CLINTON, Miss. -- The Auburn University at Montgomery men's basketball team forced 18 turnovers and outscored Mississippi College 18-3 in the second-chance points column en route to a 65-60 road victory on Thursday night at A.E. Wood Coliseum.
Roderick Smith scored 11 points in the second half and 15 for the game, while three other Warhawks fought their way to double-figures. James Graham and Jalen Gaston led all scorers in the game with 18 points each, while Sam Youngblood chipped in 11 points for AUM.
THE TIPOFF
Score: AUM 65, MC 60
Records: AUM 10-10 (8-8 GSC) | MC 11-10 (7-10 GSC)
Location: Clinton, Miss. | A.E. Wood Coliseum
Series: AUM leads 6-4
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HIGHLIGHTS
- A Trey Bates III three-point shot capped a 9-4 opening four minutes for Mississippi College, which proved to be its largest lead of the half.
- The Warhawks chipped away over the next five-minute stretch of the game, as they got a couple of Sam Youngblood jumpers amid a 14-4 push to steal a five-point lead of their own.
- MC's Galen Smith drained a jumper to trim the lead to a point before another solid stretch, this time a Youngblood three-pointer, a Jalen Gaston layup, and a Roderick Smith jumper, sent AUM to its largest lead (28-22) of the first 20 minutes.
- The Choctaws got a late three-pointer inside the final 30 seconds of the half, but the Warhawks held the slim 33-31 halftime advantage.
- The game continued to teeter back and forth in the second half, as the score was tied five different times in the game's second 20 minutes.
- AUM found Smith in the low post with 4:44 to play, and his layup banked in off the glass to put AUM on top of the game for good.
- MC trimmed the lead to one, 58-57, with 1:26 left in the game, but Gaston found an answer with a layup of his own.
- Gaston added three made free throws in the final minute, and Youngblood chipped in two with nine seconds left to help seal the win.
NOTABLES
- AUM tallied just two assists in the contest, to MC's 14, but won the turnover battle, the offensive rebounding matchup, and the second-chance points battle.
- Graham has scored in double-digits in each of his last eight games, and Gaston has dropped 10 or more points in his last seven contests.
- The Warhawks owned a 37-35 advantage on the boards, including a 12-8 offensive rebounding advantage.
- AUM forced 18 MC turnovers and outscored the Choctaws 18-3 on second-chance opportunities.
- Gaston's four steals are tied with Joe Lanzi for the single-game high this season for the Warhawks.
UP NEXT
AUM remains on the road as they visit Cleveland, Miss. on Saturday, Jan. 28 to take on Delta State University at 4 p.m. at Walter Sillers Coliseum.
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