JSU Edges Alcorn 60-55 in Physical Battle

LORMAN, Miss. – The Alcorn State University men's basketball program battled toe-to-toe with Jackson State but just couldn't make enough plays to get over the hump Saturday as the Tigers came out on top 60-55 at the Davey L. Whitney Complex.
 
The Braves (4-12, 0-3 SWAC) were paced by senior A.J. Mosby who ended with 16 points. Sophomore Maurice Howard also scored in double-figures off the bench with 12 points. Sophomore Tyler Carter pulled down a career-high eight rebounds to go along with his six points.
 
The Tigers (6-10, 3-0 SWAC) were guided by Maurice Rivers who registered 15 points and eight rebounds. Treshawn Bolden and Jesse Love totaled 10 points apiece.
 
The game was tied 7-7 when JSU went on an 11-0 run to leap in front 18-7 at the 11:53 mark.  The Braves fired back with a 7-0 spurt which included an old-fashion three-point play by freshman Troymain Crosby to cut the deficit to 18-14 with 9:42 left.
 
The Tigers scored the next five points to go back up 23-14, but a pair of free throws by junior Dante Sterling and a three-pointer by Howard trimmed it back down to 26-23 with 2:42 to go. JSU carried a 29-26 edge at the break.
 
JSU scored the first seven points of the second half to stay ahead 33-26 with 18:04 remaining. A long-range shot by Mosby changed the score to 37-33 at the 15:45 mark. Though, the Tigers were able to take advantage of turnovers and extend their lead to 51-41 with 8:13 left.
 
The Braves kept battling and got the deficit down to 58-53 after a lay-up by sophomore Yalen Reed with 1:05 to go. However, Alcorn ran out of time before it could get any closer, and the Tigers were able to grab offensive rebounds on missed free throws to secure it.
 
Alcorn was cold from the floor for most of the night as it shot 18-46 (.391) from the field and 5-20 (.250) from beyond-the-arc.
 
The game was sponsored by the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency (MEMA).
 
The Braves will remain at home Monday at 7:30 p.m. when they host Grambling State. Alcorn has won six of the last seven meetings between the two schools.
 
NOTES
- Alcorn had its four-game home winning-streak snapped. The Braves are still 4-2 at home this year and 15-4 over the last two seasons.
 
- It was JSU's first win over Alcorn in its last four tries. The Braves swept the season series last year.
 
- Alcorn entered the game leading the league in field goal percentage defense (.454) and held the Tigers to a .393 (22-56) mark.
 
- Mosby entered the game ranked third in the league in field goal percentage (.510) and recorded a .556 (5-9) mark. He notched his 29th career double-figure scoring game, 13th this year and sixth in his last seven outings.
 
- Howard submitted his 13th career double-figure scoring game and fifth this year. He entered the game ranked top-five in the SWAC in three-pointers made per game with 2.0, and was on par after shooting 2-6 from three.
 
- Sterling continued his streak of making at least one three-pointer in every game this season. He also dished out four assists which was the second-most for him this year.
 
- In his third season, head coach Montez Robinson now holds a 26-13 SWAC record.
 
- Alcorn continued to play without SWAC Preseason Player of the Year Reginal Johnson who broke his leg at Tulane. Johnson was an HBCU All-American last season.
 
Quoting Alcorn head coach Montez Robinson
Opening Statement
"We were right there the entire night but we didn't get it. Still too many turnovers and we gave up 20 points off those turnovers – that's a recipe for disaster. We lost the game by five but were outscored 20-4 in points off turnovers. We gave up 14 offensive rebounds and they scored 16 points off them. We grabbed 10 offensive rebounds and only scored 10 off them. Anytime you hold a team to 39 percent shooting, you're supposed to win. We didn't take care of the ball or make winning plays."
 
On the Alcorn defense
"Our defense was good enough to win tonight. However, the second chance opportunities and giving up offensive rebounds really hurt us. We had Jackson State shooting with two or three seconds left on the shot clock the entire night. They'd throw it up, but we couldn't come down with the rebound. There were so many 50-50 balls that we didn't come up with, and in order to be a winning team we have to find a way to win those battles."
 
On the free throw shooting
"We're normally a good free throw shooting team, but not tonight. We were 5-9 in the second half. We missed two on a technical foul, and we missed the front ends of one-and-ones. Those things just can't happen."
 
Final thoughts
"I thought the game plan coming in was great. We did a good job keeping our rotation, subbing and keeping guys fresh. We just didn't capitalize when we needed to or play well enough to win a game."
 
#FearTheBrave