Bucs Fall Short Against 11th Ranked Jones College

Ellisville, MS- The upset minded Shelton State Men's basketball team fell just short of completing their goal as the 11^th ranked Jones College Bobcats defended their home floor in a 76-68 decision.

The Bucs were led by Nazir Griffin who poured in 16 points to go along with a team high 6 assists. Darius Brant chipped in 15 while Hasani Rivera posted a 12-point, 13 rebound double-double. Troy Dunn added 12 points as well. The Bobcats were led by Avery Thomas II who scored a game-high 19 points. LJ Hackman (16), Ky Pernell (16), Dimp Pernell (10), and Malik Franklin (10) all ended the game in double figures for Jones.

The 1^st half was a back-and-forth affair as neither team could pull away until Jones found life behind LJ Hackman. Hackman finished multiple acrobatic layups late in the quarter to help the Bobcats to a 13-point advantage at the break. The Bucs were without leading scorer, Nazir Griffin, who picked up his 2^nd foul with nearly 10 minutes remaining in the half and did not return until the 2^nd half.

The Bucs came out in the 2^nd half ready to play as they cut the Bobcat lead to just 4 with 13 minutes to play. Kuron Coleman knocked down two 3's during the run as the Bobcats were forced to call a timeout. The timeout halted the Buccaneer momentum as Jones grew the lead back to 14 points with just 8 minutes to play. Once again, the Bucs answered the bell cutting the lead to 6 points with 4 minutes to play, but the Bobcats were able to fend off the rally. Jones shot 14 more free throws than the Bucs (22-8) but converted just 14 of those attempts, while the Bucs were 7-8 from the stripe. The Bobcats won the turnover battle 16-9.

The Bucs return to action on Thursday, January 9^th as they open ACCC play in Bay Minette at Coastal-South.