FRIDAY'S SCORES
Eastern Kentucky 83, FIU 61 (Kennesaw, Ga.)
Belmont 87, @Lipscomb 83
@Austin Peay 84, Oakland City 69
@Bradley 72,
Jacksonville State 65
@Arkansas 99,
SIUE 65
@Saint Louis 87,
Southeast Missouri 64
@Valparaiso 77,
Murray State 74
@Wyoming 78,
UT Martin 60
@Hawaii 85,
Tennessee State 55
EASTERN KENTUCKY 83, FIU 61
KENNESAW, Ga. - Senior guard Glenn Cosey led a balanced Eastern Kentucky offense with a game-high 17 points as the Colonel men’s basketball team defeated Florida International in the 2013-14 season opener Friday afternoon, 83-61. The game was the first of three for the Colonels at the Kennesaw State Invitational.
Cosey not only finished with 17 points, but eight assists and six rebounds. Fellow senior Marcus Lewis chipped in with a career-high 16 points on 7-of-9 (77.8 percent) shooting. Meanwhile, senior Orlando Williams (14 points) and junior Corey Walden (11) reached double figures as well.
Eastern started the game slowly, trailing 8-2 at one point, before quickly pulling away from FIU in the first half. Lewis’ lone three-pointer gave the Colonels their first lead at 11-10. Just a couple of minutes later, Cosey netted a three-pointer to put EKU ahead for good, 14-12.
Eastern Kentucky netted 5-of-6 (83.3 percent) three-pointers during one stretch to move ahead, 20-12.
Six different Colonels tallied a three-pointer in the opening half as EKU built a whopping 23-point cushion late in the stanza, 44-21. Eastern shot 48.3 percent (14-of-29) from the field and 46.7 percent (7-of-15) from behind the arc in the opening 20 minutes to take a 45-24 lead into intermission.
FIU made a run early in the second half, scoring 15 of 19 points in a five-minute span, but the Colonels responded with a 15-1 run to put the game away.
Eastern’s decisive win came in part due to points off turnovers where the Colonels held a 25-2 edge.
Tymell Murphy led the Panthers with 14 points and 10 boards.
BELMONT 87, LIPSCOMB 83
NASHVILLE - Behind a strong second half push, Belmont University's men's basketball defeated Lipscomb, 87-83, Friday night to open the 2013-14 season.
The 133rd meeting of the 'Battle of the Boulevard' took on added intrigue and mystery. In addition to the Bruins welcoming nine newcomers, the contest marked the Lipscomb head coaching debut for former Belmont standout player and longtime assistant coach Casey Alexander ('95).
After exchanging pleasantries throughout the week and prior to the game, Belmont head coach Rick Byrd and Alexander were all business as each tried to lead their programs to victory.
Senior Blake Jenkins punctuated an 11-2 Bruin scoring run to give Belmont a 20-10 lead nine minutes in.
And though Belmont worked its way into the bonus with 11:41 left in the first half, uncharacteristically poor free throw shooting stifled Bruin momentum.
A layin from junior Chad Lang preserved a double digit lead before Khion Sankey and Malcolm Smith helped push the Bisons within 35-32 at halftime.
Belmont shot 40 percent (10-25) from the field in the opening 20 minutes - including just 2-for-11 from three-point distance. But even of greater note - and consternation - the Bruins went just 13-for-23 from the free throw line in the first half.
Eight quick points from senior Drew Windler got Belmont off and running in the second half. And a steal and reverse layin from senior J.J. Mann made the score 47-42 with 15:16 left.
But moments later, Windler would pick up his fourth personal foul, sending his shooting touch and leadership to the sidelines.
That, coincided with strong Lipscomb play from J.C. Hampton and Carter Sanderson, flipped the script. A Martin Smith layin gave the Bisons a 59-51 lead with with 11:18 left.
With a partisan purple and gold crowd urging them on, Lipscomb was playing loose and confidently.
Yet undaunted, Belmont showed its poise and championship mettle
The Bruins went 9-for-12 from the line down the stretch to secure the win.
