BLUEFIELD, W.Va. – The King University men's basketball team dropped a nonconference contest Tuesday night to Bluefield State College, 86-74.
Michael Mays led the Tornado, scoring 16 points.
THE BASICS
FINAL: Bluefield State 86, King 74
LOCATION: Ned E. Schott Gymnasium; Bluefield, W.Va.
RECORDS: King 8-8, Bluefield State 2-10
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Half
- Bluefield State was on fire to start the game, scoring the first seven points before Mays hit a layup to get the Tornado on the board.
- King got to within five when Jaylen Bernard hit a three with just over 12 minutes to play.
- After Bluefield State hit a layup and a free throw, Kenny Turner drew a foul and sank both shots to make it a 20-14 Big Blue lead.
- The Big Blue took a 32-20 lead with 6:47 to play before trading free throws.
- Bluefield State would go on an 18-11 run to end the half with a 52-34 lead.
Second Half
- After the Big Blue hit the first bucket of the half, Mays hit a triple to kickstart a 14-4 King run that got them to within 58-48 with just over 16 minutes to play.
- The teams would trade buckets until the 14-minute mark, when Bluefield State scored six consecutive points to open up a 68-50 lead.
- The Tornado immediately started to respond, scoring eight straight points to get back to a 10-point deficit, 68-58.
- After the Tornado got to within 70-61 with 8:42 remaining, the Big Blue started to pull away, scoring 10 points over the next three minutes to take an 80-61 lead.
- King narrowed the gap to 83-70 with three minutes to play before Bluefield State hit a pair of free throws to pull away.
- Amarius Beasley made a fastbreak layup in the closing seconds, but Bluefield State ended up with the 86-74 win.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- Mays led the Tornado offense, scoring 16 points on 6-of-8 shooting.
- Kenny Turner nearly picked up a double-double, finishing with eight points and 12 rebounds.
FOR THE FOES
- Three Bluefield State players scored in double figures, led by a 17-point shooting from Marquez Cooper. Jordan Hinds (15) and Kesean Robinson (13) also cleared the 10 point mark.
- Hirotaka Ohashi and Landry Palata both had eight rebounds, with Ohashi also dishing seven assists.
- The Big Blue defense was stellar, forcing 32 Tornado turnovers, scoring 42 points off them compared to 14 points off turnovers for King.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- The 12 rebounds for Turner are a new career-high.
- This was the first nonconference loss of the season for King.
UP NEXT
- King will return to the friendly confines of the Student Center Complex Wednesday when they host Erskine at 7:30 p.m.
- Bluefield State is back in action Friday afternoon when they take on Washington Adventist.
