No. 8 Jones College rallied from an 11-point first-half deficit to beat South Arkansas 79-67 Tuesday night at A.B. Howard Gymnasium in Ellisville. The Bobcats improved to 4-0, with each of their first four wins coming by double digits.
South Arkansas led 25-14 after a 3-pointer by Tim Bates with 9:12 left in the first half. Jones answered with an 18-2 run, taking a 32-27 lead after Nick Oliver scored inside. The Stars briefly moved back in front, but David Washington’s 3-pointer with 29 seconds remaining sent Jones into halftime ahead 35-33.
The teams tied the score at 35 early in the second half before Jones put together a 10-0 run. Traevon Koch made a basket and free throw during the stretch, and Wesley Lindsey added a 3-pointer. South Arkansas later cut the deficit to 45-44, but Jones rebuilt its lead, reaching its largest margin of the night, 59-47, on Koch’s three-point play with 8:39 to go.
The Stars made one more push, getting within 65-60 with 4:17 remaining. Jones responded with scores from Bob Dickson, Washington and Jaden Tate to extend the lead to 74-62. Koch added two transition baskets in the final 38 seconds, including a dunk.
Koch led all scorers with 22 points, making 9 of 10 free throws. Washington scored 19 on 9-of-14 shooting. Lindsey and Tate each had 10 points, while Dickson grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds and blocked four shots.
Jones shot 50.9% from the field and held South Arkansas to 33.8%. The Bobcats scored 46 points in the paint, 31 on fast breaks and 28 off turnovers. South Arkansas fell to 1-3.
Jones’ next game was scheduled for Thursday against Bishop State in Mobile, with tipoff listed for 6 p.m.
