BOX SCORE

JACKSONVILLE – Nicholls State built an early lead and never looked back on Monday, when the Colonels handed the Jacksonville State men's basketball team a 60-55 defeat at Pete Mathews Coliseum.

The Gamecocks (5-5) never led on a night that saw them shoot just 38 percent from the floor. They couldn't overcome a dismal first half that ended with the Colonels (4-9) up by 10 and dropped the final game of a five-game homestand that saw them go 3-2. Trailing by 17 with eight minutes to play, JSU mounted a rally that pulled the Gamecocks to within one in the game's final minute, but they couldn't catch a Colonel squad that scored its final 13 points from the charity stripe.

Juniors Trenton Marshall, Jeremy Bynum and Nick Murphy combined for 44 of JSU's 55 points on the night, with Marshall leading the way with 18. The Garyville, La., native struggled from the floor, hitting just four of his 12 attempts, but used an 8-for-8 effort from the free throw line to account for much of his total. He scored 12 of his 18 points in the final eight minutes before fouling out with 29 seconds remaining.

Bynum, an Oxford, Ala., native, had 15 on a 5-for-18 outing from the field that included a 3-for-9 night from behind the arc. A native of Bronx, N.Y., Murphy scored 11 to go along with four boards and three steals.

The Gamecocks turned the ball over 11 times in the first 20 minutes and connected on just 33 percent of their shots in that stretch to fall behind, 28-18 at the half. They missed five of their first six shots and turned the ball over six times in the first six minutes, allowing the Colonels to pull out to an early lead they would never relinquish.

Anatoly Bose scored 22 to lead NSU and pulled in nine boards to pace a Colonels' effort on the glass that outrebounded the Gamecocks, 30-29. They were 18-of-25 from the free throw line, including a 13-for-18 stretch in the game's final six minutes that allowed them to hold onto the lead.

Junior Sean Thurston led JSU's effort on the glass with just five rebounds off of the bench, while Murphy, Bynum and sophomore Dominique Shellman each pulled in four rebounds apiece. Shellman dished a game-high four assists but turned it over five times in his first career start.

Nicholls controlled the game early in the second half, slowly pulling out to a 43-26 lead with 9:43 remaining. They maintained the 17-point advantage as late as 45-28 with eight minutes to play, when the Gamecocks started their rally attempt that would come up just short.

Marshall's 3-pointer with 7:52 remaining, followed by a three-point play from sophomore Stephen Hall and another and-one play from Hall that saw him miss the free throw attempt pulled the Gamecocks to within nine in just a 90-second stretch.

Chris Iles stopped the 9-0 run with a layup with 6:12 to play, a shot that would be his team's final field goal of the night. The Gamecocks slowly nipped at the deficit, pulling to within one at 54-53 on a pair of Marshall free throws with 43 seconds left, but the Colonels always had an answer at the line that kept JSU from drawing even.

JSU will now take a few days off for Christmas before going to work in preparations for its Dec. 29 game at Ole Miss. The 7 p.m. game in Oxford, Miss., will be the Gamecocks' first road game since Nov. 27 at Georgia, a 33-day span without playing on the road.