SATURDAY'S SCORES
@Central Michigan 94,
SIUE 61
Oakland 70,
@Morehead State 68 (OT)
@Alabama State 80,
Jacksonville State 55
@Lipscomb 77,
Tennessee State 68
UT Martin 77, @Longwood 67
@Murray State 93, Western Kentucky 81
@Southeast Missouri 63, Southeastern Louisiana 59
@Southern Illinois 71,
Austin Peay 49
CENTRAL MICHIGAN 94, SIUE 61
MT. PLEASANT, Mich. - SIUE senior Kris Davis scored a game-high 21 point Saturday to surpass 1,000 points in his career, but it came in a losing effort. Central Michigan defeated the visiting Cougars 94-61 in nonconference basketball at McGuirk Arena.
Central Michigan, which came into the game averaging more than 10 three-point baskets a game, connected on a school-record 20 en route to the victory Saturday. The Chippewas were 20 for 35 overall and 14 for 23 in the first half alone.
Central Michigan improved to 6-1 with the win, while SIUE fell to 1-5. The Cougars have dropped five straight games.
In a sign of things to come, the Chippewas hit their first four three-pointers and seven of their first eight attempts in the game. Central Michigan led 54-26 at half time.
Davis' milestone basket came with 8:08 remaining in the game. Davis drove down the left of the lane and converted on a left-handed finger roll which gave him 17 point for the game and 1,000 for his career. Davis is the 15th player to reach the 1,000-point plateau at SIUE.
Making the moment more special for the senior is that it came in front of a large contingent of family and friends, who made the trip from Detroit to see Davis play.
Davis finished 8 of 14 from the field. He was 2 of 3 from three-point range. He was the only player to score in double figures for SIUE. Fellow senior Michael Messer scored seven points on a pair of three-pointers and a free throw.
Braylon Rayson led four Central Michigan players in double figures. He scored 19 points and was 4 for 5 from three-point range. Josh Kozinski also was 4 for 5 from long range and scored all 12 of his points from beyond the arc.
OAKLAND 70, MOREHEAD STATE 68 (OT)
MOREHEAD, Ky. - Junior Corey Petros tallied game highs of 25 points and 10 rebounds, including a game-winning jumper with 1.6 seconds remaining in overtime, to lift the Oakland men's basketball team to a 70-68 over Morehead State on Saturday afternoon at Johnson Arena.
The Golden Grizzlies, who compete in the Horizon League and have now won four of their last five games, improve to 4-5 overall and 1-2 on the road. The Eagles, who play in the Ohio Valley Conference, slip to 4-7 overall and 2-2 at home with their third consecutive setback.
Oakland has needed overtime to win both games in the all-time series. The Golden Grizzlies registered an 82-79 triumph in extra time two seasons ago as part of the Ramada Worldwide BracketBusters event. Saturday's contest was the return game from that defunct event.
Petros, a Preseason First-Team All-Horizon League selection, knocked down 10-of-16 from the field. He netted 12 points in the second half and four more in overtime. His point and rebounding totals both matched season highs. The scoring clip was also three shy of his career best.
Sophomore Kahlil Felder added 13 points and seven assists for the Golden Grizzlies, while freshman Nick Daniels contributed 10 points. Oakland, which managed scoring advantages of 40-24 in the paint and 16-10 off the bench, converted on 50 percent (26-of-52) from the field.
Morehead State was limited to 31 percent (9-of-29) from the floor in the opening half, but finished at 42 percent (26-of-62) for the game. Junior Lyonell Gaines registered team highs of 18 points, on 8-of-13 from the floor, and 10 rebounds. It was his first double-double as an Eagle.
Five Morehead State players notched double figures in scoring. Senior Angelo Warner tossed in 15, to go along with five steals, while senior Kareem Storey posted 12. Senior Billy Reader contributed 11 points and seven rebounds, while sophomore Corban Collins finished with 10 points.
Oakland used a 17-2 spurt in the first half to open up an 18-point advantage shortly before halftime. MSU responded with a pair of 11-2 runs to grab the lead with 2:22 left in regulation. Petros put the Golden Grizzlies ahead by three with 38 seconds to play, but Collins evened things nine seconds later.