AUSTIN PEAY 84, OAKLAND CITY 69
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. - Sophomore center Chris Horton snagged a career-high 17 rebounds to go with 10 points to spur Austin Peay State University’s late surge that paced a season-opening 84-69 victory against Oakland City, Friday night, in Dave Aaron Arena.
With the Governors leading the Mighty Oaks just 68-65 with less than 4 ½ minutes remaining, Horton took over, grabbing five rebounds, scoring three points and blocking a shot as the Govs ended on a 16-4 run. Horton’s rebound total bested his 13-rebound effort against Arkansas State, Dec. 8, 2012. It was APSU’s most rebounds since John Fraley, who was in attendance for the season opener, had 17 versus Tennessee Tech, Jan. 2, 2012.
The 6-8 Horton got ample support down the stretch from senior forward Will Triggs, despite continuing free-throw shooting issues, had six points and three rebounds during that game-deciding stretch. Junior Ed Dyson, meanwhile, sealed it by knocking down a three pointer and following with a layup with close to a minute left. Dyson finished with a team-high 17 points in his first official Govs’ contest.
The Govs got off to a hot start in the contest, surging to a 14-5 lead. But APSU could not maintain the lead against the Mighty Oaks, who efficiently operated the offense to lead by as much as five points, 34-29, against the careless Govs with 5:10 left in the half when Jordan Simmons nailed a three pointer.
But the Govs went on a 8-0 run that ended only when Dyson was called for a technical for hanging on the rim after a dunk. The Governors took a 40-38 lead into intermission.
Matt Lucas hit a three pointer to open the second half to give Oakland City a 41-40 advantage, but that would prove to be the Mighty Oaks’ only second-half advantage, although they would not let the Govs shake them until the final five minutes.
Triggs, despite his 2-of-7 free-throw performance, joined Dyson and Horton in double figures with 10 points while also grabbing seven rebounds, five on the offensive glass. Damarius Smith added nine points, five assists and two steals in 19 minutes off the bench.
Sophomore Cory Arensten also added nine points—all on three pointrers—while Zavion Williams added eight points.
Travis Betran, the Ohio Valley Conference’s leading returning scorer, had just five points but deid tie Smith for the assists lead with five.
The Governors finished 29 of 55 (52.7 percent) from the floor. It was barely worse than the free-throw shooting as APSU followed up Monday’s exhibition struggling night with just 20-of-36 (55.6 percent) at the line.
APSU dominated Oakland City on the boards, 46-27, grabbing 14 offensive rebounds in the final half. APSU also finished the night with 20 assists on their 29 field goals.
Kendall Wittmer led all scorers with 20 points for the Mighty Oaks, going 4-of-7 from three-point range. Oakland City stayed in the game with a 10-of-23 three-point effort.
Ryan Helfert and Lawrence Kinney each added 12 for Oakland City.
BRADLEY 72, JACKSONVILLE STATE 65
PEORIA, Ill. - Bradley built a slight first-half advantage and then held off the Jacksonville State men's basketball team to win the season opener for both teams, 72-65, on Friday at Carver Arena.
The Gamecocks (0-1) forced Bradley's go-to guy and the NCAA's active leader in career points Walt Lemon into a 2-for-13 start from the floor, but the senior keyed the late run that helped the Braves (1-0) create enough separation to hold off JSU and pick up the win in the first meeting between the two programs.
Junior Grant White led three Gamecocks in double figures with a 16-point night that saw him go 3-for-4 from behind the 3-point line. The Monroeville, Ala., native keyed a pair of JSU runs in the game with big 3-pointers, while fellow juniors Darion Rackley and D.J. Felder added 13 and 10, respectively.
Senior and Preseason All-Ohio Valley Conference guard Brian Williams struggled from the floor on the night, going 4-for-13 to score eight points. He was one of three Gamecocks, joining junior Jamal Hunter and senior Nick Cook. Cook, a native of Hattiesburg, Miss., grabbed 10 rebounds to lead JSU to a 33-32 advantage on the glass.
Cook was forced to step up inside on a night that saw his counterparts inside sit due to foul trouble for much of the game. Felder added five boards and Hunter had four in 20 minutes of action. Williams and Rackley each dished three of the team's nine assists, while Williams played all 40 minutes in his 72nd consecutive start in a JSU uniform.
