Morgan State University Athletics

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BALTIMORE, Md. – Aric Brooks scored a game-high 16 points to lead Morgan State to a 71-55 victory over South Carolina State on Saturday night in an ESPN2 nationally televised contest.

The Bears recorded their third straight victory and improved to 8-7 overall and remain unblemished in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference with a 4-0 record.

Kevin Thompson added 13 points and DeWayne Jackson had nine points with a career-high 10 rebounds for the Bears, who shot 46.3 percent and avenged a 71-68 home loss to the Bulldogs during last season's ESPNU televised matchup.

Freshman Justin Black finished with 11 points (5-11 FG) and junior point guard Larry Bastfield tied his season-high with a game-high seven assists to go along with six points.

South Carolina State (5-11, 1-2 MEAC) trailed by 14 points in the second half before Omar Sanders and Presano Bell combined to score 10 of their first 14 points, and pulled to 48-37 on a layup by Rio Pitt with 12 minutes left.

Sanders and Carrio Bennett led the Bulldogs with 11 points apiece. 

But roughly 60 seconds later, Ameer Ali knocked down a pair of free throws  that jump started a 10-4 run by the Bears. Black scored three consecutive baskets during the stretch, including a fastbreak dunk to help extend the Bears lead to 58-41 with 5:34 remaining.  The Bears ended up leading by as many as 18 points.

“I felt we shared the ball more this game then we have this entire season,” said junior Aric Brooks who finished the game with four assists. “I feel we have more chemistry now then we have had all season and this is good for us. We just need to continue to practice hard.”

DeWayne Jackson talked about his career-high 10 rebounds performance. “My teammates and coaches said that I'm not a rebounder. I just needed to prove them wrong, and show them I have what it takes to get on the boards.”

The Bulldogs held a 4-2 lead on a Carrio Bennett layup at the 18:16 mark, but did not score its next field goal until Rio Pitt scored a layup with 1:44 remaining in the half. 

The game was tied 9-9 before the Bears engineered a 16-3 run during an eight minute stretch. Bastfield hit a pair of free throws to give the Bears a 27-14 advantage with 4:18 left in the first half. MSU led 35-23 at halftime.

SCSU shot 14-for-20 from the free throw line in the first half and finished the game shooting 71 percent (22-31 FT).

Morgan State shot 66.7 percent (20-30 FT) from the stripe.

BEAR BIT: With tonight's win MSU coach Todd Bozeman has led the Bears to a 40-7 (.851) home record inside the confines of Hill Field House.