Oakland led for nearly 36 minutes, while Morehead State held the upper hand for less than five. The game had three ties and seven lead changes. The Eagles committed 16 turnovers, while the Golden Grizzlies gave away 13 possessions. MSU was +5 in both total rebounds and offensive boards.
ALABAMA STATE 80, JACKSONVILLE STATE 55
MONTGOMERY, Ala. - Junior Jeremy Watson scored 28 points and tied Jacksonville State's Division I record for rebounds in a game with 18, but the Gamecocks had their winning streak snapped in an 80-55 loss at Alabama State on Saturday.
Watson became the fifth JSU player to record 18 rebounds in a game and the first since Nick Murphy did it for the second time on Dec. 9, 2009, but it wasn't enough for his Gamecocks (5-4). The Hornets (3-3) shot over 50 percent from the floor and had five players in double figures to put an end to JSU's five-game winning streak.
A Birmingham native, Watson went 10-for-16 from the floor and 8-for-13 from the free throw line to account for his 28 points, 13 more than his previous high. His 18 boards were split with nine on the offensive glass and nine on defense, giving him six-straight games with at least eight rebounds. In that six-game run that has seen his team go 5-1, the 6-foot-7 forward is averaging 14.7 points and 11.5 rebounds per game.
The rest of the Gamecocks roster struggled from the field, shooting just under 31 percent as a team and an 8-for-43 clip excluding Watson's big night. Senior Jamal Hunter and freshman Deitrich Cole each recorded five rebounds in the loss.
ASU got 16 points from Maurice Strong and 13 from DeMarcus Robinson, while Brandon Graham, Jamel Waters and Bobby Brown each added 11 points. Brown, Waters and Luther Page each had eight of the Hornets' 47 rebounds.
ASU scored first and then answered a D.J. Felder jumper with six-straight points to take the lead for good. The Hornets led 41-25 at the half.
LIPSCOMB 77, TENNESSEE STATE 68
NASHVILLE - The Tennessee State University men’s basketball team fell to Lipscomb University on Saturday evening at Allen Arena 77-68.
The Tigers (2-7) improved their shooting, but were unable to hold the Bisons (3-5) offense for 40 minutes as they pulled away through the final three minutes of the game. TSU falls to 1-3 all-time against their cross-town foe.
Marcus Roper’s 21 points (7-for-14 FG, 4-for-9 3FG) led the Tigers as he recorded his second 20-plus point game of the season.
Malcolm Smith paced the Bisons with a game-high 22 points on 8-of-11 shooting.
The first half was a close battle that saw the Bisons take a five-point lead in to the locker room. The Tigers shot 39 percent from the floor and went 4-for-11 from beyond the arc. They also made all but one free throw attempt (5-for-6) through the first 20.
A trey from Charles Tucker put TSU on top 14-13 with 8:12 left to go in the half with a point-for-point battle ensuing. The Tigers held a lead with as little as 3:19 left in the half, but the Bisons used a 13-5 run to mold its halftime advantage.
An 11-3 Tiger run for the first 2:26 of the second half gave them a 42-39 lead. TSU held the advantage until the 9:11 mark when Nathan Moran hit a trey to put Lipscomb up 58-56.
Attempting to dowse a 9-2 run, head coach Dana Ford called timeout with 7:50 left to go. From there the Bisons held off the Tigers while shooting 4-for-6 from the floor and 6-for-8 from the foul line.
Two other Tigers, Demontez Loman (11) and Tucker (10), scored in double digits for the evening.
Despite snapping a five-game streak of scoring less than 60 points the Tigers dropped their sixth-straight game.
UT MARTIN 77, LONGWOOD 67
FARMVILLE, Va. - The University of Tennessee at Martin men’s basketball team passed another road test with flying colors this evening with a 77-67 triumph over Big South Conference member Longwood at Willett Hall.
The road victory – which was the fourth of the young season – ties UMass-Lowell for the most road wins in Division-I basketball. Overall, the Skyhawks improved their record to 5-2, which marks the best seven-game start to a season since 2005-06.
UT Martin led by as many as 15 points in the second half but Longwood made a late run to get within seven points with 8:15 to go. Sophomore forward Javier Martinez then played big down the stretch, scoring eight of the Skyhawks’ 10 points during a span of 3:33 to help UT Martin stretch its lead back out to 15 points with four minutes remaining.
