SATURDAY'S SCORES
Jacksonville State 72, Coppin State 61 (Tortola, British Virgin Islands)
@#19 Kentucky 93,
Belmont 80
@IPFW 86,
Eastern Illinois 65
@Western Kentucky 71,
Murray State 64
@East Tennessee State 84,
Austin Peay 79
Southeastern Louisiana 80,
@UT Martin 76
Miami (Ohio) 79,
@Tennessee State 64
@#14 Memphis 77,
Southeast Missouri 65
JACKSONVILLE STATE 72, COPPIN STATE 61
TORTOLA, BVI - Darion Rackley scored a game-high 20 points and the Jacksonville State men's basketball team pulled away from Coppin State for a 72-61 win in Saturday's consolation game of the B.V.I. Tropical Shootout.
After the Eagles (4-7) led most of the first half and early in the second, the Gamecocks (6-9) used an 8-0 run that gave them the lead for good. Rackley scored 18 of his points in the second half and teamed with fellow junior Avery Moore to guide JSU to a win in its final non-conference game of the year.
Moore went 4-for-7 from behind the arc and scored 10 points in the second half, while Rackley went 6-for-13 from the floor and made all seven of his free throw attempts.
Junior Jamal Hunter led the Gamecocks inside, grabbing nine boards in a game that saw both teams pull down 34 rebounds. He had six off of the offensive glass to go along with nine points. Junior D.J. Felder added six points and seven rebounds in just 13 minutes off of the bench because of foul trouble.
Junior Grant White dished four assists, while senior Brian Williams had five.
The Eagles got 13 points from three players. Arnold Fripp, Michael Murray and Taariq Cephas each scored a baker's dozen in the loss.
The Eagles struck early, scoring the game's first seven points and building as much as 13-3 lead in the first six minutes. Fripp made the game's first two buckets with a pair of 3-pointers to help his team's early spurt.
JSU started clawing back and eventually tied it at 22-22 on an Avery Moore triple with 5:18 left in the half. The Eagles answered with four-straight from the charity stripe to make it a 26-22 game, but the Gamecocks answered with a Williams 3-pointer and an Jamal Hunter putback to take their first lead of the night at 27-26 with just under two minutes on the clock.
CSU's Michael Murray capped the half with an old-fashioned 3-point play that regained the lead for the Eagles, 29-27 at the half.
Moore led JSU with six first-half points, thanks to a pair of treys, while Fripp's eight led the Eagles in the first 20 minutes.
Neither team led by more than three in the second half until the Gamecocks went on an 8-0 run that turned a 38-38 tie into a 46-38 advantage with 10:49 on the clock. After a CSU three from Sterling Smith stopped the run and cut it to a five-point game, JSU would never let the Eagles get any closer.
The Gamecocks led by as many as 12 and were 9-for-18 from the floor, 3-for-5 from behind the arc and 5-for-6 from the free throw line in the final 10 minutes to hold off any comeback attempt Coppin State may have.
#19 KENTUCKY 93, BELMONT 80
LEXINGTON, Ky. - Belmont University men's basketball gave another traditional power everything it wanted, before falling, 93-80, at [19/21] Kentucky Saturday afternoon.
Five weeks separated from its memorable victory at nationally-ranked North Carolina, the Bruins once again played with their signature toughness and offensive execution.
Belmont had victories at two current SEC members (Missouri, Alabama), and despite nagging injuries to four of its top six players, the Bruins entered Rupp Arena poised and determined.
Hot early shooting from senior Drew Windler sparked Belmont to lead. Coupled with eight points off the bench from freshman Caleb Chowbay, and Belmont led the eight-time National Champions by as many as 11 points midway through the first half.
Belmont welcomed back starting point guard Reece Chamberlain, who had missed the previous four games with a foot injury. Chamberlain's leadership and defensive intensity provided a nice lift.
In addition to efficient offense - the Bruins commited just three first half turnovers - Belmont more than held its own of the backboards in the opening 20 minutes.
