Final Box
Play-by-Play
TALLAHASSEE, Fla.—Senior forward/guard Darnell Porter tossed in a team-high 18 points and grabbed eight rebounds to lead SC State to a 65-53 victory over Florida A&M Monday at AL Lawson Multipurpose Center. The Bulldogs closed out Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference play with a 5-11 league record and currently is in ninth place in the standings.

       South Carolina State improves to 9-20 overall, while FAMU falls to 12-18 overall and 7-8in the league. The Bulldogs handed the Rattlers their second home loss on the season.

       FAMU was led in scoring by freshman guard Avery Moore (Tallahassee, Fla) with 19, while sophomore Amin Stevens (Roswell, Ga) chipped in 12 in the loss.

       “I was really proud of the way the guys battled back after FAMU jumped out to a quick start,” said SC State head coach Tim Carter. “We did a great job keeping them off the boards and slowing down their tempo.”

        The Rattlers jumped out to a quick 10-2 advantage off a 3-pointer by true freshman Avery Moore at the 17:08 mark. Moore nailed another 3-pointer to give FAMU a six point lead, 23-17 with 5:01 left in the first-half. SC State battled back to cut the lead within three, 28-25 off a layup by junior forward Presano Bell with 1:58 left.

        A free-throw by Brandon Hosley closed out the first-half with Florida A&M leading 29-24. Avery Moore led all scorers in the first-half with 17 points and connecting 5-of-6 from 3-point range. SC State out-rebounded FAMU 21-19.

       Carter stated, “I thought we did a decent job on containing the flow of the game. Moore got off to a great start so we just need to make some adjustments in the second-half.”

       Porter's jumper at the 14:24 mark gave the Bulldogs their first lead of the night 40-38. Senior guard Tyvon Williams steal followed by a layup with 6:57 left in regulation increased the margin to eight, 54-46. A tip-in by junior Joe Ikhinmwin gave SC State their biggest lead of the night 14, 51-65 with 2:53 left.

        FAMU's Brandon Hosley tossed in a pair of free-throws with 1:40 left to cut the lead to 12,65-53 but it wasn't enough as SC State held on for the victory on 'Senior Night” over the Rattlers. The Bulldogs dominated in the paint outscoring their opponent 32-14, along an extra 23 points from their bench play.

       Junior Presano Bell added 10 points and six rebounds, while forward Omar Sanders added nine and senior forward Rio Pitt grabbed a game-high eight rebounds in the victory.

       South Carolina State will return to action on Thursday when they travel to Durham, NC to face the Eagles of North Carolina Central in an exciting doubleheader.  Tip-off for the women's contest is 6 p.m., with the men following.The Bulldogs will then travel to the Winston-Salem, N.C. to participate in the 2011 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Tournament during the week of March 7, 2011.

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