Alcorn Cruises to Home-Opening Victory over Blue Mountain

LORMAN, Miss. – In the return of senior Reginal Johnson, the Alcorn State University men's basketball program topped Blue Mountain College 79-55 Friday evening in the Braves first home game at the Davey L. Whitney Complex.
 
Johnson made his first appearance in an Alcorn (1-1) uniform since a season-ending injury at Tulane on Nov. 29, 2017. He came off the bench to score 14 points in 21 minutes.
 
Sharp-shooting junior Maurice Howard poured in a career-high 24 points. He nailed seven three-pointers and also grabbed four rebounds.
 
Also in double-figures was junior Jonathan Floyd with 15 points. Junior Deshaw Andrews neared a double-double with nine points and nine rebounds.
 
The Toppers (1-1), who were coming off a 101-85 road victory at Freed-Hareman, were guided by Tyree Beason's 15 points. Da'Juonta Ross ended with 10 points and nine rebounds.
 
BMC's only lead in the game came in the opening minutes when it raced out to a quick 6-0 advantage. The Braves quickly erased it though as a pair of three-pointers by Howard sparked a 10-0 spurt to put them ahead 15-10 at the 13:17 mark.
 
A jumper by Floyd gave Alcorn a 20-10 edge, but the Toppers responded with an 8-0 run to trim the deficit to 20-18 with 9:57 to go. The Braves got their lead back up to 34-24 after another long-range shot by Howard with 5:49 left. Alcorn carried a 41-31 lead into the break after a lay-up by Johnson was the last bucket in the half.
 
The Braves pulled away early in the second half as a quick 9-0 run, which included a jumper by sophomore Troymain Crosby, made it a 50-31 game. BMC could never get back in it after that, and a three-pointer by Floyd put Alcorn in front 64-39 with 9:54 remaining.
 
Alcorn's largest lead, 75-45, came after a three-pointer by Howard at the 5:06 mark.
 
For the game, the Braves shot .415 (27-65) from the field and .394 (13-33) from three. The Toppers were held to a .333 (18-54) clip from the field and .273 (6-22) from beyond-the-arc. Alcorn forced 27 turnovers as Floyd recorded four steals.
 
The Braves will have a week off before their next contest when they travel to Vanderbilt at 7 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 16. The game will be televised on the SEC Network Plus/Watch ESPN. It will begin a five-game road trip for Alcorn.
 
NOTES
- The Braves improved to 10-0 against non-Division I opponents under head coach Montez Robinson.
 
- Alcorn is now 5-0 all-time against BMC. Howard turned in a big game for the second straight year after flushing 18 points in the meeting last season.
 
- The Braves have won seven of their last eight home openers.
 
- Johnson, who is now up to 1,053 career points, etched his 56th career double-figure scoring game. Johnson was a 2016-17 HBCU All-American and led the team with 15.6 points and 7.1 rebounds per game that season.
 
- Howard topped his previous career-high of 23 points set last season against Rust College. His seven three-pointers matched his career-best. Howard broke the Alcorn single-season record in three-pointers made last year with 74. It was his 23rd career double-figure scoring game and fourth 20-plus outing.
 
- The Braves led the SWAC in assists per game last year with 13.1, and dished out 18 as a team tonight. Eight different student-athletes recorded an assist.
 
Quoting Alcorn head coach Montez Robinson
Opening Statement
"The team played good for about 30 minutes in this game. We started out slower than what we wanted at the beginning of the game, but we picked it up in the middle of the first half. We came out early in the second half and really jumped on them. We got into our full court man-to-man press and forced them into some turnovers and bad passes. It's just that mental fatigue that we have to be able to sustain. We have to be able to play with that same type of effort, energy and focus for 40 minutes. We can't have any letdowns. Though for the most part, I'm happy to get that first win. We wanted to bounce back from the game against Tulsa and make sure we compete in every game."
 
On Maurice Howard
"He had some really good looks. Though, I think 18 threes are a little too many for him. We were talking about it during the game about shooting so many threes, and he kept saying 'Coach, it's open.' So, when a capable shooter like him is getting those wide-open looks, you have to take them. I was pleased with him from that standpoint, but he has to find the right spots throughout the game to take them and also know when not to take them."
 
On what he learned from his team tonight
"We've got to do a better job in the post. Our post players have to do a better job of posting, ducking in and sealing deep. I'm at a stand-still at the moment because I know we've got something there but it just hasn't unveiled yet. We've got some good pieces and we're still trying to figure out how to play well together."
 
On Reginal Johnson
"His biggest thing is just getting his wind back. It's sometimes hard to simulate game speed during practice, and I think his adrenaline was so high when he got in that he was burning more energy than he would in a practice. He's going hard and it's coming along for him. I'm just happy that he's back out here after the injury he went through last year. He actually played more tonight than I originally planned, but I told him before the game that if it was going well then I'd leave him out there."
 
Quoting junior Maurice Howard
On what he did tonight that worked
"I just needed to take my time tonight. Last game I was rushing my shot and was missing. This game I was trying to be very patient and I was making them."
 
On what the team did different tonight compared to the season-opener at Tulsa
"Well, we were right there at Tulsa, down by one in the second half but we just couldn't finish it. I feel we have a really good team and just need to continue to play hard and give the effort that we have been."
 
On stepping up into a leadership role
"I'm trying to take on the role and we need that. We have a lot of new players this year and I'm trying to get them used to the system. The sky is the limit for this team. If we just come in, play hard and give the effort and energy we'll be fine."
 
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