Mississippi basketball roundup: Rebels blow late lead; JSU takes down Alcorn

Published 8:42 pm Saturday, January 11, 2020

OXFORD (AP) — Isaiah Joe scored 34 points and added a game-saving steal before converting a pair of free throws with 17 seconds remaining as Arkansas rallied to defeat Ole Miss 76-72 on Saturday.

Arkansas (13-2, 2-1 Southeastern Conference) wiped out a 60-51 deficit with seven minutes remaining. Joe scored 28 second half points including 14 in the decisive stretch run. The clinching steal preserved a 72-70 lead and forced an Ole Miss foul. Joe converted two free throws for an insurmountable 74-70 cushion.

Mason Jones scored 13 points and added nine assists with six rebounds, while Jimmy Whitt Jr. added 11 points for the Razorbacks. Arkansas was 14-for-14 from the free throw line in the second half, and 22-of-27 overall.

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Breein Tyree scored 27 points for Ole Miss (9-6, 0-2), but the Rebels went 2-of-8 from the field with two turnovers in the final four minutes.

Blake Hinson scored 13 points. KJ Buffen had 12 points and 10 rebounds, while Devontae Shuler had 10 points and a game-high 11 rebounds.

The Rebels finished 22-of-54 (41 percent) from the field, but struggled at 3-point range, managing only 3-of-13. Ole Miss was 25-of-26 from the free throw line and outrebounded Arkansas 40-28.

The Rebels have shot less than 41 percent in three consecutive games. Three of their next four games are on the road, beginning with a trip to Florida on Tuesday.

UTSA 80, Southern Miss 70
Southern Miss got within a single possession several times in the second half after trailing by 11 early, but UTSA did just enough to pull out a victory on Saturday afternoon.

The Roadrunners entered the day as the conference leader in three-pointers (158) and went 15-for-27 from deep. Jhivvan Jackson hit three and Keaton Wallace four as they finished with 23 and 16 points, respectively.

Artur Konontsuk led Southern Miss (4-13, 0-4 Conference USA) with 14 points, while Gabe Watson and Boban Jacdonmi scored 13 apiece. Tyler Stevenson had 11 points and nine rebounds.

Southern Miss got to within three points on three separate occasions in the second half, the last when Watson hit a free throw to cut it to 67-64 with 6:28 remaining. Each time, however, UTSA (8-9, 2-2) answered with a run to maintain the lead.

Southern Miss lost its fourth game in a row, and third straight on the road. It will return home for two games next week, Thursday against North Texas and Jan. 18 against Rice.

Jackson State 76, Alcorn State 65
Roland Griffin had a game-high 27 points, to go along with 12 rebounds and six assists, as Jackson State defeated archrival Alcorn State (5-9, 1-2 Southwestern Athletic Conference).

Venjie Wallis added 13 points, three 3-pointers, and three blocks for Jackson State (5-11, 2-1). The Tigers shot 27-of-57 (47.3 percent) from the field as a team.

Troymain Crosby led Alcorn State with 22 points and 10 rebounds, and Maurice Howard scored 16 points.

Crosby’s jumper with 9:10 left in the game pulled Alcorn to within 53-50, but it never got closer. The Braves went 1-for-8 from the field over the next 6 1/2 minutes to allow Jackson State to push the lead back to double digits.

Valdosta State 103, Delta State 80
Clay Guillozet led six Valdosta State players in double figures with 21 points, Bryce Smith added 19, and the Blazers (12-3, 6-2 Gulf South Conference) knocked off Delta State (7-8, 3-4).

McCoy Anderson led Delta State with 19 points. Airen Brooks added 14 points and 11 rebounds, and Keyshaun Street also scored 14 points. Maalik Cartwright scored 15.

West Florida 66, Mississippi College 44
Mississippi College shot just 29.6 percent (16-of-54) from the field and fell on the road at West Florida for its fifth loss in six games.

Tarik McKelphin led West Florida (7-8, 4-4 Gulf South Conference) with 22 points and 10 rebounds. Lawrence Williams was the team’s only other player in double figures, finishing with 10 points and 10 rebounds.

Winceton Edwards led Mississippi College (6-8, 2-6) with 19 points, and Winford Ross had 10 points and 13 rebounds.

Belhaven 83, Concordia (Texas) 80
Luke Couch scored a team-high 15 points, Brosnan Cooks added 14 points and seven rebounds, and Belhaven (6-7, 2-1 American Southwest Conference) held off Concordia (Texas) for its second conference win in a row.

Trevon Hester led Concordia (5-9, 0-4) with 19 points. The Tornadoes missed four 3-pointers in the final minute that would have tied the game.