EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Redshirt senior Detrick Mostella led the Jacksonville State men's basketball team to a comeback, 88-81 win over UT Martin in the quarterfinals of the Ohio Valley Conference Men's Basketball Championships Thursday at the Ford Center.
 
The first-year Gamecock scored a game-best 21 points; his single-game high since coming to Jacksonville. The Decatur, Ala., native was 7-for-13 from the field and 6-for-11 from 3-point range.
 
Jacksonville State (23-9, 15-3 OVC) overcame a 10-point, 43-33 deficit at the half, rallying to outscore the Skyhawks (12-9, 6-12 OVC) 55-38 in the game's final 20 minutes.
 
After leading by as much as nine points in the first half, a 7-0 Skyhawk run erased the JSU advantage. A layup by UTM's Quintin Dove at 7:24 put the opposition ahead for the first time since its first goal of the game.
 
Dove scored a whopping 29 points for the Skyhawks in the first half, accounting for all but 14 of UT Martin's first-half total of 43. The guard knocked down seven of nine 3-point attempts after entering the game with six 3-pointers on the entire season.
 
The Gamecocks found their footing in the second period and used a 17-2 run to climb back into the competition. JSU's best run of keeping the Skyhawks off the board lasted more than 11 minutes and added 11 points to the scoreboard for the designated home team.
 
Following a six-point half that included two 3-pointers, Mostella went off for 15 points in the last period. Mostella was 5-for-7 and hit four treys along the way, while also dishing out four helpers and grabbing four rebounds. He came up just four points of his career-high of 25, scored in his junior season at Tennessee.
 
Trailing by just three points at the 13:33 mark, Mostella tied the game 51-51 with a 3-pointer, and only two minutes later gave Jacksonville State its first lead in nearly 15 minutes on a dunk. He then extended the advantage to five with his fourth 3-ball of the night.

 

Fellow senior Jason Bunell turned in a 19-point performance, hitting eight of 14 shots with five assists, and senior Marlon Hunter bucketed 16 points with seven baskets.
 
The victory was Jacksonville State's 24th of the season, setting a new Division-I record for the program. The previous mark for most wins in a single season came last season when head coach Ray Harper led the 2017-18 Gamecocks to 23 wins.

It also extended the Gamecocks' winning streak to eight games, making it the longest winning streak in Jacksonville State's Division-I history.
 
With the win, JSU moves on to the semifinals of the OVC Tournament to take on Murray State at 9 p.m. on ESPNU. It is Jacksonville State's third appearance in the semifinals of the OVC Championships in as many seasons.
 
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