RUSTON, La. – After suffering a loss at Sam Houston on Thursday, the Jacksonville State men's basketball team bounced back for a 70-68 road victory over preseason CUSA favorite Louisiana Tech on Saturday. Jax State also defeated the Bulldogs earlier this season in Jacksonville.
Jacksonville State (18-8, 10-3 CUSA) rallied for 37 second half points after trailing by three at the half to defeat Louisiana Tech (17-9, 6-7 CUSA) at the Thomas Assembly Center.
After opening up the game leading 17-13, Jax State surrendered a 15-2 run leading to a nine-point Bulldog advantage with 6:33 remaining in the first half.
Jax State rallied over the next four and a half minutes, forcing three ties in the final two minutes of the half. A Jordan Crawford three-pointer at the buzzer left the Bulldogs with a three-point lead at the break.
Jax State regained the lead with 17:10 left in the second half on a
Jaron Pierre Jr. jumper and did not surrender the lead for the remainder of the contest.
The Gamecocks led by as many as 10 points with four minutes left before a late Bulldog push cut the lead all the way down to one. Jax State made 7-of-8 free throws in the final 30 seconds to secure the victory.
Pierre made a push for a new career high, finishing two points shy of his 36-point mark set last week against Middle Tennessee. The Louisiana native shined in his homecoming, shooting 10-for-20 from the field, including a 5-for-11 mark from three.
Freshman
Quel'Ron House added 14 points, finishing a perfect 8-for-8 from the free throw line.
Pierre led Jax State with six boards,
Iaroslav Niagu (5),
Michael Houge (5) and
Mason Nicholson (4) finished not far behind.
Jax State finished with just three assists as a team, the fewest in any games this season, surpassing the four assists in Thursday's outing at Sam Houston.
With his fourth 30+ point outing of the season, Pierre becomes the only Gamecock in the last 20 years with more than three 30+ point games, breaking his tie with Demaree King and Jason Burnell.
Jax State returns to The Pete for a pair of contests against New Mexico State and UTEP on Feb. 20 and Feb. 22.