After baskets from sophomore Craig Bradshaw and senior J.J. Mann gave Belmont a 41-32 lead, the Wildcats scored nine unanswered points. Two Windler free throws sent the Bruins to the locker room up two, 43-41.
Even though Belmont won at nationally-ranked North Carolina Nov. 17, Kentucky entered having dropped only two home games - Baylor and Texas A&M - over the last five years - so the halftime score opened some eyes.
Belmont maintained the lead into the second half before an Aaron Harrison layin put Kentucky up 50-48 with 15:29 left.
Bruin fouls quickly accumulated as well against the formidable Kentucky frontline, as the Wildcats found themselves in the bonus with 12:16 remaining.
Strong play from Bradshaw and freshman Evan Bradds kept Belmont well-positioned, but Kentucky rode strong interior play of Julius Randle to a working margin.
Seven straight points from Aaron Harrison pushed Kentucky to a 66-57 lead with 9:17 left.
Undeterred, Belmont kept within a two-three possession game, but three consecutive Bruin defensive deflections bounced right to Wildcat hands for scramble play scores.
Two Bradds free throws made it 70-65 with 7:13 left, before a conventional three-point play from Randle and an Andrew Harrison layin pushed the margin back to 10.
Kentucky went 26-for-36 from the free throw line.
Though the Wildcats had held seven of their previous 11 opponents to under 40 percent shooting, Belmont shot 47 percent (30-for-64) from the field - including 11-for-30 from three-point distance.
Bradshaw continued his fine play, leading three Bruins in double figures with 22 points. Windler added 21, while Bradds scored 12. Randle led Kentucky (9-3) with 29 points.
IPFW 86, EASTERN ILLINOIS 65
FORT WAYNE, Ind. - IPFW had four players score in double figures and drained 13 three pointers to defeat the Panther men’s basketball team, 86-65, on Saturday afternoon at the Gates Sports Center. EIU drops to 3-8 on the year.
The Mastodons (10-4) went 10-for-15 from behind the arc in the first half to build a 54-39 advantage at halftime. IPFW finished the contest going 13-for-23 from three-point range as six different players made a three pointer. All told, the Mastodons hit 62.5 percent of their field-goal attempts in the first half (20-for-32) and finished the contest going 29-for-53 from the floor.
IPFW had its first double-figure lead, 21-11, at the 13:26 mark in the first half before EIU went on a 13-10 run to get within seven (31-24) with just over eight minutes left on the clock. IPFW responded by scoring five unanswered points to regain a double figure advantage they would never relinquish.
The Mastodons started the second half on an 11-2 run to take a 65-41 advantage with 16:42 left in the contest. IPFW led by as many as 25 points in the second half.
Four Panthers scored in double figures led by Alex Austin’s 16 points. The sophomore guard went 5-for-11 from the floor and 3-for-3 from the foul line. Sherman Blanford added 12 points while Chris Olivier and Reggie Smith added 11 and 10 points, respectively. Dennis Green chipped in five points and team-high four assists.
EIU hit 40.2 percent of its shot attempts (25-for-62) in the loss and went 9-for-11 from foul line. IPFW went 15-for-24 from the charity stripe.
IPFW held a 37-30 advantage on the glass as Steve Forbes, Mo Evans and Luis Jacobo all had six rebounds to lead the Mastodons. Blanford and Josh Piper both had five rebounds to lead the Panthers on the glass.
Forbes led IPFW with a game-high 20 points as the junior forward went 6-for-8 from the floor and 8-for-8 from the foul line. Jacobo added 18 points and Isaiah McCray chipped in 15 points and four assists.
WESTERN KENTUCKY 71, MURRAY STATE 64
BOWLING GREEN, Ky. - The Murray State Racers battled the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers for the 151st time and led much of the game before losing a 71-64 decision Saturday at Diddle Arena in Bowling Green, Ky.
The Racers jumped out to a 20-8 lead less than nine minutes into the game and led by as many as 14 points before they took a 33-28 lead into half. Leading by eight (42-34) with 15:42 remaining, the Racers couldn't hold off the home standing Hilltoppers (7-4) and were outscored 37-22 the rest of the way to enter the Christmas break 5-6. The loss snapped the Racers' three-game win streak.
