Morgan State bounces Rattlers, 78-67 - Morgan State University Athletics

Box Score BALTIMORE, Md. -- Justin Black had 20 points and eight rebounds to lead four Bears in double-figures lifting Morgan State to a 78-67 win over Florida A&M on Thursday night in the regular season finale at Hill Field House.

It was the fifth straight win for Morgan State (14-14, 10-6) who will enter next week's Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference as one the hottest teams in the league having won eight of its last nine games.

7-foot-2 center Ian Chiles was 9 of 13 for a career-high 18 points and Shaquille Duncan had 11 points.

DeWayne Jackson, who was honored during the Bears' "Senior Night" ceremony, posted 15 points, four rebounds with two blocks and became the school No. 6 all-time leading scorer with 1,537 career points.

Jackson was asked about joining the school's elite scoring list.

“It's a great feeling, but it's not about me playing for Morgan State to make individual history; it's about our team going into this conference tournament and bringing home the championship.”

“We just have to go in focused and keep playing like we're playing,” said Jackson.

After Markee Teal hit a pair of free throws to help the Rattlers tie the game at 4-4, Morgan State responded with a 21-2 run ignited by a layup by Tauron Bailey. By the time DeWayne Jackson nailed a 3-pointer at the 11:38 mark the Bears held a 23-6.

Florida A&M closed the half with an 8-0 spurt and trailed the Bears 41-30 when they retreated into the locker room.

"I was not satisfied at the half," said Morgan State coach Todd Bozeman. "I thought we played really well in the first 10 minutes of the game, but in the next 10 minutes we did not play well. We did not focus and I wasn't happy at all about that. But the guys stepped up in the second half and made some plays."

The lead jumped back to 20 points midway through the second half when Justin Black hit a 3-pointer (15:48) to spark a 9-2 run . Duncan scored a layup to give the Bears a 58-38 lead with 13:54 left to play.

The Bears shot 50 percent in the first half, hitting 17 of 34 beyond the arc, and held the Rattlers to 9 of 27 shooting, 0 of 4 from 3-point range.

Morgan State finished 32 of 62 from the floor, outrebounded the Rattlers 41-26, and forced 17 turnovers.

Muhammad Abdul-Aleem led the Rattlers with 16 points on 5 of 9 shooting, and Jomari Bradshaw had 13 points.

"I'm just happy for DeWayne to go out on Senior Night with a win," Bozeman said. "And to even up our record and be .500 overall is important. It is good to have momentum going into the MEAC Tournament and the postseason."

Morgan State will enter the MEAC Tournament as the No. 5 seed and will play No. 12 see South Carolina State on Monday, March 11. Tip-off is scheduled for 9 p.m. at The Scope Arena in Norfolk, Va.

Bear Notes
DeWayne Jackson scored on a 3-pointer to become the school's No. 6 all-time leading scorer in school history

Justin Black connected on 8 of 13 from the field and it was the seventh time he has posted 20 or more points this season

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