LORMAN, Miss. – The Alcorn State basketball team battled back from a rough first half to defeat Mississippi Valley State University, 81-70, Monday night inside the Davey L. Whitney Complex. Keondre Montgomery led the Alcorn offense, recording his first double-double of the season with 20 points and 10 rebounds.
Alcorn State moves to 12-11 overall and 9-2 in the Southwest Athletic Conference. With the victory and the losses of conference rivals Southern University and Jackson State, the Braves reclaim the number one spot in the SWAC ranking.
Several other players contributed to Alcorn’s success against the Delta Devils. Dekedran Thorn added 16 points to the Braves’ scoreboard, and Dontrell McQuarter tallied 11 to round out Alcorn’s double-digit scoring for the night.
As a team, the Braves made 27-of-55 from the floor (49.1 percent), including 9-of-24 in three-point range. Alcorn also saw a season-best of 90 percent at the free throw line, going 18-for-20.
For MVSU, Terry Collins hit a game-high 25 points with seven rebounds, and Tyronn Mosley and Michael Barber had 18 and 10 points, respectively. From the field, the Devils shot 46.2 percent (24-for-52) with a 47.6 percent (10-for-21) accuracy from beyond the arc. Valley struggled at the line, making just 12-of-20 (60.0 percent).
Alcorn offense took a while to get going versus MVSU, with the Braves finding themselves behind 22-12 at the nine-minute mark of the first half. Free throws from Shaun Walker started a scoring run for the Braves. With just over a minute left in the half, a three-pointer by Montgomery put Alcorn within striking distance of the Valley’s lead (32-31).
Back-to-back fouls took both teams to the free-throw line to add points to both sides of the scoreboard. McQuarter landed two for the Alcorn to take a 35-34 lead as the buzzer sounded for the break.
In the second half, the Braves came back on fire, pushing their way past the Devils to jump ahead 58-38 with 11:59 left for their largest game lead. Alcorn’s defense cooled, and Valley closed some ground, but it was not enough for a complete comeback.
Courtesy: Alcorn State Athletics
