FINAL STATS

JACKSONVILLE – The Jacksonville State men's basketball team went cold in the second half on Saturday, when Eastern Kentucky grabbed a 57-51 win over the Gamecocks in Ohio Valley Conference play.

The Gamecocks (4-20, 2-11 OVC) led the Colonels (13-11, 7-6 OVC) by 11 at the half and as late as the 18-minute mark of the second half, but a 7-for-24 second half from the floor did JSU in in its second-straight loss.

Senior Nick Murphy led the Gamecocks in scoring and on the glass by putting in 19 points and pulling down seven boards. The Bronx, N.Y., native was 6-for-14 from the floor and 6-for-7 from the free throw line to run his career scoring total to 1,426, 69 Behind Keith McKellar for fourth place on the school's all-time scoring list.

Junior Stephen Hall added nine and five boards, while junior Leventrice Gray scored six and pitched in five rebounds. Senior Sean Thurston added six boards to help the Gamecocks to a 34-24 advantage on the glass.

The Colonels had three players score in double figures, led by Spencer Perrin's 19. He also grabbed eight rebounds to account for a third of his team's total. Jeff Johnson added 12 and Justin Stommes 10 to help the Colonels win in Pete Mathews Coliseum for just the second time and the first since 2006.

The Gamecocks were in control of the game for the first 20 minutes, shooting 48 percent from the floor and 4-for-9 from behind the arc to take a 29-18 lead into the locker room at the half. They went on a 11-0 run at one point in the half, a spurt that saw them force four of EKU's eight turnovers on the night.

The Colonels slowly nipped at the JSU lead as the second half crept along, getting as close as two on a Perrin layup with 11:20 to play. JSU answered that Colonel spurt, scoring four in a row to stretch it back to six at 37-31, but EKU would crawl back again.

This time, the Colonels got a Joshua Jones jumper in the lane with 2:59 remaining to give them their first lead since early in the first half.

With the game tied at 47-47 with 1:17 to play, Johnson drained a jumper that put the Colonels ahead for good.

The Gamecocks will wrap up a three-game homestand on Monday at 8 p.m. against Tennessee State at Pete Mathews Coliseum. JSU and Scott's Bikes will give away a free bike to one lucky JSU student, and all general admission tickets are just one dollar.