T.J. Sapp, playing in only his second game as a transfer from Clemson, led MSU with a game-high 25 points on 8-of-14 shooting including 5-of-7 from 3-point range and 4-of-4 from the free throw line. It was Sapp's back-to-back threes in the first half that helped the Racers to a good start.
Jarvis Williams scored a career-high at MSU with 24 points on 9-of-11 from the field and was the only other Racer in double-figure scoring along with Sapp.
Dexter Fields led the Racers on the boards and his eight rebounds, one off his career high. The senior scored eight points and had four assists.
The Racers led until the 10:35 mark when WKU's T.J. Price hit a 3-pointer. MSU answered when Cameron Payne scored his first field goal of the game at the 8:42 mark for what would be MSU's final lead of the day at 49-48. The Racers cut the WKU lead to one point on a pair of free throws from Williams with 6:06 left, but could never retake the lead.
MSU held the edge in several categories including shooting 49 percent for the game on 24-of-49 from the field. MSU held WKU to 40 percent on 26-of-65. But MSU lost its lead in rebounding as WKU had a 39-30 edge at the end. MSU managed only 55 percent from the free throw line (10-of-18) while the Hilltoppers shot 76 percent (13-of-17).
EAST TENNESSEE STATE 84, AUSTIN PEAY 79
JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. - East Tennessee finished the game on a 14-2 run to rally past Austin Peay State University, 84-79, Saturday afternoon in a non-conference basketball game played at the ETSU/MSHA Athletic Center.
The loss was the third straight for the Governors, who fell to 5-8 on the season. East Tennessee, meanwhile, swept the two-game season series with the Govs while improving to 6-6, winning those six games in its last eight contests.
Sophomore guard Corey Arentsen nailed a right-wing three pointer with 5:06 left to give APSU a 77-70 lead, It would not only be the Govs last bucket but as well the final points until Chris Horton stuffed one in at the buzzer.
Until the Horton basket, the Govs missed nine straight shots in the final 4:17 while ETSU attacked a tiring Govs defense at the rim. A.J. Merriweather got it started by rebounding a Buc miss and sticking it back in. Then Rashawn Rembert scored on a conventional three-point play after driving to the basket.
Jalen Riley then hit a pair of free throws with 2:12 left that tied the game at 77 before driving and dishing to Kinard Gadsen-Gilliard for a layup with 1:31 left to give back East Tennessee the lead it relinquished with 7:10 left in the first half.
In fact, ETSU got off to a 12-0 lead before a resilient Govs team rallied to tie the game at 16. After a short East Tennessee surge, the Govs, led by sophomore guard Cory Arentsen closed the half on a 30-14 spurt to own a 50-37 lead at intermission. Arentsen, who had struggled during the season’s first half, knocked down all six first-half three pointers attempted to provide the boost APSU was seeking.
But the Govs season-long problem—turnovers—again came back to haunted them. The Govs committed 20 turnovers, the second straight game with at least that number.
Still leading by 11, 64-53, with 12 minutes left, APSU committed two straight backcourt turnovers that led to a pair of ETSU three pointers. Cutting their deficit to five points in a matter of one minute was all the Bucs needed to continue their comeback.
A conventional three-point play by Horton and later a Horton layup temporarily stemmed the onslaught. But the Govs could not find any answers downed the stretch after the Arentsen three pointer.
Arentsen finished the night with a career-high 21 points, going 7-of-10 from three-point range. Horton led all scorers with 23 points, matching his career high. A third sophomore, Serigne Mboup, ended with a career-best 10 points. Excluding Horton, reserves Arentsen and Mboup combined to outscore the remaining Govs.
Rembert led ETSU with 21 points while Merriweather added 16.
The Govs finished the night shooting 49;2 percent from the floor, but only 11 of 32 (34.4 peercent) in the final half. The Govs also held a 38-30 rebound advantage, but were outrebounded 22-18 in the final half.
