JACKSONVILLE – In a game that never saw a double-digit lead, the Jacksonville State men's basketball team held off SIU-Edwardsville to close 2015 and open Ohio Valley Conference play with a 72-67 win on Thursday.
 
The Gamecocks (5-11, 1-0 OVC) and Cougars (3-10, 0-1 OVC) exchanged blows early before JSU took the lead for good with just under 12 minutes to play in the first half. An early 7-0 run by JSU, its longest of the game, turned a three-point SIUE lead into a four-point JSU lead it would cling to the rest of the night.
 
The Gamecocks got 14 points from Greg Tucker in the second half and 16 on the night, one of three Gamecocks in double figures in the game. The junior from Charleston, Mo., was 3-for-4 from behind the arc in the second half to help JSU hold off several comeback attempts by the Cougars. Tucker also dished four assists and grabbed four boards.
 
Sophomore Malcolm Drumwright led JSU with 19 points, while freshman Jared Hamilton added 10. Senior Jeremy Watson scored eight while leading the Gamecocks with nine rebounds. Freshman Andre Statam went 3-fof-3 from behind the arc to account for his nine points.
 
The Cougars got 21 points in the paint from center Yemi Makanjoula, who went 8-for-10 from the field and pulled down eight rebounds. Keenan Simmons led all players with 10 boards to pace SIUE to a 32-28 advantage on the glass.
 
SIUE scored the game's first five points and held a four-point lead with 15:27 left in the first half. The Gamecocks got a Drumwright 3-pointer and back-to-back layups from Watson and Tucker to take their first lead of the night. SIUE got it back on a Carlos Anderson trey, but JSU went on its game-winning seven-point run to take the lead for good.
 
A JaQuail Townser jumper at the end of the half sent JSU into the locker room with a 33-28 lead, and the Gamecocks would build it to 46-37 by the 14-minute mark of the second half.
 
SIUE cut it to one with 11:07 to play, but another Drumwright triple stopped the bleeding. A 5-0 Cougar run that tied the game at 56-56 was their biggest threat, but another 3-point play, an old-fashioned one by Hamilton, put JSU back on top for good.
 
The Gamecocks continue conference play on Saturday, when they host Eastern Illinois at 4:30 p.m. at Pete Mathews Coliseum. Admission is free for JSU students and all fans ages 18 and under at all JSU home basketball games.