Ireland, Hamilton key LMU run past Bears, 79-62 - Morgan State University Athletics

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LOS ANGELES, Calif. -- The ball never seemed to bounce Morgan State's way tonight at Gersten Pavilion for the Second Annual LMU Holiday Classic.

Anthony Ireland scored a game-high 27 points and Ashley Hamilton added 20 to help beat Morgan State 79-62 on Thursday handing the Bears its third straight loss.

The win also marked LMU's first victory against the Bears in three matchups since 2009.

Morgan State (3-6) stayed close during the early going as there were seven lead changes and the ballgame was tied four times before LMU took control. A fastbreak layup by Ireland ignited a 15-3 run during a four-minute stretch. A putback basket by Ayode Egbeymi (9 pts) gave the Lions a 27-17 lead at the 6:23 mark.

The Lions (6-6) extended to its largest lead at 42-29 with 2:33 to go and held a 43-34 halftime lead.

Justin Black scored 15 points, Anthony Hubbard 14, while DeWayne Jackson and Ian Chiles contributed 10 apiece for the Bears.

Morgan State trailed by 19 (68-49) following a fastbreak layup (9:37), before the Bears mounted an 18-4 run. Hubbard scored 8 points during the stretch, including a 3-pointer that trimmed the deficit to 72-62 with 3:10 remaining.

The Bears could get no closer as LMU scored the final six points of the game.

LMU did a solid job of limiting the Bears second chance opportunities and held a 56-33 advantage on the boards, and scored 32 points in the paint.

LMU's three starting guards of Ireland, Egbeyemi and Chase Flint combined for 26 rebounds, including 10 each for Flint and Egbeyemi.

The Lions shot 39 percent (26-66) from the field and ht 21 of 29 (72%) free throws, while the Bears connected on 23 of 64 shots (35%) and hit just 54 percent (12-22) from the stripe.

Morgan State will face the San Diego Toreros on Saturday night to complete the 2012 portion of the schedule before heading back to Baltimore.

Bear Notes
Senior swingman DeWayne Jackson scored 10 points (4-12) and finished with five rebounds, four assists, four steals and a career-high five blocked shots

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