Box Score CSU holds on for 61-59 road win over Spring Hill

MOBILE, Alabama – Central State used a brilliant first half performance from Jeremy Brown, a sensational second half from Tre' Edwards and Sterling Gilmore's clutch free throw shooting to top Spring Hill College, 61-59, on Thursday night.

Brown, a sophomore from Indianapolis, IN, scored 18 of his game-high 23 points in the first 20 minutes of play, sparking CSU runs of 10-2 and 8-2 and helping the Marauders to a healthy 33-20 lead at halftime. Brown converted 8 of 11 field goals in the first half and CSU enjoyed the best shooting half of basketball all season, converting 57% of their shots.

"Jeremy had a tremendous first half," said CSU Head Coach Joseph Price. "He simply carried us with 18 points in 18 minutes of play."

When Brown cooled off to open the second half, teammate Tre' Edwards began to heat up. Edwards scored 12 of his 15 points in the second stanza and kept CSU ahead by double-figures after a make from beyond the arc gave his team a 51-39 edge with 8:56 to play.

"Tre' hit some crucial shots for us with his family in attendance to watch him play," said Price. "We ended up needing every single one of his baskets as Spring Hill fought hard to get back in the game."

Seemingly in control, CSU's offense went cold over the next 5 minutes of play while Quinn Sutton and Sawyer Glick led the Badgers on a 10-0 run to knot the game up, 52-52, with 3:46 left on the clock. Edwards finally ended the CSU drought with another three-pointer to give CSU a 55-52 lead at the 2:51 mark. Tom Johnson converted a put-back on CSU's next trip down the floor to go up 5. After a quick SHC basket, Brown scored in the paint as the Marauders appeared in control, 59-54, with just over one minute remaining.
SHC refused to go away as Glick converted a three-point play on the next possession. SHC earned a stop on the other end and two free throws from Walter Massey tied the game back up, 59-59, with 19 seconds left. CSU put the ball into one of their clutch performers in Sterling Gilmore, who earned a trip to the line with 5 seconds left. Gilmore, who leads the SIAC in free throw percentage, calmly knocked down both free throws to put his team up, 61-59. CSU forced a Badger turnover on the next possession to seal to victory and the sweep of the season series.

For Gilmore, Thursday was the third time in three weeks in which the junior from Cincinnati, OH has won it late for CSU. He knocked down the game winning free throws in a 73-72 win over LeMoyne-Owen and hit the winning shot against rival Wilberforce in back-to-back games earlier this month.

Brown's 23 points were a game-high. He also finished with a team leading 6 rebounds. Edwards tacked on a game-high 3 steals to go with his 15 points.

As a team, CSU shot 45% from the field and overcame a 34 point performance from the SHC bench.

"We always seem to make it interesting at the end of games and it is a constant reminder that we have to play and coach for the full forty minutes," said Price. "We hit a little bit of a shooting drought in the second half but I thought the entire team did a great job of stepping up and making critical plays in the final minutes of the game."

With the win, Central State improves to 10-13 overall and 8-8 in SIAC competition.

Glick and Sutton led SHC with 12 points each. The Badgers fall to 7-18 overall and 6-11 in conference play.

Central State travels to Memphis, TN to play LeMoyne-Owen on Saturday at 3 pm.
 
 
NOTES:

-       Gilmore's free throws were his only points of the game.
 
-       Seven of CSU's last eight games have been tied at some point in the final 3 minutes. CSU is 4-3 in those contests.
 
-       CSU has two SIAC games remaining on the schedule against LeMoyne-Owen and Lane. CSU is currently in 7^th place in the SIAC West standings.
 
-       The SIAC Postseason Tournament begins on Feb. 29 in Birmingham, AL.
 

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