HANCEVILLE – Wallace State men’s sophomore guard Marcus Barham registered a career-high 30 points and the Lions rolled to a 79-62 triumph over Gadsden State in their conference opener Tuesday night.
Barham entered the game as Wallace State’s leading scorer and more than doubled his season average (12.3 ppg) against the Cardinals, knocking down five 3-pointers. The transfer from Eastern Florida State College has now posted double digits in 15 games, including five in a row.
“Marcus Barham can be lights out, and I thought he was really focused across the board all day. More than anything, I’m proud of the strides he is making defensively. We don’t have to worry about switching him out for only offense and can keep him in there for longer stretches,” said Wallace State coach John Meeks. “There have been a lot of benefits of Marcus stepping up on the defensive end. There’s no doubt about his scoring capabilities. It’s just a matter of him defending.”
Wallace State (16-3, 1-0 Alabama Community College Conference) is off to its best start in Meeks’ six seasons in Hanceville, and the Lions continued the surge Tuesday night.
The Lions raced out to a 13-3 advantage less than five minutes into the game and pushed its cushion to 21-7 with 8:35 remaining in the first half on a Jaylen McCoy 3-pointer.
Derylton Hill’s dunk and layup on consecutive possessions later handed the Lions a 27-12 advantage with a little more than six minutes left in the half, and a Barham 3-pointer gave Wallace State a 37-18 lead with 2:20 left.
The Lions led 45-21 at intermission.
Wallace State led by as many as 19 points early in the second half. Gadsden State (6-9, 0-1 ACCC) trimmed the deficit to as few as 11 points, but Wallace State answered each time the Cardinals threatened to get within single digits.
Hill scored 15 points for Wallace State, Kylen Butler added 11 and Immanuel King contributed eight.
For Gadsden State, DeShawn Moore paced the way with 11 points. Brandon Williams had nine points off the bench and Jaylen Hill added eight.
Wallace State has won four games in a row and eight of nine. The Lions play five of their six home conference games in January.
“We have no choice but to take care of these early home games in the conference. We treat them like one-game seasons. Our guys are going to enjoy it until they walk out of the locker room,” Meeks said.
Women’s game
Gadsden State 79, Wallace State 67
Sophomore guard Hannah Vest and freshman Alex Lowery each scored 14 points for Wallace State, which dropped its conference opener Tuesday night despite a fourth-quarter rally at Tom Drake Coliseum.
Gadsden State, which limited the Lady Lions to six points in the second quarter, led 20-18 after the first quarter and extended it to 36-24 at the half after outscoring Wallace State 16-6 in the second period.
The Lady Cardinals pushed their lead to 56-41 after three quarters before Wallace State made its strongest push of the game.
Wallace State (6-12, 0-1 ACCC) opened the fourth quarter on an 11-0 run, slicing its deficit to 56-52 with 7:29 remaining after a Khadijah Jordan bucket.
The Lady Lions were again within four points of the lead with 4:11 left, but Gadsden State (6-9, 1-0 ACCC) closed the game on a 14-6 run.
Lowery scored 11 of her 14 points in the second half for the Lady Lions, hitting four 3-pointers. Jasmine Hollis scored all nine of her points in the second half, Velencia Johnson contributed eight and Janese Richardson added seven points for Wallace State.
Brittany Washington led Gadsden State with 26 points, while Jaide Walker added 16.
Both Wallace State teams continue conference play at home on Thursday as Southern Union pays a visit. The women’s game begins at 5:30 p.m.
For more information about Wallace State athletics, visit athletics.wallacestate.edu.
