JACKSONVILLE – The Jacksonville State men's basketball team returns home from a three-game road stint which saw the Gamecocks push some of the Ohio Valley Conference's top teams to the brink.

JSU made a 19-2 second-half run at Belmont to pull within two late in the contest, and again overcame a late double-digit deficit at Tennessee Tech as junior Greg Tucker's 3-pointer tied the game with seven seconds to play. In the final road test, JSU held Tennessee State's explosive offense to its lowest scoring output at home all season allowing just 61 points.

During the span, freshman Jared Hamilton was named Co-Freshman of the Week on Feb. 15, his third weekly honor of the season. The Charlotte, N.C., product responded by pouring in a career-high 21 points in last Saturday's loss at TSU. It was the first 20-point game of Hamilton's young career, but became the fifth by a Gamecock this season, joining 20-point performances by Jeremy Watson, Greg Tucker, Erik Durham and Malcolm Drumwright.

At 9.3 points per game, Hamilton along with seniors JaQuail Townser, lead JSU on the offensive side since leading scorer Malcolm Drumwright went down with injury in late January. Also injured at that time was freshman Christian Cunningham, one of JSU's top rebounders and among the best shot-blockers in the league. He returned to the floor for 14 minutes in JSU's game last Saturday.

The Colonels hold a 17-8 series lead, but the Gamecocks have won eight of the 13 meetings played in Jacksonville. Tip is set for 7 p.m. Admission is free to JSU students and all fans 18 years and under.