The Eastern Michigan University basketball team won its second straight home game Saturday, defeating Jacksonville (Ala.) State University in a Sears Bracket Buster, 63-60.
Sophomore Derek Thompson was clutch for the Eagles, connecting on a three-point field goal from the right baseline corner with 2.8 seconds remaining. Thompson’s only basket of the game broke a 60-all tie.
“We played with a lot of aggression and had some guys step up for us,” senior Brandon Bowdry said. “Down in the clutch, we made some pretty big plays that were key components to the winning this game.”
The score was in EMU’s favor for most of the game, starting with guard Antonio Green, who gained the first lead of the contest with his first three-pointer of the game.
“We came out strong, and stuck to the game plan,” Thompson said.
The Eagles came out to an early 10-4 lead in the first eight minutes. Offensively, both teams couldn’t get it going shooting from the field in the first half. EMU shot 9-of-25 from the field, 2-of-11 from the three-point line and 8-of-16 from the free-throw line while JSU shot 9-of-24 from the field, 0-of-3 from the three-point line and 4-of-7 from the free-throw line.
“All in all, the opposing team came out with a lot of force while we came out sluggish,” Bowdry said.
For every run the Eagles made, the Gamecocks had an answer and would keep within striking distance, eventually cutting the lead to as low as three points in the first half. On EMU’s final possession of the first half, Green put the Eagles up six points to end the first half with his second three-pointer of the game, 28-22.
The Eagles returned in the second half with a better shooting percentage with Bowdry and Green scoring early and often.
“Antonio had a tremendous game,” Bowdry said. “And everyone showed up when they had to go get the win.”
Bowdry led the Eagles going 9-of-14 from the field, 9-of-16 from the free-throw line, scoring 28 points and getting 13 rebounds. Green was the second high scorer for the Eagles, going 5-of-11 from the field, 1-of-3 from the free-throw line, scoring 15 points and getting four rebounds.
The Gamecocks, however, were shooting lights out in the second half, shooting 14-of-19 (73.7 percent) while the Eagles shot 13-of-23 (56.5 percent) respectively for the half.
JSU’s Stephen Hall and Nick Murphy led the Gamecocks in scoring. Hall went 5-of-10 from the field, 5-of-7 from the free-throw line, scoring 15 points and getting seven rebounds. Murphy helped also going 5-of-10 from the field, 1-of-3 from the free-throw line, scoring 11 points with three assists.
The Eagles lost the lead late in the second half when the Gamecocks tied the game with 2:28 left. The Eagles would respond with a jump shot by junior guard Darrell Lampley putting them up two points with 1:52 left in regulation.
JSU’s Hall would respond making a layup of his own to tie the game up again at 1:16 left. Bowdry was fouled on the next possession collecting two quick points from the free-throw line to put the Eagles up again with 52 seconds remaining.
Hall answered by making a free throw to put the Gamecocks to within one point with 43 seconds left, but missing his second that would have tied the game. On a full-court press, the Eagles found Bowdry open for a dunk to put the Eagles up again by three points with 28 seconds remaining.
The Gamecocks answered once again, not wanting to go away with Murphy making a running layup with the foul, making his free throw to tie it all up at 60 with 19 seconds to go. Coach Charles Ramsey let his team bring the ball in after the made basket and advanced the ball past half court. The guards passed the ball around, looking for an open shooter, until it found Thompson’s hands for a game winner in the corner for three points.
“This game gave us a little confidence going into these next couple of games,” Bowdry said. “We’re starting to get momentum, and for us momentum is always good. This win puts us back into good position.”
The Eagles are 8-18 this season and 4-8 in Mid-American Conference. The Gamecocks are 5-24 and 3-14 in the Ohio Valley Conference.
EMU returns to action this week when the Eagles face Ball State at 7 p.m. Wednesday, in Muncie, Ind.