Lemon finished the night with 16 points but went just 6-for-20 from the floor. Omari Grier picked up the slack, scoring 17 points in a game in which he made the of his six 3-point attempts. Tyshon Pickett had a double-double of 15 points and 10 rebounds.
The Gamecocks tried to set the tone early on, working inside to build an 8-4 lead, but the Braves responded. With Lemon struggling to get things going offensively. They turned elsewhere and manufactured a 12-3 run that put them on top 16-11. They stretched the lead to as many as nine in the final four minutes with a 28-19 advantage with 3:47 to play.
White knocked down JSU's first trey of the night to answer the run and spark one for the Gamecocks. They scored eight of the next 10 to draw as close as three, but a late triple by Grier sent the Braves into the halftime locker room with a 33-27 lead.
Foul trouble was a big story early, forcing Rackley, Felder and Hunter to spend time on the bench. Rackley played 15 minutes in the half and scored seven, while Felder had six points and two boards in just seven minutes that saw him draw three fouls.
The Gamecocks were slow out of the gates in the second half, making just 2 of their first eight shots and watching the Braves build a 10-point lead at 43-33 with just over 14 minutes to play.
White led the JSU charge with an old-fashioned 3-point play and then a triple that cut the lead to six and started a surge that saw the Gamecocks get as close as one on a Williams jumper with 7:28 to play that made it 52-51.
Lemon had the answer this time, making his first 3-pointer of the night to stretch the lead back to four, as close as JSU would get.
ARKANSAS 99, SIUE 65
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - A strong second half wasn't enough to lift SIUE men's basketball in 2013-14 season opener, as the Cougars fell 99-65 on the road at Arkansas.
SIUE (0-1) fell to 0-6 in season openers at the Division I level, while Arkansas (1-0) won its 19th consecutive season opener.
The Cougars connected on 45.7 percent (16-35) of their shots in the second half, after making just 9 of 29 attempts in the first 20 minutes. After trailing by 29 points (56-27) at halftime, Arkansas outscored SIUE just 43-38 in the second half.
Both teams appeared uneasy to start the contest. Arkansas' Bobby Portis scored the first points of the game more than two minutes into the contest with a tip in to put the Razorbacks up 2-0. Arkansas extended the start to 7-0 before Kris Davis and Donivine Stewart hit back-to-back three-point baskets that made it 7-6 Arkansas and spark a 10-0 run by the visitors.
Stewart and Wiltz scored nine points apiece for the Cougars. All nine of Wiltz's points came from behind the three-point line.
Tim Johnson rolled home a layup with 14:57 to play to put the Cougars up 8-6. Just 30 seconds later, Ray Lester pulled down an offensive rebound after a miss by Wiltz. His put back-shot made it 10-7 SIUE.
The Razorbacks responded with a 10-0 run of their own to lead 17-10 with 12:14 left in the half. Arkansas never trailed again.
The Cougars turned the ball over 14 times during the first half, accounting for 20 Arkansas points. SIUE finished with 23 turnovers for the game.
Sparked by a pair of three-pointers from Tim Johnson the Cougars started the second half with a 15-8 run to trim the lead to 64-42. Johnson scored nine of his team-high 13 points in the second half.
Again the Razorbacks responded, this time with their own 15-8 run to make it 79-50 with 7:43 to play in the game.
For the game, Arkansas outrebounded SIUE 42-34. The Razorbacks hauled in 16 offensive boards.
Anthlon Bell scored 18 points to pace five Arkansas players in double figures. Bell was 6 for 9 from the field, including 5 for 6 from three-point range Michael Qualls added 16 points on 6 of 10 shooting from the field. Alandise Harris chipped in 15 points.
SAINT LOUIS 87, SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 64
ST. LOUIS - Defending Atlantic-10 Conference champion Saint Louis (1-0) trailed at halftime, but used a big second half to get by regional-rival Southeast Missouri (0-1), 87-64, Friday night at Chaifetz Arena.
SLU fell behind, 35-34, before starting the second half with a 25-8 run to blow the game open. The Billikens outscored Southeast, 53-29, during the final 20 minutes en route to their season-opening win.
