Morgan State University Athletics

Boxscore

BALTIMORE, Md. -- A month ago, Morgan State could not believe they had let a sure win slip away in the final two seconds against the Howard Bison in Washington, DC.

Now the surging Bears are one of the hottest teams in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) and are vying for one of the top seeds as MSU prepares for the MEAC Basketball Tournament and March Madness.

Morgan State (10-13, 7-5) cranked up their defensive pressure in the 2nd half and rode a standout performance by Aaron Andrews tonight, beating Howard 81-66 for its third straight victory. The win also improved the Bears home record to an impressive 8-1. 

Andrews and Ron Timus led the way for the Bears. Andrews collected his sixth double-double of the season by scoring a team-high 19 points and grabbing 12 rebounds, while Timus had an all-around game by finishing with 17 points (5-8 FG) and five rebounds.

Howard trailed 38-35 at halftime, but MSU increased its lead to 56-43 following a pullup jumper by Joseph McLean with 12:14 remaining. The Bears lead ballooned to 18 points as a result of tough defense that caused several Bison miscues.

MSU held off a late Bison rally that had trimmed the lead down to 73-62 at the 4 minute mark, however it was too little too late for HU as the Bears closed the game on a 9-2 run.   

Howard (2-10, 5-16) entered the contest without the services of Cliffone Ault, the Bisons leading scorer at 13.8 ppg, but Will Gant stepped in to take up the scoring slack. 

Gant scored a game-high 25 points for the Bison, who have lost 10 straight since beating MSU in Burr Gymnasium back on January 8th. They shot only 32 percent against the Bears in the 2nd half, and they finished the game shooting 23-of-58 (39.7%).

The Bears won the battle on the boards as they outrebounded Howard by a 40-32 margin. MSU also had a productive night from the charity stripe as they connected on 73% from the line (23-of-31 FT).

MSU will attempt to defend home court on Monday night when they take on Delaware State. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. in Hill Field House. The Hornets will enter the contest ranked No. 2 in the MEAC as a result of a 71-63 loss suffered at Coppin State on Saturday night.

GAME NOTES

• Aaron Lawler had a solid game by collecting a game-high five assists with three boards
• Sam Brand connected on 7-for-10 from the free line and scored 13 points
• Timothy Berkley had a "block party" as he recorded a career-high four blocked shots
• The Bears have posted a 7-2 record when scoring 70 or more points