BOX SCORE

JACKSONVILLE – The Jacksonville State basketball took control early and never looked back on Thursday night, when the Gamecocks opened a two-game homestand with an 80-68 win over UT Martin at Pete Mathews Coliseum.

The Gamecocks (11-13, 7-7 Ohio Valley Conference) maintained their spot in the OVC standing with their season sweep of the Skyhawks (4-20, 1-13 OVC) and are still tied with Eastern Illinois for fifth place with four league games remaining. The win was JSU's third in a row in Pete Mathews Coliseum and puts the Gamecocks at .500 in OVC play at their latest point since the 2005-06 season.

The Skyhawks scored the night's first bucket in the game's first 20 seconds, but watched the Gamecocks go on a 12-2 run to claim a lead they would hold until the final horn. JSU led by as many as 19 early in the second half and never allowed UTM to pull any closer than seven down the stretch.

Junior Nick Murphy notched his sixth double-double of the season and the 11th of his career with 18 points and a game-high 13 rebounds, while junior Trenton Marshall led all scorers with 20 points.

Murphy, a Bronx, N.Y., native, played all 40 minutes on Thursday and overcame a 5-for-13 effort from the floor with an 8-for-10 night at the free throw line. He pulled in 11 boards off of the defensive glass, while grabbing a pair of steals on the defensive end. Marshall, who was limited to just 24 minutes because of foul trouble, still managed to piece together his 10th 20-point game of the season with a 5-of-8 shooting night that was driven by him connecting on all three of his attempts from behind the arc. The Garyville, La., native also dished four assists.

Junior Jeremy Bynum came off of the bench to add 12 points in the winning effort, rounding out a trio of Gamecocks that scored in double figures. Senior Amadou Mbodji scored six points and pulled down six rebounds, running his career total to 498. The Kaolack, Senegal, native needs just a pair of rebounds to become the school's second 500-rebound player since moving to Division I in 1995.

UT Martin turned to leading scorer Marquis Weddle, who led the Skyhawks' with 17 points off of the bench. He made just five of his 13 attempts from the floor but used a 3-for-5 effort from behind the arc to account for more than half of his total. Adres Irarrazabal and Benzor Simmons each pitched in 12 points in the losing effort, one that saw UTM shoot less than 40 percent from the floor and get outrebounded by three.

JSU sophomore John Barnes also had a solid night in a reserve point guard role, scoring eight points, while dishing five assists and grabbing five boards. The Fort Walton Beach, Fla., native's five boards ties his career high, which he set in JSU's previous meeting with the Skyhawks, on Jan. 16 in Martin, Tenn.

Jax State will close its two-game homestand on Saturday, when the Gamecocks welcome league leading Murray State to Pete Mathews Coliseum for a 4:30 p.m. tip. The 14-0 Racers lead the OVC in scoring and in defense and have already clinched a home game in the first round of the eight-team OVC Tournament.