WEDNESDAY'S SCORES
Jacksonville State 83, North Florida 78 (Cancun, Mexico)
@UT Martin 92, Western Illinois 90
@Valparaiso 75,
SIUE 70 (OT)
JACKSONVILLE STATE 83, NORTH FLORIDA 78
CANCUN, Mexico - The Jacksonville State men's basketball team turned in a win over North Florida Wednesday afternoon at the Hard Rock Hotel Riviera Maya, outlasting the Ospreys 83-78 to claim the Cancun Challenge Mayan Division Championship.
Senior Jason Burnell had one of the biggest games of his career, scoring a personal-best 23 points and reeling in 10 rebounds en route to his second double-double of the season and a Cancun Challenge All-Tournament nod.
Senior Jamall Gregory was named to the Cancun Challenge's All-Tournament Team and deemed the tournament's Most Valuable Player. The guard scored 16 points and was 5-for-5 from the free-throw line in the tournament's finale, bringing his two-day point total to 31 with eight steals.
Jacksonville State (2-3) led by as many as eight points early, building up its lead with the help of a 16-5 run that saw Ty Hudson score all six of his first-half points in the game's first seven minutes. The Gamecock defense kept North Florida (2-4) out of the paint through the first nine minutes, forcing eight of the Ospreys' 11 shots to be from beyond the arc. North Florida only hit three 3-pointers during the stretch.
UNF turned the tables in the last half of the first period, finding its rhythm from long range. JT Escobar led the attack, going 3-for-3 from beyond the arc, while the rest of the Osprey offense was 3-for-4 from 3-point range in the final 11 minutes of the half. In taking a 42-37 lead to the locker room, 27 of UNF's points scored came on the trey.
Following the break, Jacksonville State came back to the court and answered by scoring 15 of the half's first 19 points to take a 52-46 lead. Burnell was 5-for-10 with a 2-pointer and three free throws for 14 points, and Gregory added 12 points to his four from the first 20 minutes.
Despite some late-game dramatics and fouls that put the lead in jeopardy, 81-78 with three seconds to play, Jacksonville State controlled the score from the 16:17 mark forward.
Along with Burnell and Gregory, Marlon Hunter finished in double-digits with 13 points and Hudson claimed 10. Senior Maurice Dunlap was 4-for-4 from the charity stripe, hitting some big free throws down the line that put the game out of reach.
North Florida's Escobar led the Ospreys in scoring with 24 points. All 24 of his points came off 3-pointers (8-for-14). He had just one attempt within the arc.
UT MARTIN 92, WESTERN ILLINOIS 90
MARTIN, Tenn. - The University of Tennessee at Martin men's basketball team trailed by double-figures with under four minutes to play before a furious comeback attempt resulted in a 92-90 triumph over Western Illinois at the Kathleen and Tom Elam Center.
Literally hours after the NCAA granted him a waiver to play immediately, Preston Parks tossed in all 21 of his points in the final 15:19 of the contest to aid the Skyhawks down the stretch. The Citadel transfer scored 15 points in the last 3:24, including 12 consecutive UT Martin points in a span of 56 seconds to even the score at 90-all. The Skyhawks forced a turnover with 0.8 seconds remaining and Delfincko Bogan toed the charity stripe for two clutch free throws to seal the victory.
Overall, the Skyhawks placed six scorers in double-figures – the first time that has occurred since Jan. 2, 2016. Parks' 21 points included a 6-of-10 shooting effort (3-for-4 from three-point range) and a 6-of-7 performance from the free throw line. Derek Hawthorne, Jr. (15 points), Quintin Dove (14), Bogan (13), Fatodd Lewis (11) and Parrish Hewitt (10) also accounted for double-digits in the points column for UT Martin, who improved to 2-2 overall.
Bogan added a game-high eight assists and Hewitt nabbed a team-best six rebounds for the Skyhawks, who committed just seven turnovers on their way to a 12-point comeback win.
Western Illinois (2-3) was led by Kobe Webster's 21 points, seven assists and six rebounds. The Leathernecks also received double-digit scoring games out of Jeremiah Usiosefe (19 points), CJ Duff (12), Brandon Gilbeck (10 points, game-high eight rebounds) and Zion Young (10) as UT Martin held Western Illinois to 0-for-8 shooting behind the three-point arc over the final 20 minutes.
Despite the fact that the Leathernecks shot 70.4 percent (19-of-27) from the floor in the first half, UT Martin led by as many as 12 points in the opening stanza. The Skyhawks scored the first seven points of the game but Western Illinois wrapped up the half on an 11-3 run to claim a 49-46 advantage at the break. Webster (17) and Hawthorne (12) ranked as the leading scorers on their respective sides.
The Leathernecks kept their lead until the final 15 seconds of the game. UT Martin trailed by a 76-64 margin with 7:19 left to play before Parks went off for his scoring spree. His pull-up trifecta from 23-feet out found the bottom of the net to even the score at 90-all with 15 seconds to play before Bogan's steal and free throws with under a second to play capped off the triumph.
VALPARAISO 75, SIUE 70 (OT)
VALPARAISO, Ind. - Valparaiso outlasted SIUE men's basketball Wednesday, defeating the Cougars 75-70 in overtime at the Athletics-Recreation Center.
The Cougars dropped to 0-3. Valparaiso improved to 3-2.
The Cougars were led by junior transfer Tyresse Williford and true freshman Cameron Williams, who both enjoyed career nights. Williford led all scorers with 24 points on 10-of-17 shooting. Williams went for 22 points on 10-of-18 shooting.
For the game, SIUE hit 46 percent (29-63) of its shots from the field and outrebounded Valpo 39-36. After Valparaiso tied the score at 68, the Cougars had 13 seconds left with a chance to win it, but couldn't find more than a long three-point attempt before regulation ended.
The Cougars also couldn't overcome a large difference in free throws. Valparaiso was 21-33 from the free throw line. SIUE was 8-15.
Valparaiso had five players score in double figures led by Bakari Evelyn's 16 points. Everlyn was 5 for 8 from the floor and 5 for 6 at the free throw line.
The Cougars had as much as a seven-point lead in the first half and led by two (33-31) at the break despite early foul trouble.