JACKSONVILLE – De'Torrion Ware's second double-double in as many games helped the Jacksonville State men's basketball team to a 65-58 win over Southeast Missouri on Thursday at Pete Mathews Coliseum.
 
The Gamecocks (11-17, 6-9 OVC) bounced back from their loss at SEMO (7-21, 3-12 OVC) from earlier in the year to even the season series with the help of 16 points from Ware and 15 points from Jacara Cross.
 
"De'Torrion just finds ways to get rebounds," head coach Ray Harper said. "And Jacara helped us score some buckets in the post tonight. We didn't have Jacara at their place (flu), but we got it to the rim tonight. And Zeli was a big help tonight."
 
Sophomore Maros Zeliznak logged nearly 19 minutes, scoring six points, going 3-for-3 from the floor, and swatting two SEMO shots.
 
"As the game wore on, I thought one of the big differences was Zeli," Harper said. "Not only scoring the ball, he blocked shots and was a presence in the post on the defensive end. That's what we've been waiting for and he showed up tonight."
 
The win puts Jacksonville State in a three-way tie for sixth place in the Ohio Valley Conference, tied with Eastern Illinois and Morehead State, while SEMO fell to last with only three games remaining in the regular season.
 
Junior Kayne Henry turned in a big first half to help the Gamecocks to a 31-27 lead at the break. The transfer tallied 12 points and five rebounds in the opening half and sparked an 8-0 run to put JSU up early.
 
With Jax State trailing by six, Henry hit a couple of free throws to pull the SEMO advantage down to four. He followed up the foul shots with a layup and two 3-pointers, and added on another pair of free throws after a SEMO basket to score all 12 points in a three-minute stretch.
 
The Redhawks went on a 7-0 run of their own, but it wasn't enough to overcome the offensive burst from Henry. Ware and Henry each hit a basket in the final minute of the period to keep Southeast Missouri down four.
 
The Redhawks threatened early in the second, jumping out to a 9-2 run to begin the new period. Quatarrius Wilson scored six points in just over a minute to push SEMO ahead 36-35 for its first lead since the 15:05 mark of the first.
 
Southeast held the lead for a little over a minute before a pair of Cross free-throws put the Gamecocks back out front.
 
Cross totaled nine points in the second, while Ware hit one basket and hit all eight of his free throws in the final 20 minutes to squash the visitors' comeback. On the defensive end, Zeliznak played eight minutes, blocked two shots and grabbed two rebounds.
 
Next up for Jacksonville State is a Saturday home matchup with UT Martin. The Skyhawks visit Pete Mathews Coliseum at 4 p.m. UTM (8-18, 4-11 OVC) is currently tied for 10th in the OVC with SIUE. Only the league's top eight teams at the end of the season qualify for the conference tournament.
 
For more information on the JSU men's basketball team, follow the Gamecocks on Twitter (@JSUGamecocksMBB) and Instagram (@JSUGamecocksMBB). For more on all Gamecocks sports teams, follow the official social media accounts of JSU Athletics on Twitter (@JSUGamecocks), Facebook (Facebook.com/JSUGamecocks) and Instagram (@JSUGamecocks).