Martinez, who entered the game with a total of 10 points in 41 minutes played in five games this season, tallied 10 points and four huge rebounds in 11 minutes of play.
Joining Martinez in double-figures was Deville Smith and Twymond Howard, who each poured in 16 points for UT Martin. Marshun Newell added 10 points for the Skyhawks, who torched the nets for a 57.1 percent (24-for-42) shooting night.
Longwood (3-6) was led by a game-high 26 points out of Quincy Taylor. Shaquille Johnson and Lotanna Nwogbo added 11 points apiece for the Lancers.
An Alex Anderson trifecta at the 18:38 mark began the scoring for both sides but Longwood then claimed a brief lead with five straight points. The score was knotted at 10-all before UT Martin went on a 10-2 run over a stretch of 6:51 to surge ahead by a 20-12 margin with seven minutes remaining in the first half.
Howard then got hot, scoring eight of UT Martin’s 10 points over a 2:22 span which resulted in a 28-17 Skyhawk lead with just under five minutes to go before the halftime break. An Arkeem Joseph layup with 2:21 concluded the scoring in the first half and provided UT Martin with a 35-22 halftime lead.
Howard’s 10 points led the Skyhawks in the first half while Myles Taylor tallied eight points and a game-high three assists in the opening half. Taylor’s 12 points guided Longwood, who shot just 28 percent (7-for-25) while UT Martin shot at a 55 percent clip (11-for-20) in the first half.
UT Martin displayed its versatility to begin the second half, as five different Skyhawks accounted for the first five baskets to help give UT Martin a 14-point advantage with 10:28 to go in the game.
Longwood then went on an extended run, outscoring the Skyhawks 7-0 over the next 2:13 to slice UT Martin’s lead to 53-46 with 8:15 remaining. Martinez then played the role of hero, sustaining the Lancers’ run with his torrid offensive stretch.
Longwood hit a couple of late three-pointers but would not get any closer than eight points with a minute remaining. Smith immediately answered with a fast break layup and the Skyhawks sank seven of their final eight attempts from the charity stripe to seal the win.
MURRAY STATE 93, WESTERN KENTUCKY 81
MURRAY, Ky. - The Murray State Racers defeated the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers 93-81 in Murray, Ky., Saturday, behind a pair of 24-point performances from Jarvis Williams Cameron Payne.
In winning the 152nd meeting with WKU, the Racers (5-4) have won 4-of-5 in the long-running series and four straight at the CFSB Center.
The Racers won for the third straight time at home and led from wire-to-wire.
Williams recorded his fourth double-double this season and the 18th of his 43-game MSU career and added 12 rebounds to his 24 points. Payne added seven assists to his 24 points, while T.J. Sapp had a season-high 18 points on 4-of-4 shooting from 3-point range. Justin Seymour came off the bench to provide 10 points and five assists.
The first half was highlighted by a 16-0 run for the Racers over a period of 3:05 that included forcing WKU (3-4) into six turnovers. The Racers got a trio of 3-point baskets to fall in the run from Sapp, Payne and Seymour and held a 20-6 lead at the 11:25 mark.
The half ended with the Racers getting their eighth 3-pointer of the half from Jeffery Moss to grab a 49-32 lead.
WKU dug in and made a run on the Racers in the second half and got as close as 74-70 with 6:58 remaining, but MSU hit some big shots to seal the win. Start with a Payne 3-pointer off a WKU turnover at the 5:07 mark. Sapp hit a pair of threes with the second at the 3:40 mark to push MSU in front 81-71. Payne hit Williams with a perfect alley-oop lob with 1:23 left to put a cap on it.
MSU ended the game with their best shooting performance of the season hitting 56 percent from the field on 34-of-60 shots, while they were equally hot from long range hitting 11-of-20 for 55 percent.
MSU shared the ball in a big way and had 22 assists on their 34 field goals.
SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 63, SOUTHEASTERN LOUISIANA 59
CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. - Jarekious Bradley scored a game-high 21 points and Southeast Missouri (4-4) hung on for a 63-59 win over Southeastern Louisiana (2-7) Saturday night at the Show Me Center.
