Aces end 9-game skid against Missouri State
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EVANSVILLE, Ind. – A trio of University of Evansville men’s basketball players registered double figures as the Purple Aces halted a 9-game losing streak as they defeated Missouri State by a final of 74-66 on Saturday at the Ford Center.
Jaylon Brown led the way for UE (11-14, 2-10 MVC) with 25 points. He was 9-of-12 from the field and 7-8 from the free throw line. David Howard set his career mark with 17 points on a 7-for-10 shooting effort. Duane Gibson was next with 16 points while leading the team with six assists.
“We are happy that we had a different outcome. We played a very good game throughout and we just have to keep that going and continue to get better,” Brown said.
Missouri State (15-10, 6-6 MVC) was paced by Jarred Dixon’s 16-point effort while Obediah Church finished the day with 13.
“As coaches, it certainly is a relief. Our guys have had good attitudes and have dealt with adversity, but never used it as an excuse,” Aces head coach Marty Simmons said. “They have stayed with it and I am happy for the guys in the locker room. We had contributions from everybody. It was a true team effort.”
Duane Gibson notched nine opening-half points as the Aces took a 30-26 lead into the break. Ryan Taylor opened the game with a triple before the Bears came back to tie it up at 7-7 before taking a 10-9 lead on a trey from Alize Johnson.
Evansville was able to retake the lead and open up their biggest edge of the half at 21-13 in a stretch that saw Jaylon Brown register four points. MSU cut the gap to one at 25-24 with 3:20 left before the Aces got three more Gibson points to make it a 30-26 game at halftime.
Austin Ruder hit from downtown to get the Bears within one before an Obediah Church bucket tied it up at 34-34 just over two minutes in. On the ensuing trip down the floor, Brown responded to give the lead right back to UE. After Evansville scored six in a row, the Bears roared back with a stretch of their own as a Jarred Dixon and-one knotted the score at 44-44 with 11 minutes remaining.
Midway through the half, Ryan Kreklow gave MSU its first second-half lead as his trey. Put the Bears up 47-46. After MSU took its largest lead to that point at 59-57, UE rallied back with seven in a row to go up 64-59 with three minutes on the clock.
The lead reached six with a minute left as Jaylon Brown’s 23rd point gave UE a 70-64 advantage. From there, the Aces added to the lead to finish the day with a 74-66 triumph.
UE did a stellar job of taking care of the ball, turning it over just five times. It was the first time the squad turned it over five times or less since February 10, 2015, coincidentally, in a home contest against the Bears.
For the game, the Aces outshot MSU, 55.8%-44.2% while also outrebounding them by a 32-28 tally. Howard was the top rebounder for UE, totaling seven.
A quick 2-game home stand concludes on Wednesday as the Aces welcome Loyola to the Ford Center for a 7 p.m. game.
