JACKSONVILLE – Senior
Demaree King started fast and didn't slow down on his way to a game-high 25 points as Jacksonville State overpowered Reinhardt, 97-63, on Wednesday night.
Jax State (5-5) had four guys finish in double figures behind King's 25.
Skyelar Potter added 21 for JSU's first game with multiple 20-point scorers since
Darian Adams and
Jalen Gibbs pulled off the feat at Bellarmine back in February of last season. Clarence "Monzy" Jackson finished with 11 points, just ahead of
Juwan Perdue with 10. Narrowly missing the mark was
DJ Gordon with a career-high nine points in his Gamecocks debut. Perdue, Potter and
Maros Zeliznak each recorded seven rebounds for nearly half of JSU's 45 total.
Reinhardt (6-7) played back-and-forth with the Gamecocks throughout the second half, but it was all for not after Jax State's blazing-hot opening 20 minutes. King started a perfect 5-for-5 from downtown as part of JSU's 13 first-half triples. JSU led 8-5 three minutes into the game before a 28-4 run over the next seven minutes of game time blew the game wide open.
The 61-20 halftime lead increased to as many as 43 points early in the second stanza, before a series of treys by the visiting Eagles brought the margin back down. JSU shot 56-percent overall, even after a less-efficient second half, on its way to the 34-point victory
The Gamecocks improve to 3-0 at home this season and now look to extend that streak when hosting Little Rock on Saturday.