Box Score JACKSON. Tenn. – Delta State University men's basketball team rallied in the second half of play but fell 54-49 to Union University inside Fred DeLay Gymnasium on January 3. The Green-and-White offense struggled shooting 18-of-53 (.340) from the floor and 4-of-17 (.235) from behind the arc.
 
After a sluggish start by both the Statesmen (4-6, 1-1 GSC) and the Bulldogs (3-11, 1-2 GSC), Union opened up a 17-0 run midway through the first-half to take a 21-9 lead that extended all the way to the 5:34 mark. Jack Madgen broke the six-minute scoring drought for the Green-and-White with a tough layup in the paint.
 
DSU struggled to settle into the offense in the first-half shooting just 8-of-25 (.320) from the floor, but found a way to put the ball in the basket with Madgen leading the way on 4-of-5 shooting from the floor for 12 points. The Statesmen went into the locker room down 24-31 to the Bulldogs.
 
Preseason All-GSC selection Terry Leake, Jr. followed up with five points, on just 2-of-10 shooting and three rebounds.
 
A bevy of Bulldogs contributed to the scoring efforts in the first-half of play but Corieon Pearson tallied eight points to lead the way. Union connected on 10-of-26 (.385) and recorded 10 second-chance points.
 
The Statesmen rallied at the opening of the second-half to close the Bulldog lead down to 31-34 after a thunderous dunk by Cornel Knight at the 15:53 mark. Leake, Jr. provided the initial spark shooting 2-for-2 with an old-fashioned three-point play to spark the 7-3 run.
 
Coming off a career-high 15 points against Belhaven University, Matt Albritton railed off nine straight points for the Statesmen to take a 41-39 lead with 11:08 remaining in the contest.
 
Pedro Faller hit his fourth three-pointer at a critical time in the contest to put the Bulldogs on top 52-49 with 1:27 remaining then extended the lead to 54-49 after a Roy Bullock III basket to seal the game for the Bulldogs.
 
Leake, Jr. and Madgen led the Green-and-White with 12 points a piece while Albritton chipped in nine in the effort.
 
The Statesmen return to action on Saturday, January 5, to face off again the University of North Alabama at home inside Walter-Sillers Colliseum. Tip is scheduled for 4 p.m. and will be broadcast on the Statesmen Sports Network.