LAS VEGAS, Nevada -- Prairie View A&M men's basketball won the 'Battle Of The Panthers', defeating Georgia State 71-56 in the Middleweight Bracket final of the MGM Resorts Main Events Tournament at T-Mobile Arena.
Gary Blackston posted his first double-double with game highs of 21
points and 10 rebounds along with four assists. Zachary Hamilton scored 17 points and added three assists, and Dennis Jones continued his solid play off the bench with 13 points.
Prairie View A&M shot 47 percent from the field (20-43), including a blistering 50 percent from three-point range (11-22) and 91 percent from the free throw line (20-22).
"I'm really proud of our young men," PVAMU head coach Byron Smith. "I'm happy for our administration who work so hard to give us everything we need to be successful. Georgia State has established itself as one of the top mid-major programs in the country. That is our goal here at Prairie View A&M, and today's win has us headed in that direction."
There were six lead changes in the first five+ minutes of the game before Prairie View A&M (2-3) took the lead for good on a three pointer by Jones at 13-11 with just under 14 minutes to play in the first half. After Georgia State (3-2) of the Sun Belt Conference tied the score for the final time at 13-13, a three-pointer by Blackston gave PVAMU a 16-13 lead with 12:30 to play in the first half.
The three-pointer sparked a 21-5 run over the next seven minutes, as Blackston's third three of the half provided a bookend to the run and gave Prairie View A&M a 34-18 lead with 5:29 to play in the first half.
Leading 40-27 at intermission, the lead dwindled to four points as Prairie View A&M did not make a field goal for nearly the first 10 minutes of the second half. Shay'rone Jett made a pair of layups sandwiched around a GSU basket, with the second Jett layup at the 9:15 mark sparking a 10-2 run. A pair of free throws by Jones gave PVAMU a 14-point lead at 57-43 with 6:19 to play. PVAMU never lead by less than nine points the remainder of the game.
J.D. Wallace added eight points, five rebounds, and one blocked shot. Jett added seven points, four rebounds and two blocks off the bench as PVAMU held a 14-5 advantage in second-chance points and a 23-8 advantage in bench scoring.
The Panthers limited Georgia State to 37 percent field goal shooting, including only of four of 20 from three-point range.
"We are and always will be a defense-first program," Smith said as his purple and gold-clad Panthers outrebounded Georgia State 37-25. "We really guarded well today because at times we had trouble scoring because Georgia State is very similar to us in terms of style of play."
Prairie View A&M returns to action Friday at UC-Santa Barbara. The game, scheduled for tipoff at 9 p.m. CT, can be viewed via pvpanthers.com.
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