Bison Squander Lead; Drop Road Decision To SC State
ORANGEBURG, S.C. -
South Carolina State parlayed two runs during the second half with
the scoring of Jason Flagler into a 73-59 come-from-behind win over
Howard University in a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference men's game
at Smith-Hammond-Middleton Center. It was the second straight
loss for the Bison while the Bulldogs earned a share of second
place with the win.
Howard (7-18 overall, 5-6 in the MEAC) took control early and led
through the first 20 minutes before settling for a 33-31 lead at
the half. Bison leading scorer Eugene Myatt (eight points),
Curtis White (seven) and Randy Hampton (six) combined for 21
points. SC State was paced by Josh Jackson, who tallied 11 of
his game-high 16 in the first 20 minutes.
HU came out of the locker room and opened the second half with a
10-2 run that gave it the biggest lead (43-33) of the game at
15:50. It was Myatt's three-point play that sealed the
run.
Then the Bulldogs went on the first of two runs that would
ultimately prove to turn the tide. Flagler, who got 11 of 13
points after intermission, led a 14-3 spurt by SC State (12-12
overall, 7-5 in the MEAC) that gave the Bulldogs a brief, 47-46
lead with a little over 11 minutes.
The Bison would counter to keep it close until the Bulldogs
embarked on an 11-3 rally that all but sealed the win as they took
a 59-52 lead. From there, SC State got enough scoring from
Jimmie Williams (12 points) and Jason Johnson (nine points) to
put the game away.
A key to SC State staging the comeback was the defensive job that
they did on the Bison, holding them to 38 percent shooting.
More Importantly, Howard leading scorer Eugene Myatt, made only one
of nine attempts from the field in the second half. That,
along with the loss of sophomore guard Kyle Riley, who sat out the
game with any injury, proved to be the difference.
Myatt finished with a team-high 15 while Randy Hampton (12
points, seven rebounds), Paul Kirkpatrick (12 points) and
Curtis White (10 points) all contributed.
NEXT UP: Howard will try to snap its two-game skid
when it hosts first place Morgan State on Wednesday at 7 pm in Burr
Gymnasium.