GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- Myson Jones recorded 19 points to lead the Anderson University men's basketball team to a 66-56 South Atlantic Conference victory over host Tusculum College Wednesday night at Pioneer Arena.
The defending SAC Champions used a 14-0 run midway through the second half as Anderson (9-4, 5-0 SAC) records its third straight win and remains unbeaten in league play.
DJ McGowan finished with 15 points on 7-of-8 shooting from the floor, while Bo Holston added 14 markers, including three 3-pointers.
Tusculum freshman Keith Jumper led all scorers with 22 points as he went 9-of-11 from the field for the Pioneers (3-10, 1-4 SAC). Addison Flynn finished with 10 points, while JD Miller accounted for six points and a career-high 13 rebounds, including six offensive boards.
The two teams battled back and forth in a first half that included three ties and three lead changes. TC jumped out to a 5-0 advantage and led 12-8 with 14:54 remaining before halftime. AU answered with a 5-0 run of its own, including a Holston three-pointer and a McGowan jumper as the Trojans gained its first lead of the night at 13-12 with 13:31 left in the period.
Jumper later connected on a layup to put the Pioneers back up on top 19-18 with 9:33 left in the half, which would prove to be TC's final lead of the evening.
Anderson would close out the final 1:10 of the period with back-to-back three-pointers by Holston as the Trojans took a 34-27 lead into the locker room.
In the second half, Anderson jumped out to a double-digit lead at 38-28 as Jones made one of two free throws with 16:43 left in the game. TC answered with a 5-0 spurt, all from Jumper, including his three-point play with 15:17 to go to trim the Anderson lead to 38-33.
But the Trojans rattled off 14 unanswered points in a span of 5:50 to lead by their biggest margin of the night at 54-35 at the 8:47 mark of the period. McGown started the rally with back-to-back buckets, including a steal and a dunk. McGown would later add a three-point play to complete the run.
Tusculum trimmed the deficit with seven straight points, including a bucket and a three-pointer by Jumper, while Matt Redic scored his first collegiate points with his basket as TC trailed 54-42 with 7:10 left.
The Trojans moved the league back out to 17 points on three occasions down the stretch, before Tusculum ended the game with a 10-3 run to provide the final margin.
Anderson finished the game shooting 48 percent, including 13-of-24 (54.2%) in the first half. Tusculum was consistent from the field, shooting near 45 percent in each period (44.7%). TC would out-rebound the Trojans by a 31-29 margin.
Anderson's Chris Ross posted six points and six rebounds off the bench, while Tusculum's Anton Tuz and Nick Spinks finished with six and five points, respectively.
Tusculum continues its three-game home-stand on Saturday when it hosts cross-mountain rival Mars Hill College for a 4 p.m. contest. Anderson returns home on Saturday to entertain Carson-Newman for a 4 p.m. SAC tilt.
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