CLINTON, Miss. --- The Mississippi College men's basketball team opened the 2015-16 season with a 71-67 come-from-behind victory over cross-town rival Belhaven on Friday night in A.E. Wood Coliseum.

The Choctaws (1-0) trailed 41-31 at halftime as the Blazers turned 13 MC turnovers into 19 first-half points.

In the second half, Belhaven would push the lead out to 44-33 in the opening minute as Josh Carpenter made one of his two three-pointers on the night. The Blazers were 8-of-21 from long range, but just 2-of-9 in the second half.

After the Blazers went up 11, the Choctaws started to chip away at the lead, tying the score at 48-48 when junior Otis Harvey hit a three-pointer with 13:25 to go. The Jones County JC transfer came off the bench and scored 12 second half points.

Harvey's second three-pointer of the night gave MC a 51-48 lead, an advantage they would not relinquish. They would lead by as many as eight with just under three minutes to go and held off a late charge from the Blazers in the final minutes.

Five different Choctaws scored in double-figures, led by senior Tory Rice with 16 points and 11 rebounds. The Starkville native went 8-of-9 from the field and scored 12 second half points. The Starkville native picked up where he left off last season, collecting his 14th career double-double after setting a school record with 13 in his junior season.

Senior Johnny Rucker scored 15 points, while senior Tristan Moore had 14 with five rebounds and five assists. Senior Jonathan McGee was also in double-figures with 10 points, also leading the team with six assists.

McGee's three-pointer with with 5:43 remaining in the first half continued a streak of 459 straight games with a make from long range, dating back to March 5th, 1998.

The Choctaws shot 50% (29-of-58) from the field on the night, and the second-half defense allowed Belhaven to shoot just 33% (7-of-21) from the field.

The Choctaws will be back in action on Tuesday (Nov. 17) when they travel to Mobile to face Spring Hill at 7:00 p.m.