Box Score
CLEVELAND, Miss. – Sophomore Jack Madgen had a historic night on the court at Walter Sillers Coliseum as the No. 21 Delta State University men's basketball team hosted Gulf South Conference rival Christian Brothers University. But, Madgen isn't the only one who turned heads that night. Willie Readus recorded his 14^th double-double of the season and two other Statesmen (21-3, 14-2 GSC) scored in double figures against the Buccaneers (13-9, 9-7 GSC), including senior Cornel Knight scoring a season-high 17 points.  
It took the Statesmen almost three minutes to score when the game got under way, but once DSU started firing, the team quickly evened up the game, then took control. Down 6-1 early to CBU, Zelvin Smith, Jr., Readus, Knight and Devin Schmidt got the scoring going. The Bucs fouled Schmidt at the 12:54 mark; the freshman hit two at the line and tied the game, 11-11 in the first half.
 
Approaching the 12^th minute, Schmidt hit a jumper to give Delta the lead. He followed it with two more at the charity stripe and about halfway through the first half the Statesmen found themselves with a four-point lead.
 
Delta State held down a slim lead for a while but Christian Brothers came charging back. With 6:40 on the clock, the Bucs' Harry Green hit a jump shot that put CBU back on top 20-19. The visiting team was in control over the next three minutes before Smith put the Statesmen back on top on a jumper. Smith also drew a foul. He completed the three-point play and tied the scored again 26-26.
 
What happened next will go down in the Delta State record books. Sitting on the edge of history, sophomore Jack Madgen needed just one point to make his career total come to 500 while playing for the Statesmen. Madgen needed one, he got three, and gave his team the lead. With the clock reading 2:48 in the first half, the Australia native threw up a shot from beyond the arc, finding nothing but net. That 3-pointer put DSU on top 29-26 and made Madgen's career total at Delta State 502 points.
 
The Statesmen stayed ahead as the final minutes ticked off the clock and DSU took a 34-30 lead into the locker room at halftime.
 
The second half started off well for Delta State as the team held about a five-point lead for almost the first 10 minutes. At the 9:29 point, it was a nine-point lead, but right about then, Christian Brothers found its second wind. The Bucs' Trey Casey hit a 3-pointer with 6:03 on the clock and DSU suddenly found itself in a one-point game situation.
 
The Statesmen made sure that didn't last long. About 30 seconds later Cornel Knight answered with a jumper that helped him to a season-high 17 points and put the Statesmen up 51-48. CBU found itself in a drought from about six minutes to play to three minutes left in the game. During that time, Knight took the momentum for his team – for good – on a tip-in/almost dunk that got the crowd at Sillers rocking.
 
Schmidt and Readus scored the final two jumpers of the game after Knight's sky-high score, because after that, Christian Brothers continually fouled the Statesmen, hoping that missed foul shots would help out the visiting team. That didn't happen. Madgen and Knight finished off the game at the charity stripe and Delta State beat Christian Brothers 66-56.
 
Knight led the Statesmen with 17 points, shooting 6-7 from the field, 4-4 at the line, and the senior hit one 3-pointer. Readus finished the game with his 14^th double-double of 16 points and 13 rebounds. Schmidt put up 14 points. Smith came off the bench to contribute nine points and six rebounds. Madgen hit that one, historic, 3-pointer and ended up with eight points.
 
Delta State has a break for just two days. The Statesmen hit head to the University of North Alabama and Union University for the final road games of the 2013-2014 season. DSU is at UNA on Thursday, Feb. 20 and at Union on Saturday, Feb. 22.