SOUTHEASTERN LOUISIANA 80, UT MARTIN 76
MARTIN, Tenn. - Junior forward Myles Taylor chalked up a career-high 34 points to go along with 11 rebounds for the University of Tennessee at Martin men’s basketball team tonight, but the Skyhawks let a late lead slip away in an 80-76 loss to Southeastern Louisiana at the Kathleen and Tom Elam Center.
Taylor’s offensive effort eclipsed his previous career-high of 31 points at Kennesaw State on Feb. 14, 2012. In addition to his scoring output, he also tied a career-high with 11 field goals made in 22 attempts while knocking down 12 of his 14 free throw attempts. His double-double was the second of his season and 12th in the career of the Little Rock, Ark. native.
Terence Smith scored 12 points and tied a career-high with seven assists to go along with three steals for the Skyhawks (5-10). Justin Childs sank five of his six shots on his way to 12 points off the bench for UT Martin, who led 74-69 with 4:30 to go before Southeastern Louisiana ended the contest on an 11-2 run.
Southeastern Louisiana (4-6) was led by Onochie Ochie’s 18 points off the bench. Antonnio Benton (12 points, 11 rebounds) and Joshua Filmore (12 points) also cracked double-figures in the scoring column for the Lions.
In a game that featured 10 ties and 15 lead changes, the Skyhawks committed only five turnovers but two occurred in the final 2:40 when it was a one-possession game.
A pair of Taylor free throws at the 19:13 mark led to the first points of the game on either side. Southeastern Louisiana led by six points (14-8) with just under 14 minutes to play in the first half but Childs created a spark with back-to-back layups to get the Skyhawks within two points at 16-14 at the 11:59 mark.
The Lions then scored five unanswered points to go back ahead by seven points. Southeastern Louisiana led 30-21 with 7:33 left to play in the first half before the Skyhawks used a 12-3 run to even the score at 33-all when Liabo canned a jumper in the paint at the 3:44 mark.
The two squads would swap buckets in the final stretch of the first half until an old-fashioned three-point play by Taylor with four seconds remaining provided UT Martin with a 45-44 advantage it would take into the halftime break.
Taylor’s 22 points more than doubled any other scorer at the half, while Ochie accounted for 10 points to lead Southeastern Louisiana in the first 20 minutes.
Southeastern Louisiana took an early lead to start the second half but UT Martin quickly reclaimed the advantage on a Taylor jumper with 18:03 left to play. Eight lead changes and three ties would follow over the next 3:37 until a three-pointer by Childs made the score 57-55 in the Skyhawks’ favor with 14:26 remaining.
UT Martin would then hold the lead for nearly seven minutes until the Lions took a 67-66 lead at the 7:28 mark. Taylor came right back to sink two free throw opportunities on the Skyhawks’ next possession to give UT Martin a lead it would hold on to for the next 4:44.
The Lions tied the game at 74-74 with a free throw at the 2:24 mark and Southeastern Louisiana converted four straight free throws before Marshun Newell made a layup with five seconds to go to slice the Skyhawk deficit to two points at 78-76.
Southeastern Louisiana would miss the front end of a one-and-one free throw situation but the Skyhawks could not come down with the ball cleanly and Benton made it a two-possession game with a layup with one second left.
MIAMI (OHIO) 79, TENNESSEE STATE 64
NASHVILLE - Freshman Jamonte Graham finished with a season high 12 points including 9 in the second half in a 79-64 loss to Miami (Ohio).
Senior Patrick Miller scored 15 points in the first half and finished with 26 in the game for his 24th straight double figure game to lead TSU. Miller added six assists and five boards on the night to pace a well-rounded effort for the point gaurd.
The Chicago native was joined in double figures by junior Kennedy Eubanks (11) and Graham’s 12 points. It marked the fifth time the Tigers have finished with three players in double figures. Eubanks nearly finished with his first career double double pairing nine boards with 11 points.
Miller opened up the scoring for Tennessee State (1-12) in the opening frame, hitting an inside jumper at 19:42 in the first. Miller proceed to score six out of the Tigers next eight points, as the home team raced out to a 10-6 lead.
