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JACKSONVILLE, Ala. – Kenneth Faried recorded his third 20-20 game of the year, and Demonte Harper led Morehead State men's basketball with 25 points as the Eagles topped Ohio Valley Conference foe Jacksonville State 78-72.
MSU improved to 16-8 and 8-4 in the Ohio Valley Conference while JSU, which entered the game in last place but with wins in its last two, fell to 4-19 and 2-10 in league games.
The Eagles built an enormous first-half lead and carried it into the opening part of the second half before JSU made it a game at the end.
Faried had 21 points and 20 rebounds, giving him his third 20-20 game. There’s only been five total 20-20 games in NCAA Division I men’s basketball this year and Faried possesses three of them. His 20 rebounds gave him 1,513 for his career as he passed former Virginia All-American Ralph Sampson for fourth place on the NCAA career rebounding list for careers beginning after 1973. His is now just one shy of former Drexel standout Malik Rose for third on the chart.
Harper was 9-of-15 from the field, scoring 20 points for the first time since the College of Charleston game on Jan. 2. Ty Proffitt scored a career-best 17 points, including 14 in the first half, as he knocked down four of MSU’s seven three-pointers. Terrance Hill rounded out four Eagles in double figures with 10.
JSU, which had five players in double figures, was topped by Brian Williams’ 19. Frankie Bougher and B.J. Miller scored 14, Nick Murphy tallied 12, and Stephen Hall pitched in 11.
After trailing very early 4-2, the Eagles went on a 15-4 run to edge ahead 17-8 at the 10:58 mark. The Gamecocks got it back to 20-13 with 8:17 left, but another huge Eagle scoring flurry put the first half out of reach. Proffitt ripped off his fourth three-pointer of the opening half at 6:18, and Harper drilled a three-ball at 5:06 as MSU ran off a 15-0 run to lead 35-13.
The Eagles finished the half with a 17-point advantage, 39-22, as they shot a blistering 64 percent from the floor. Faried picked up 12 rebounds in the first half, while Proffitt had 14 by the break, and Harper had scored 12. The Eagles were 6-of-9 behind the three-point arc.
The Eagles held a 48-27 lead at the 16:27 mark of the final half, but the Gamecocks rode the hot hand of Bougher as they reeled off a 15-2 run to creep back to within 50-42 with 12:45 remaining. Proffitt finally killed the rally with a pair of free throws at 12:13.
MSU was able to maintain its lead, pushing it out to 61-48 with 7:29 left. JSU cut the contest back under double digits, but a Hill three-point play lifted the Eagles back out by 11 with 6:13 left.
The Eagles were ahead by 10, 73-63, with 2:09 left but the Gamecocks buried back-to-back triples to make it interesting. MSU led again by seven, 76-69, but another three-ball by the hosts had the Gamecocks within four, at 76-72. A last-ditch three-pointer fell awry for JSU and Harper hit the final two free throws to ice the contest.
MSU finished the game shooting 54 percent, while JSU shot 48 percent. They hit 11 three-pointers and hit 59 percent in the final half. The Eagles won the battle of the glass, 37-24.
Morehead State travels to Tennessee Tech on Saturday for an 8:30 p.m. tipoff against the Golden Eagles who are tied with MSU at 8-4 in the league.
