A hot start at the rim led the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff to an important road win and a little revenge Saturday night.
The UAPB men’s basketball team defeated Mississippi Valley State 83-58 at the R.W. Harrison HPER Complex in Itta Bena, Mississippi.
UAPB (6-23, 3-13 SWAC) shot 54.7 percent from the floor and scored 44 points in the paint. The Golden Lions attempted three mid-range shots the entire game, with the rest of their field goals coming either at the rim or behind the arc. UAPB made 7 of 11 from 3-point range.
Junior forward Doctor Bradley led with 26 points and six rebounds. He made both of his 3-point attempts after entering the game 3 of 9 this season.
Senior forward Klemen Vuga scored 18 points with 10 rebounds, and junior Quentin Bolton Jr. scored 17 points, including shooting 3 of 3 from 3-point range, with five rebounds. Vuga and Bolton set new personal scoring highs in SWAC play.
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
Getting to the rim also got the Golden Lions to the free throw line with regularity, where they shot 18 of 29.
UAPB’s 80 points was the most it has scored in a game since reaching 91 against Alabama State during the opening weekend of SWAC play.
MVSU (3-26, 1-15) never led, though the Delta Devils’ 3-point shooting kept them in the game for a while. MVSU shot 7 of 20 from deep. Junior guard Antonio Sisk and senior guard Donovan Sanders each scored 12 points to lead the Devils, with senior center Daniel Umoh adding 11 points and eight rebounds.
The Golden Lions dominated the first 10 minutes. They opened the game on a 14-0 run, not allowing any points until an Arthur Tate layup 5:30 into the game. Bradley scored 8 of the game’s first 10 points and assisted forward Kyle Brown in scoring the other 2.
UAPB went on to lead 25-7 after back-to-back layups by Bolton. He was the only UAPB guard to score during this stretch, with forwards Bradley, Brown and Vuga scoring the rest of the Golden Lions’ points.
A Tate 3-pointer at the 9:59 mark of the first half saw Valley start to fight its way back into the game. UAPB had a 3:39 stretch without a field goal as the Delta Devils packed the paint defensively and went on a 10-2 run. MVSU got as close as 34-29 with 1:45 left in the half, but a dunk by Bolton and a 3-pointer by Bradley sent UAPB into halftime up 39-29.
Other than a 27-second stretch in the first three minutes of the second half, UAPB kept its lead in double digits the rest of the game. A 7-1 MVSU run in the final 7 minutes only got the UAPB lead down to 69-55.
Valley scored 1 point in the final 3:26 of the game as UAPB held Valley to the fewest points any Division I team has scored against the Lions this season. The only team to score fewer was Champion Christian with 57.
This win avenged UAPB’s 79-76 home loss to MVSU last month and ensures the Golden Lions will finish ahead of the Delta Devils in the SWAC standings.
UAPB is one game behind Prairie View A&M in the race for the final spot in the SWAC basketball tournament with two games remaining.