East Central Alabama News

A slow start was too much to overcome for Jacksonville State on the road Saturday afternoon in an 87-81 loss to Stetson after falling behind by 22 in the opening half.
The Gamecocks (8-13, 1-7 ASUN) got 15-or-more points from four difference guys, but it wasn't enough to fight back against an equally efficient attack from Stetson (11-8, 6-2 ASUN). Both teams shot 51-percent in the highest scoring matchup of the season for JSU. The Hatters came back down to Earth in the second-half after shooting 64 percent in the opening 20 minutes.
Working to lead the charge back for Jax State, Peyton Daniels posted a career-high 21 points, just topping Demaree King's mark of 19. Big men Juwan Perdue and Amanze Ngumezi each tallied 15 points and combined for nine rebounds. 
The Hatters blitzed JSU out of the gate to take a 31-9 lead just nine minutes into the game. Stetson's hot shooting paved the way for 54-point opening half. Still down 15 with 1:30 to play before the break, a pair of Ngumezi baskets bookended a triple by Daniels to help JSU trim the margin to 11 at intermission.
Every shot the Gamecocks made to chip away at the deficit in the second half was quickly countered by the Hatters as JSU struggled to pull back within single digits inside the Edmunds Center. At the line, Perdue pulled finally cut the margin below 10, and added another bucket on the next possession to make it a 68-61 game with just over eight minutes remaining. Daniels later inched JSU closer down 76-70 with two minutes still to play, but it's as close as the Hatters would allow.
Stetson connected on its free throws in the final few minutes to finish 24-29 from the stripe to seal the victory. On the flip side, JSU left opportunities on the floor with a 14-for-24 day at the free throw line.
JSU returns home to host Lipscomb at Pete Mathews Coliseum on Thursday. 

Original source can be found here.