Box Score FINAL STATS

JACKSONVILLE – Junior Tarvin Gaines scored 30 points and grabbed 11 boards on Saturday night to lead the Jacksonville state men's basketball team to a 78-65 win over Alabama State at Pete Mathews Coliseum.

A 6-foot-6 forward from West Memphis, Ark., Gaines went 9-for-14 from the floor and 10-for-11 from the free throw line, while leading all players on the glass to help the Gamecocks (2-2) to a convincing win over the in-state Hornets (0-4). He guided JSU to a 40-19 advantage on the boards and a 59 percent shooting percentage.

“Tarvin did a really nice job for us tonight in what was a good win for our team,” JSU head coach James Green said. “We were able to play a lot of people and I felt like a lot of people contributed. We were better in the post tonight and that was really the key, but we have to be sharper against the press. I felt like we took a step back from the way we played against the press in the last two games, and we have to get better there.”

Gaines' offensive output made him JSU's first 30-point scorer since Trenton Marshall scored 37 at Southeast Missouri on Jan. 4, 2010, while his five offensive boards and six defensive rebounds were each more than any Hornet's total boards. His double-double was the first of his career and the first by a JSU player since the first week of January.

“Tarvin was outstanding,” Green added. “He's only getting better every time out. His ability to be an inside-outside player for us, along with Stephen Hall's ability to do the same, has really made us a more versatile team.”

Hall joined Gaines in double figures with 14 points on a 5-for-9 outing from the floor, while his seven boards were second only to Gaines. All seven of the Birmingham native's rebounds came on the defensive glass.

Junior Mason Leggett added nine points, while junior Dion Waiters scored four, pulled in five rebounds and dished out a team-high six assists. Freshman Grant White converted on all three of his attempts from the floor to score six points.

The Hornets got 15 points from Kenderek Washington and 13 from Tramaine Butler, while Stephawn Brown's four rebounds led ASU on the glass.

JSU outscored ASU 36-16 in the paint but turned the ball over 20 times, which led to 24 Bama State points.

The first half saw 12 lead changes before a 6-0 JSU run to close it gave the Gamecocks a 34-29 advantage at the half. They would score the first five points of the second half to build a 39-29 lead and stretched it to 15 with just under nine minutes to play.

The Hornets pulled to within single digits at 69-60 with 2:15 remaining, but the Gamecocks answered with six straight to put the game away.

Jax State will go back on the road to play its next six games, the first of which being a Friday date with Northwestern State in Natchitoches, La. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:45 p.m. CT, and the game will be broadcast live on the Gamecock Sports Network with Mike Parris providing the play-by-play.