JACKSONVILLE – The Jacksonville State University women's basketball game extended its win streak to four, defeating Alabama State 78-46 on Sunday afternoon in Pete Mathews Coliseum.

With the win, JSU improves to 6-2 on the season and 3-0 at home while the Hornets drop to 1-6 overall.

A trio of upperclassman led the Gamecocks as senior Imari Martin poured in a season-high 18 points while fellow senior Kiana Johnson added a season-high 17. Junior Nekiyah Thompson added 16 points and dished out five assists. She was also tied for the team-high with six rebounds.

Martin finished five-of-seven from beyond-the-arc as the Gamecocks shot 50 percent from deep on 9-of-18 shooting.

"Imari has been struggling from the arc recently but obviously tonight she was lighting it up. A couple of them were against the press and whenever you're being pressed, one of the best ways you can soften up a press is hit a three in transition. She hit a couple of those," said Head Coach Rick Pietri. "This is the best game [ Kiana Johnson] has played this year. This is something she is capable of, and she delivered today when we needed it on both ends of the floor. If the last time you saw Nekiyah play was last year, you might not recognize her. She has elevated her game substantially in every way. Right now, she is the heart and soul of who we are. Our three perimeter players certainly did a nice job tonight when you look at the stat lines."

Thompson capped a 6-0 opening run with a layup just two minutes and 24 seconds into the game. A stout JSU defense held the Hornets to just two points in the first five minutes as Martin gave the squad an 11-2 lead following a three-pointer. The Gamecocks led 16-8 at the end of the first quarter. Alabama State outrebounded JSU 14-10 in the first ten minutes, but the Gamecocks held a 36-18 advantage over the final 30 minutes. For the game, JSU won the battle on the boards, 46-32. JSU is 6-0 on the season when outrebounding its opponents.

In the second quarter, JSU held the Hornets scoreless until the 3:08 mark, outscoring the visitors 12-0. JSU held a 34-17 lead at the half.

"In the first half, while they didn't shoot it very well, they were super aggressive on the offensive glass, and they made us pay for it. They collected nine offensive rebounds in the first half. We talked about at halftime that's what could keep them in the game," said Pietri. "In the second half we only allowed four offensive rebounds. On the flip side, we only had one offensive rebound in the first half and had 13 in the second half. Offensive rebounding really is an effort stat. I was impressed with the fact that even though there was a wide margin in the score, our effort and energy level stayed high."

Johnson gave the Gamecocks a 51-26 lead at the 4:26 mark in the third quarter following a second-chance bucket. JSU led 62-34 at the end of the third after outscoring the Hornets 28-17.

Three consecutive free-throws from Thompson gave the Gamecocks a 36-point lead, their largest lead of the afternoon, 78-42 with 4:09 to go in the game. ASU held JSU scoreless the rest of the way, but it wasn't enough as the Gamecocks won their fourth game in a row, 78-46.
 
Up next, the Gamecocks will travel to Houston on Dec. 9, to take on the Cougars. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m.