Southeast entered the game without preseason All-Ohio Valley Conference picks Tyler Stone and Nino Johnson, and fellow returning starter A.J. Jones. Stone and Johnson are out the first two games of the season after recently being suspended.
The other news came right before tip-off when it was announced that Jones withdrew from Southeast and is no longer part of the basketball program.
Once the dust settled, Southeast took the court with nine players, including one with Division I experience.
The shorthanded Redhawks gave SLU all it could handle in the first half, as Jarekious Bradley scored nine of his team's first 13 points.
SLU later took advantage of three-consecutive missed field goals and a turnover by Southeast to build a 10-point cushion with Dwayne Evans' layup putting the Billikens ahead, 29-19, at the 7:49 mark.
The Redhawks quickly countered with a 16-5 run, aided by six-straight points from freshman Antonius Cleveland. Cleveland knocked down a three-pointer to bring Southeast to within a point before Bradley hit a jumper to give the Redhawks a one-point lead at the half.
Darrian Gray completed a conventional three-point play to give Southeast a four-point edge (38-34) early in the second half before SLU strung together its hefty run over the next 10 minutes.
Southeast, which simply wore down against the bigger Billiken club, never recovered.
Bradley, one of four Redhawks who made their first career start, notched a double-double 22 points and 12 rebounds to lead Southeast. He shot 10-of-17 from the field, knocked down two three-pointers, gathered two blocks and had four steals in 38 minutes. Bradley dropped in 15 of his points and had all but one of his rebounds in the first half.
Cleveland and Gray followed with 14 and 12 points, respectively. Cleveland added seven rebounds, as well.
Nutt was the lone Southeast player who had played at the NCAA Divison I level prior to tonight. He chipped in eight points and a team-high four assists in 37 minutes.
The Redhawks shot 37.5 percent (21-of-56) from the field.
Grandy Glaze and Evans each scored 16 points, as four Billiken starters scored double figures. Jordair Jett also had 15 and Rob Loe pitched in 13. Additionally, Glaze was SLU's top rebounder with 10.
The Billikens heated up to shoot 65.5 percent (19-of-29) in the second half and finished at over 50 percent (51.6) for the game.
VALPARAISO 77, MURRAY STATE 74
VALPARAISO, Ind. - The Murray State Racers made a brave run to overcome a 12-point second half deficit, but fell 77-74 in the 2013-14 season opener to the Valparaiso Crusaders at the Athletics Recreation Center in Valparaiso, Ind.
Freshman Cameron Payne led the way for the Racers with a game-high 21 points while Jeffery Moss tallied eight rebounds for the Racers who were trying for their first road win in a season opener since 1997.
Trailing 54-42 with 12:27 remaining, the Racers brought it all the way back to a chance to tie on more than one occasion. Their first run came on a put-back by Tyler Rambo and a fast break finish by Dexter Fields to make it a 68-65 game with 5:20 left. MSU's first chance to tie the game saw Payne miss a pair of free throws with the score 71-69 with 2:17 left. MSU made a defensive stop only to be denied in the paint again with 1:50 remaining. MSU again had it down to a 74-72 game after Moss hit a pair from the line with 41 seconds left, but VU's Lavonte Dority hit a tough shot in the lane for a 76-74 lead with 8.3 left.
The Racers led for much of the first half after they started with a 15-10 lead on Terron Gilmore's rebound and score at the 10:30 mark. MSU again led by five (25-20) with 4:45 remaining on a three by Dexter Fields. But Valpo ended the half on an 18-6 run to lead the Racers 38-31.
MSU lost the rebounding stat 44-35 but won the board battle 19-17 in the second half.
MSU shot 35 percent for the game from the field, while VU managed 43 percent. MSU was 5-of-18 from three-point range compared to VU's 3-of-13.
The Racers missed some key free throws down the stretch and were 27-of-39 for 69 percent. VU hit 26-of-38 for 68 percent.
Fields and Rambo added 12 points each to the MSU attack with Jarvis Williams tossing in 11 points.
WYOMING 78, UT MARTIN 60
LARAMIE, Wyo. - The University of Tennessee at Martin men’s basketball team battled against Wyoming this evening but fell 78-60 to the Cowboys at the Arena-Auditorium in the 2013-14 season opener.
