MARTIN, Tenn. – Sophomore Christian Cunningham led the Jacksonville State men's basketball team to a 90-72 victory in season's first Ohio Valley Conference matchup with his second double-double of the year.
 
Including Cunningham's 12 points and 13 rebounds, all five JSU starters registered double-figure points in the contest. Norbertas Giga led the scoring effort with 17 points, while Erik Durham (16), Malcolm Drumwright (15) and Greg Tucker (12) followed.
 
"I was happy with the way our guys played," head coach Ray Harper said. "We had five guys score 10-or-more, 19 assists and just eight turnovers. We played the game the right way tonight."
 
The Skyhawks (10-6, 0-1) controlled the tip and jumped out to a four-point lead to begin the contest. A 9-5 run interrupted by an Andre Statam jumper and a Durham three turned into a 14-10 UT Martin lead at the 15:41 mark before the Gamecocks (8-7, 1-0) mounted a quick response.
 
Drumwright strung together a couple of three-pointers and Statam hit a go-ahead layup to put JSU up, 15-14, for the first time. The spark turned into a 17-6 run that saw Jacksonville State go up by a half-best eight points. The Gamecocks took the lead to the half, carrying the advantage for over 15 minutes.
 
UT Martin's Jacolby Mobley kept the Skyhawks in the game with an eight-point effort off the bench. UTM's leading scorer personally put up all eight of the team's bench points in the period, pulling within five points of the Gamecocks' lead at the half, 52-47.
 
The Gamecocks came out of the locker room on fire, hitting a 7-2 run to begin the period. JSU pushed its lead to double-digits for the first time on the night, 59-49, and forced a Martin timeout following a Greg Tucker dish and Cunningham jam.
 
Before a UT Martin free throw at 12:27, Jacksonville State commanded a 17-2 run that turned the Gamecocks' five-point half edge into a 20-point advantage. JSU led by as much as 23 during the half.
 
The Skyhawks were able to pull within 15 points in the second period, but that was as close as they would get. The Gamecocks extended the lead back to 21 before a Matthew Butler bucket cut the eventual final to 18 points.
 
Jacksonville State continues its opening weekend swing with a visit to Eastern Illinois on Saturday. Tipoff in Charleston, Ill., is slated for 3:15 p.m. EIU enters the game at 8-5, and the Dec. 31 contest will be the Panthers' first OVC matchup of the year.
 
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