Box Score ATLANTA, Ga. –
Rickie Jackson hit seven 3-pointers and
Marcus Goode had 18 points, 14 rebounds and five blocked shots as the Benedict College Tigers advanced to the semifinals of the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference men's basketball tournament with a 72-52 victory over the East's fifth-seed Albany State on Wednesday night.
The Tigers had a two-point lead, 35-33, at the half, but exploded in the second half thanks to their inside-outside game plan. Jackson made open 3-pointers when the Albany State defense collapsed on Goode, and then Goode took over inside when the Golden Rams had to spread out their defense and guard Benedict's perimeter shooters. Jackson scored 15 of his points in the second half, while Goode scored 13 in the second half.
Benedict scored the first 11 points of the second half, with Jackson hitting three consecutive 3-pointers, to give the Tigers a 46-33 lead with 17:04 to play. Benedict kept a double-digit lead the rest of the way.
The first half was a different story, with the Golden Rams taking an early 12-6 lead before Benedict tied the game at 12 on a layup by
Tydran Beaty. The game remained close the rest of the first half, with Albany State's Justin Wilcox tying the game at 33 with 16 seconds left in the half. Benedict's
Xavier Collier raced down the court and scored a layup to give the Tigers a 35-33 lead at the half.
Benedict, the No. 1 seed in the East Division, improves to 21-6 overall. The Tigers advanced to the semifinals at 7:45 p.m. on Friday against the winner of Thursday's quarterfinal matchup between Stillman and Paine. Benedict lost to Stillman in their only meeting this season, but beat Paine twice, including a 70-64 victory on Saturday in the final game of the regular season.
Jackson had eight 3-pointers in that contest at Paine on Saturday, and has made 15 3-pointers in his last two games.
Albany State wraps up the season at 7-19.
Wilcox led the Golden Rams with 14 points, while Justin Udi added 11 points.
Benedict had a dominating 45-23 rebounding edge. Benedict shot 49 percent for the game, while Albany State shot 35.7 percent, including 27.6 percent in the second half.
