ITTA BETA, MS – Prepared with a gameplan and a mindset to get a win, the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff men's basketball team executed their gameplan well to gain a win over Mississippi Valley State with a final score of 74-68 on Saturday evening at the R.W. Harrison HPER Complex.
Shawn Williams led all scorers with 26 points, going 10-of-15 from the field and 50 percent from the arch. Williams also grabbed four rebounds and had two assists.
Dequan Morris had an impressive game, scoring all 18 points in the second half, shooting 77 percent from the field. Morris was two points shy of collecting his fourth-consecutive 20-point game.
Kylen Milton added ten points, shooting 42 percent from the field, and grabbed three boards.
K'Shun Stokes filled the stat book with eight points, six rebounds, four assists, and two steals.
After a quick two-hour bus ride to the Mississippi Delta, the Golden Lions stepped off the bus with a mission to collect a victory against Mississippi Valley. The Delta Devils jumped out early with a quick 7-2 lead over UAPB, forcing the Golden Lions to find their groove slowly.
A Trey Sampson pin-down for a Williams pullup jumper helped Williams draw a foul and get continuation to generate some energy for the Golden Lions. Still, the Delta Devils kept attempting to run away with the lead, bumping the spread up to seven points causing UAPB to play more intelligent basketball.
Travonta Doolittle did a great job of demonstrating smart basketball for the Golden Lions by not settling for three-point shots and being patient for better shots, such as his shot fake stop-and-pop jumper from midrange, which helped Arkansas-Pine Bluff settle down in the first half.
The Arkansas-Pine Bluff guards began to let the game come to them offensively and defensively. Williams knocked down shots on one end and Stokes on the other end playing aggressive defense – going after every loose ball, closing out hard, and flying around the floor.
Mississippi Valley guard Caleb Hunter tried to split Stokes and Sampson but would be stripped of the basketball, causing Stokes to gain possession of the ball going the other direction on a fastbreak. Stokes being unselfish with the basketball, threw Sampson a pass off the basketball for a Sampson two-hand jam to electrify the arena, making it a three-point game.
An MVSU layup and a pair of free throws widened the point spread to six over UAPB, but it seemed as if every time Williams touched the ball in the first half, he would score, leaving the Delta Devils with no way of containing Williams as he knocked down a mid-range jumper for 13 points to end the half, trailing to Valley 30-25.
"Coach has always preached to me to have confidence in my shot, so I just let it fly knowing it'll go in," said Williams about having the green light on offense.
Valley would score 11 quick points to start the second half, leaving the Golden Lions to search for a resolution fast. That solution would be Morris. His first bucket would leave the Mississippi Valley players, and fans puzzled about what happened. Following a Stokes steal for a fastbreak, Morris would take flight from outside the lane for an insane one-handed tomahawk jam all over the MVSU defender, shutting the gym down completely.
"Coach puts us in positions in practice that builds us up for moments like these," said Morris about his impeccable second-half.
With Williams doing a great job of scoring the basketball, Morris' help opened the floor up more for the Golden Lions, with the duo becoming an obvious threat for Mississippi Valley.
The Golden Lions would go on a 7-0 scoring run halfway through the second half to chop the Delta Devil lead to five.
Things became super close in the final five minutes. A Morris jumper helped the Golden Lions secure the lead, followed by not just one but two smothered Williams deep range three-point buckets and a Morris two-hand dunk from a backdoor cut to seal the lead over Mississippi Valley with a final score of 74-68.
"Our guys played with a lot of toughness and togetherness, which helped keep their composure down the stretch and make big winning plays," said UAPB head coach Solomon Bozeman about the vital win over Mississippi Valley.
WHAT'S NEXT
Arkansas-Pine Bluff will return to their home court to take on the Braves of Alcorn State at 5:30 p.m.
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