BOX SCORE

RICHMOND, Ky. – A late Eastern Kentucky basket spoiled the Jacksonville State basketball team's bid for a key road win on Saturday night, when the Colonels escaped McBrayer Arena with a 66-65 win.

In a game that saw 10 ties and six lead changes, a Justin Stommes lay up with 21 seconds to play gave the Colonels (17-8, 9-4 Ohio Valley Conference) a 66-65 lead, and junior Jeremy Bynum's attempt at a game winning 3-pointer bounced off of the back of the rim to spoil a chance for the Gamecocks (10-13, 6-7 OVC) to pick up their first win in seven trips to McBrayer Arena.

Three Gamecocks scored in double figures in the game, led by Trenton Marshall's team-high 19. The junior from Garyville, La., scored 13 in the second half and also grabbed five boards on the night. Nick Murphy, a junior from Bronx, N.Y., added 15 points and six boards for JSU while Bynum pitched in 13 points off of the bench, nine in the second half.

Senior Amadou Mbodji helped control the game early for the Gamecocks, scoring all eight of his points in the first half. The Kaolack, Senegal, native led all players with seven rebounds and blocked three shots in the loss. Mbodji increases his career blocks total to 150, stretching his lead atop the school's career blocks list.

The Colonels have now won 21 of their last 22 home games and needed every second to get their 13th home win in 14 tries this season. Papa Oppong led all scorers with 20 points, a night that was fueled by an 8-for-13 effort from the floor. Stommes, the team's leading scorer coming in, added 16 points, while Joshua Jones and Spencer Perrin pitched in 12 and 11 points, respectively.

EKU won the battle on the glass, 30-28, on a night that saw both teams go 23-of-50 from the floor. A 6-for-17 night from behind the arc proved beneficial for the Colonels, while the Gamecocks had to use three second-half treys to overcome an 0-for-8 first half from behind the 3-point line.

Trailing 5-2 less than three minutes into the game, the Gamecocks scored six straight to take an 8-5 lead with 15:32 remaining and never trailed the rest of the half before taking a 27-25 lead into the locker room. Mbodji was the difference maker for JSU in the first 20 minutes, scoring a team-high eight points, while also grabbing four rebounds and blocking three shots.

Murphy and Marshall each added six in the first half for JSU, while Oppong's nine points led all scorers. Justin Stommes, the Colonels' leading scorer coming in, scored the Colonels' first five points and didn't record another in the final 17:38 of the half.

With an early 6-0 run, the Gamecocks were able to slowly pull out to a 39-33 lead in the first eight minutes of the second half. EKU scored the next six to tie it at 39-39, only to watch JSU answer with six unanswered to take a 45-39 lead with just under 11 minutes remaining.

From that point, EKU went on a 10-0 run that gave the Colonels their largest lead to that point, a 49-45 advantage at the 9:00 mark of the second half. They stretched the lead to 57-50 on an Oppong 3-point play with 6:56 on the clock, but the Gamecocks answered again. JSU used another six-point lead a few minutes later to reclaim the lead, 60-59 with 4:41 to play.

The two teams would battle the rest of the way, before Stommes connected on the eventual game winner. On the ensuing trip, Murphy was called for a charging violation that forced JSU to foul the Colonels' Jones with five seconds remaining. Jones missed both free throw attempts, setting up Bynum's attempt at a game winner. Marshall brought the ball down the floor and found Bynum on the right wing, but a good look sailed just long.

The Gamecocks will return home for a pair of games at Pete Mathews Coliseum next week. UT Martin will be in town on Thursday for a 7:45 p.m. tip, and JSU will conclude the homestand on Saturday at 4:30 p.m. against league-leading Murray State.