JACKSON, MIss. - Down 17 points with just seven minutes to play, the Wildcats came as close as a bucket, but the Tigers held on to take down B-CU, 86-81, Saturday night at the Lee E. Williams Atheltics and Assembly Center. 



FIRST HALF

Neither team led by more than three until the ten-minutes mark until Bethune-Cookman (7-12, 4-12 SWAC) fell behind Jackson State (5-14, 5-1 SWAC) by six on a Jayme Mitchell Jr. three to make it 21-15. 

Five straight points from Kalil Camara trimmed it to just a one-point game at 21-20. 

Following the eight-minute media timeout, the Tigers went in front again by eight after an alley-oop  and a pair of free throws before Camara stopped the bleeding with another three ball. 

Trey Thomas and Reggie Ward Jr. drained tough shots down the stretch, but JSU headed into the break leading 40-31.

 SECOND HALF

The Tigers lead slowly grew out of the half, reaching 12 at the 16-minute media. A Trey Thomas layup and midrange jumper by Daniel rouzan made it a 52-45 game in favor of JSU with 13 to play. 

With just under 10 to play, the JSU lead reached 16 on a Daeshun Ruffin layup - two minutes later it reached a game-high 17 as Ruffin drained a three to make it 73-56.

The Wildcats quickly recovered with a 12-3 run to cut the lead to 76-72 on a Thomas three. That became a 15-5 run as the JSU lead dwindled down to just two on a pair of  Jesus Carralero Martin free throws. 

The final 90 seconds of play saw 11 free throws. A Rouzan jumper with 45 to play made it a two-point game again, but costly B-CU turnovers allowed the Tigers to ice the game at the line for the 86-81 win. 

• For the third straight game and the fourth time this year, Trey Thomas reached 20 points on the game, adding two rebounds and three assists.
• Daniel Rouzan scored a season-high 18 on 8-11 shooting with nine rebounds and two assists.
• Jesus Carralero Martin also posted a season best 17 points on 5-8 shooting with two boards.
• Kalil Camara was the third Wildcat with a season-high in scoring in the game with 15. He posted a double-double with 10 rebounds off the bench.
• Thomas, Rouzan, Carralero Martin, and Camara combined for 70 points. The rest of the team combined for 11. 
• Jackson State scored 20 points off B-CU turnovers.
• Both teams scored over 30 points in the paint. 
• JSU made 23 of 30 free throws, B-CU made 18 of 24. 
• 81 points is the most scored by B-CU in a loss this season. 

B-CU will next head to Lorman, Mississippi to take on Alcorn State on Monday, Jan. 27. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. EST. The game will be streamed live free on YouTube. 


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