Sophomore Dee Oldham paced UT Martin with a career-best 15 points in 27 minutes off the bench tonight. The Lebanon, Tenn. native buried five of his nine shot attempts – including a career-high three trifectas – to go along with three rebounds for the Skyhawks.
Newcomer Marshun Newell scored 12 of his 14 points in the second half while adding four rebounds, two assists and two steals this evening. Terence Smith accounted for 10 points for UT Martin, who committed only seven turnovers tonight.
Riley Grabau led Wyoming with 17 points while Larry Nance, Jr. compiled 10 points and 12 rebounds. Charles Hankerson, Jr. and Trey Washington III each had 14 points off the bench for the Cowboys, who were nationally ranked last season for the first time since 1991.
The Skyhawks took their first lead on a layup by Newell at the 18:53 mark. Wyoming would go ahead 17-6 but Oldham would soon provide a big lift off the bench. The 6-4 shooting guard accounted for 11 straight points – canning back-to-back three-pointers to ignite a 14-2 run that provided a 20-19 UT Martin advantage with 11:04 to go in the first half.
Wyoming would lead by five points (30-25) until Smith scored five points in a 7-0 Skyhawk run to take a 32-30 lead with 4:27 to play before the halftime break.
However, the Cowboys would close out the first half on a 15-1 run to take a 45-33 lead into the half.
Oldham’s 12 points in 12 minutes paced the Skyhawks in the first half, as UT Martin shot 46.4 percent (13-for-28) in the first 20 minutes – including a 5-for-10 effort from beyond the three-point arc. Grabau’s 14 points led Wyoming in the first half.
Newell was responsible for the Skyhawks’ first six points of the second half. An Oldham trey at the 13:42 mark sliced UT Martin’s lead to 53-42 while a layup by Justin Childs kept the margin at 11 with just under 11 minutes remaining.
Newell went on another run later in the second half, scoring five consecutive points for the Skyhawks to keep UT Martin in the game.
The Cowboys would lead by 18 points with a little over four minutes to go and UT Martin would not get within 15 points the rest of the way.
HAWAII 85, TENNESSEE STATE 55
HONOLULU - The Tennessee State men’s basketball team dropped its season-opening game at the University of Hawai’i, 85-55, on Friday night in the first day of the 49th Outrigger Hotels Rainbow Classic.
Senior guard Patrick Miller paced the Tigers with 15 points (6-of-14), 13 of which came in the second half.
Junior M.J. Rhett also had a good game, recording a double-double with 11 points on 3-of-8 shooting and 12 rebounds.
The game started as one of runs, as the Warriors opened to a 7-0 advantage thanks to a pair of TSU turnovers. The Tigers countered with a seven-point stretch of their own, capped off by a rim-rocking one-handed dunk by Miller. The slam tied the game at the 15:48 mark – the last time that the teams would be even.
Hawai’i scored nine straight before Rhett got TSU back on the scoreboard with a pair of freebies with just over 12 minutes to play in the half.
Rhett’s makes did little to slow down the ‘Bows as they continued their charge and even led by as many as 23 in the first half when Davis Rozitis finished from in close with just 39 seconds left to play in the opening period.
Gerald Williams gave TSU some amount of momentum heading into the locker room as the redshirt sophomore guard drove into the lane and scored, two seconds before halftime. The hoop made the first half score 41-20 with the home team on top.
The Tigers’ 20 points were the lowest for the team in any half since last year’s 18 points during the second half of a, 68-38, loss to Missouri on Dec. 8.
Rhett led the Tigers with seven points and eight rebounds during the first 20 minutes, but TSU shot just 29 percent (8-of-28) from the floor and was outrebounded 24 to 17.
Williams hit TSU’s first shot of the second stanza at 16:04 mark, but the Tigers trailed by 30 before the make and never could get back within 20.
Tennessee State did have a stretch where the team hit five straight shots, including two from Miller, but the hot streak only made the score 77-53 with five minutes to go in the game.
The Warriors ended the contest on an 8-2 run and walked away with a 30-point victory.
TSU was much better at shooting in the second half (44.8 percent), but the Tigers ended up with 14 turnovers and were outrebounded 47 to 28 in the game.