Bowie State excels in 83-75 win over JCSU

Bowie State mastered the decisive stretch of its CIAA opener.

The Bulldogs outscored J.C. Smith 21-13 over the final 6 minutes, 4 seconds in an 83-75 win Monday at Brayboy Gym in the first league game of 2016 and fifth in a row. Bowie State (8-4, 1-0 CIAA) produced points on 11 of its final 14 possessions while the Golden Bulls (7-5, 2-1) couldn’t keep pace. Bulldogs guard Justin Beck led all scorers with 20 points, including seven during the rally, which broke a 62-all tie.

“Our guys have done a really good job the last three weeks of coming together and playing as one,” Bulldogs coach Darrell Brooks said. “Justin Beck has really emerged as a leader. He kind of carried us for a stretch offensively, but the big thing for us was we were able to get stops and rebound.”

As good as Bowie State proved in the clutch, J.C. Smith couldn’t get it together. The Golden Bulls connected on 16-of-26 free throws and were outrebounded 46-33.

“We’re in our gym and we work on free-throw shooting but weren’t able to take care of it,” J.C. Smith coach Steve Joyner said. “They were not comfortable on their free throws and Bowie just played an outstanding game, especially in the second half.”

Three who mattered

Diondre Pratt: J.C. Smith guard scored 11 of his team-high 19 points in the second half.

Justin Beck: Bowie State guard paced all scorers with 20 points on 8-of-15 shooting and 14 rebounds.

Ahmaad Wilson: Bowie State guard added 18 points and five assists.

Observations

▪ Bowie State hit 48.6 percent of its shots in the second half to finish at 40.3 percent (27-of-67).

▪ J.C. Smith outscored Bowie State 50-32 in the paint.

▪ Stedmon Lemon, J.C. Smith’s leading scorer, bounced back from a 4-point outing against Wingate to account for 17 points on 7-of-13 shooting.

▪ J.C. Smith outscored Bowie State on fast-break points 20-6.

Worth mentioning

▪ Bowie State trailed by as many as 9 points in the second half.

▪ Bowie State hasn’t lost since a 74-70 setback Nov. 30 to Cheyney (Pa.).

They said it

“We had several opportunities to put them away and didn’t do it. We let them back in the ball game.” – JCSU coach Steve Joyner

“I’m disappointed in our 3-point shooting and our free-throw shooting, but more important, I’m disappointed in our defense.” – Joyner

“It’s hard to get a win on the road in this league and these guys are well-coached. We’re just pleased to be able to get that.” – Bowie State coach Darrell Brooks

This story was originally published January 4, 2016 at 8:55 PM with the headline "Bowie State excels in 83-75 win over JCSU."