CLINTON, Miss. – With 2:43 to play in the first half of Auburn Montgomery's contest against Gulf South Conference foe Mississippi College junior guard
Desmond DeRamus reached his 1,000
th career point on a fastbreak layup as the Warhawks earned an 85-83 victory over the Choctaws on Thursday evening in men's basketball action.
NOTES
• AUM improves to 9-13 on the season with a 5-9 mark in GSC play.
• MC falls to 9-10 overall and 6-8 in league action.
• AUM is now 1-3 lifetime against the Choctaws.
• The victory for the Warhawks avenges a 95-84 overtime setback to MC on Dec. 18.
STANDOUT PERFORMERS
• DeRamus needed five points to reach the 1,000 coming into the contest and wound up scoring a game-high 22 to reach the mark. He converted 9-18 from the floor, while hitting 3-4 free throws. He becomes the 18
th player in program history to record over 1,000 points, and the first since former Warhawk Nathan Thomas accomplished the feat in 2010.
• Senior Center
Jarett Croff set a career-high as well as a GSC season-high in rebounds, tallying 23 on the night. It was also Croff's seventh career double-double, as the Franklin, Tenn., native scored 12 for the Orange & Black.
• Junior guard
Kenneth Keith tallied 16 points and five assists for AUM, scoring 10 of the Warhawks' first 12 points.
• MC's Brandon Boston finished one rebound shy of a double-double, tallying 20 points and nine boards for the Choctaws.
HOW IT HAPPENED
• The Warhawks jumped out to a 12-0 lead, capped off by a Keith 3-pointer with 17:09 to play in the first. Boston ended the scoreless drought for MC with a jumper moments later.
• MC would scratch its way back into the contest, tying the game at 18-18 with 11:50 to go in the half.
• The two teams would trade baskets back and forth, with the Choctaws building there advantage to as much as nine points. However, AUM would cut the deficit to 41-36 on a DeRamus fastbreak layup to end the half.
• AUM would come out strong in the second half, tying the game on a
Lafayette James-Core dunk at 49-49 with 17:06 left in the contest.
• DeRamus would tie the game minutes later at 53-53 before Keith gave AUM a 55-53 advantage on a fastbreak layup with 14:09 to go.
• Over the next 10 minutes the Warhawks would inch ahead of the Choctaws, eventually going up by 11 at 80-69 on a
Marcus Jackson 3-pointer from the wing with 4:48 on the clock.
• The Choctaws would respond over the next three minutes, taking an 81-80 lead on a pair of free throws by Xavion Dillon. AUM would respond with a pair of free throws by DeRamus the other way and led 82-18 with :57 seconds to play.
• After a missed 3-pointer and missed layup attempt by MC, Croff picked up his 23
rd rebound with :30 seconds to play before getting fouled. Croff would then convert the two free throws to give AUM an 84-81 advantage.
• Boston pulled the Choctaws to within a point at 84-83 with a layup with :12 seconds to play, but Keith would be fouled on the inbounds and covert one of two free throws to give AUM the 85-83 advantage.
• MC would miss a last-second 3-point attempt and the Warhawks would hold on for the two-point victory.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
• AUM outrebounded MC 43-34.
• The Warhawks tallied 17 assists to 16 for the Choctaws.
• AUM forced 20 turnovers and recorded 12 steals.
UP NEXT
The Warhawks be on the road once against when they travel to Gulf South Conference foe Delta State on Saturday at 4 p.m. The Statesmen earned a 71-64 victory over AUM earlier this season on Dec. 16.
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