By the first media timeout both teams were shooting 75 percent from the floor with Tennessee State holding a narrow 13-10 advantage. A 9-0 run propelled Miami (3-6) to their first lead, which extended out to 17-13. Big Blue returned the favor with an 8-0 push of their own, to reclaim the lead, 21-17. During the spurt junior Jay Harris tallied five points and senior Jacquan Nobles nailed a 3-pointer to regain the lead for the Tigers.
The RedHawks retook control of the game with a 7-0 run to take a 29-24 lead before a Miller and-1 trimmed the lead back down to two points. Both clubs traded baskets to close out the opening frame with the visitors on top 37-32.
Miller led all scorers at the break with 15 points. The senior point guard went 6-for-9 from the field and dished out two assists for TSU. Junior forward Kennedy Eubanks added six points going a perfect 3-for-3 on his field goal attempts, with a team high four rebounds.
Neither team was able to convert a field goal in the early moments of the second, junior forward M.J. Rhett’s jumper broke the cold spell with a layup at 17:21. The RedHawks then ripped off the next six points of the game in a 1:16 of game time to extend the lead out to 43-35. The RedHawks lead extended out 11 at 51-40 after a Jaryd Eustace layup.
TSU wouldn’t go away, as freshman guard Jamonte Graham connected on the Tigers next six points to keep his team within striking distance. Graham’s three with 11:46 on the clock cut the Redhawks lead to eight, 54-46. The triple marked Graham’s ninth point of the second half and 12th point of the game. Coming into the contest the Nashville native’s season high for an entire game was nine points at USC Upstate. Miami lead ballooned back out to 13, 61-48, after another Eustace layup.
Both teams kept pace with each other, with the RedHawks maintaining a double digit advantage. Miami closed out the game, 79-64, to improve to 3-6 on the year and drop Tennessee State to 1-12.
#14 MEMPHIS 77, SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 65
MEMPHIS, Tenn. - Tyler Stone had a double-double 23 points and 11 rebounds, as Southeast Missouri (7-4) fell to No. 14 Memphis (8-2), 77-65, Saturday night in front of a crowd of 15,021 at FedExForum.
A native of Memphis, Stone returned to his hometown and shot 10-of-18 from the field en route to his game-high. The double-double marked his team-high third of the season.
Southeast hung tough with the Tigers and was still within seven points with under eight minutes left before Memphis pulled away for good. The Redhawks matched a season-high 19 turnovers which led to 24 Memphis points.
Southeast started strong, making five of its first eight field goals in the opening 8:11. Freshman Antonius Cleveland gave the Redhawks their first lead (12-10) on a layup with just under 15 minutes left in the first half.
After Stone's layup pulled Southeast to within a point (22-21) with 6:39 left, Memphis went on an 8-0 run over the next 1:35. Joe Jackson followed a Nick King layup by scoring six-consecutive points and capped the surge with two free throws, giving the Tigers a 30-21 advantage with 5:04 remaining.
Stone quickly responded with back-to-back baskets, including a three-pointer from the top of the arc to close the gap to 30-26. He then threw down a dunk to make it a four-point game again before Memphis put together a 6-0 run in the last 1:53 to take a 38-30 halftime lead.
Stone also dished out one assist, collected two steals and had a block in 39 minutes. Fellow Memphis natives Jarekious Bradley and Cleveland also scored double figures for the Redhawks. Bradley followed with 19, while Cleveland added 14, including 11 during Southeast's second-half push.
Southeast outrebounded Memphis, 39-31, and had 15 offensive boards.
Shaq Goodwin led the Tigers with 20 points and eight rebounds. Goodwin shot 10-of-12 from the field. Jackson and Geron Johnson chipped in 16 and 10 points, respectively.
Memphis shot 50 percent (31-of-62) on the night. The Tigers, however, struggled from three-point range, sinking just 2-of-17 (11.8 percent) shots.
Southeast dropped to 0-11 all-time against nationally-ranked teams.