams exchanged baskets the rest of the way for a 77-69 final.
 
Alcorn will remain at home Monday when it hosts Blue Mountain College at 7 p.m. at the Davey L. Whitney Complex. In the meeting between the two programs last year, the Braves won 83-57. Alcorn leads the all-time series 3-0.
 
NOTES
- Alcorn improved to 3-1 at home this year and 14-3 over the last two seasons.
 
- As a team, the Braves entered the game leading the conference in assists (14.6 apg), assist:turnover ratio (1.0) and three-pointers made per game (8.3). The dished out 20 assists with just eight turnovers, and were on par with eight three-pointers made.
 
- The Braves had 10 steals which matched a season-high set previously at Northern Iowa.
 
- Mosby entered the game leading the SWAC in assist:turnover ratio (3.1) and will improve upon his tally after ending with five assists and one turnover. Mosby matched his season-highs with an identical 19 points and eight rebounds at Tulane. It was his sixth double-digit scoring game in his last seven outings, ninth this year and 25th in his career.
 
- Sterling continued his streak of making at least one three-pointer in every game this year. He turned in his sixth double-figure scoring game of the season.
 
- Crosby notched the second-highest scoring game of his career and his second double-figure scoring match. He shot five-for-six from the field and grabbed a career-high three steals.
 
- Patterson etched his sixth career double-figure scoring game and third this season.
 
- Tuesday marked the first-ever meeting between Alcorn and Fisk.
 
Quoting Alcorn head coach Montez Robinson
On Fisk leading at the half
"We had too many highs and lows in the first half. It's almost as if we forgot what was working for us and went away from it. We have to be more consistent and can't allow ourselves to have those peaks and valleys. We're still working on staying focused for an entire 40 minutes."
 
On Troymain Crosby
"He came in as a burst of energy, which is what we've wanted from him as a freshman. We challenged the guys tonight to go to the glass hard and he was one who really crashed the glass. He came in with a lot of power moves in the second half and really set his feet on his jump shots. A.J. also had a big second half for us, and it says a lot to get eight rebounds from your point guard."
 
On how he'd grade the team's overall performance on the night
"I'd give us a C+ overall. We had too many ups and downs. Even in the second half, we got up by 16 and had a couple letdowns where Fisk cut the lead back down. We have to continue to stay focused for a full 40 minutes and rebounding the ball. When teams are playing a zone defensively, we have to continue penetrating and not relying on just outside shots. We have to get to the middle of the paint, look for open guys and get our feet set."
 
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