HANCEVILLE, ALA. – Wallace State’s women’s basketball team upset 10th-ranked Jones County (Miss.) at Tom Drake Coliseum on Tuesday night, rolling to a 93-78 victory.
Sophomore Kyra Williams poured in a game-high 26 points behind four 3-pointers for Wallace State, and freshman Jiselle Woodson scored 24 points, knocking down six treys of her own. Imari Martin scored 16 points for the Lady Lions, Jasmine Baker had nine and Cherelle Straughter added seven points off the bench.
Wallace State (6-2) made a huge statement after losing a pair of weekend games in Illinois to No. 16 Wabash Valley and Vincennes University.
The Lady Lions surged out to a 31-15 lead by the end of the first quarter against Jones County and built as much as a 24-point cushion throughout.
Jones County trimmed its deficit to nine points early in the fourth quarter. Wallace State responded, however, closing the game with another strong run.
“We never like to lose, but there’s no doubt that those losses last weekend helped us win this game. We showed great maturity. Not only was it nice to win against a program like this, but it was nice to see how quickly we learned from our mistakes over the weekend. We stepped up and played well,” said Wallace State women’s coach Jessica McBrayer. “We showed more maturity during the last 10 minutes of the game than we had the previous seven games. I’m incredibly proud of how we kept our composure. We kept Jones County at bay and did what we needed to do.”
Wallace State mounted a double-digit lead less than two minutes into the game and pushed it to 25-12 by the 2:19 mark in the first quarter. After leading by 16 points after the opening stanza, Wallace State sustained a 55-37 advantage at the break and a 74-62 lead after three quarters.
Jones County had four players finish with double figures, including Jatyjia Jones with 18 points off the bench.
Men’s Basketball
Wallace State 85, Lurleen B. Wallace Community College 65
Freshman Kuran Garner finished with 18 points, sophomore Markise Davis added 12 and the Lions (5-2) notched their second straight road win.
Wallace State overcame a 28-24 halftime deficit.
On Nov. 16, Wallace State registered an 80-75 win at Coastal Alabama-East behind four players in double figures.
Juwan Johnson led the way with 17 points and eight rebounds for Wallace State. Garner finished with 14 points, Christopher Samson had 15 points and six rebounds off the bench and Eugene Leonard contributed 12 points.
Both Wallace State teams are home on Saturday, welcoming Wallace Community College-Selma, beginning at 2 p.m.
For more information about Wallace State athletics, visit www.athletics.wallacestate.edu or the athletics Facebook page at www.wallacestate.edu/athleticsfb.