Southeast improved to 3-0 at home this season and remained unbeaten at 6-0 in its all-time series against SLU.
The Redhawks shot just 38.1 percent (24-of-63), but used sound defense and a dominating effort on the boards to grind out the win.
Southeast had a season-high 50 rebounds and held a +22 advantage (50-28) on the boards. The Redhawks man-handled the Lions on the offensive glass, where they grabbed 20 of their rebounds.
The Redhawks, who never trailed in the game, got a scare in the last 1:43. Former Murray State guard and SLU leading scorer Zay Jackson made a layup to cut Southeast's lead to 61-59. From that point on, it was a two-point game until Bradley sunk a pair of free throws with a second left to seal the win. Joshua Filmore's off-balance three-pointer from the top of the key came off the rim with 41 seconds left before Bradley missed a free throw 15 ticks later. Jackson then missed a jumper with six seconds after Southeast turned the ball over.
Antonius Cleveland's missed free throw was rebounded by Aaron Adeoye with four seconds. Adeoye's rebound led to Bradley getting to the line in the final seconds.
Southeast was able to fight off the Lions despite being outscored, 35-27, and shooting 16.7 percent (2-of-12) from three-point range in the second half. SLU had its share of struggles against Southeast's disruptive defense.
The Lions missed eight of their first nine field goals of the game and managed to shoot only 28.6 percent (8-of-28) in the game's opening 20 minutes.
Ahead 21-14 with under seven minutes left, the Redhawks strung together a 10-3 run to open a double-digit lead.
Cleveland, who missed his first 12 three-point attempts of the season, knocked down a trey. Nino Johnson then added a basket before Bradley followed with back-to-back jumpers to push Southeast's lead to 31-17 with 3:36 left to play.
Southeast later went into the locker room with a 36-24 advantage, its fifth halftime lead of the season. SLU's 24 points tied for the second-fewest scored in a first half against the Redhawks this year.
Bradley shot 8-of-21 from the field and 4-of-5 at the free throw line en route to his second 20-point performance of the season. He has scored double figures and led the Redhawks in scoring all six of his starts in 2014-15. Additionally, Bradley went over 700 points (711) in his two-year Southeast career.
Cleveland followed with 12 points and J.J. Thompson added 11. Adeyoe finished with a game-high 14 rebounds, as well. Southeast shot a season-high 25 threes on the night.
Daniel Grieves led all SLU scorers with 14 points. Jackson and DeVonte Upson contributed 12 and 10, respectively.
SOUTHERN ILLINOIS 71, AUSTIN PEAY 49
CARBONDALE, Ill. - Austin Peay State University held the nation’s 10th leading scorer, Anthony Beane, to nine points, Saturday night. But that was one of the few things that went right for the Governors against Southern Illinois as the home team rolled to a 71-49 non-conference victory.
It was the fourth straight win for a young SIU club that improved to 5-3 on the season. APSU, playing the final game of a six-game road trek, slips to 2-6 on the season.
In many respects Saturday’s road loss resembled their last defeat, Nov. 28, against Stephen F. Austin. SIU’s pressure on the APSU guards in the frontcourt saw the Governors trying to initiate its offense sometimes three steps across midcourt. The offensive inefficiency led to the Govs shooting 39.1 percent (18 of 46) while committing 18 turnovers. The Governors have been charged with 52 turnovers in the last three contests.
Defensively, the Governors could not stop Southern Illinois guards from getting in the lane and creating easy shots for Jordan Caroline (13 points) and Sean O’Brien (11 points). A team that was averaging 8.5 assists per game entering the contest had 14 against the Governors. The Salukis also shot 48 percent from the floor a game after Stephen F. Austin connected on better than 60 percent against the Governors.
When the Govs did get it inside Chris Horton and Chris Freeman were able to do some damage. Freeman scored 10 first-half points but was held scoreless in the second half. Horton recorded his second straight double-double with a game-high 15 points and 13 rebounds.
APSU led 5-4 with 17:51 left in the first half. That proved to be their last advantage. The Salukis utilized 11-2 and 11-3 runs to build a double-digit 41-26 halftime lead. The Governors never mounted a serious second-half challenge. Loos inserted senior Jeremy Purvis, who missed the season’s first seven games, at point guard to start the second half looking for offensive answers.