PENSACOLA, Fla. --- The Mississippi College men's basketball team went on the road Saturday and grabbed a road victory over West Florida, 77-71, in a game that saw 14 ties and 26 lead changes at the UWF Field House.

The Choctaws improved to 6-16 with a 3-14 mark in th Gulf South Conference, while the Argonauts fell to 11-15 and 7-11 in league play. The win all-but-eliminated UWF from conference tournament contention with just two weeks left in the regular season.
 

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TURNING POINT

With 2:36 remaining in the contest, Henri Ventoniemi hit a pair of free throws to give UWF a 68-67 lead, but the Choctaws would outscore them 8-1 over the next two minutes to take a 75-69 lead and clinch the second road win for MC in their last three tries.
 

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KEY STATS

- The Choctaws shot 27-of-55 (49%) from the field and held the Argonauts to 24-of-52 (46%), giving them a 5-0 record when they outshoot their opponents this season.
- MC was also 6-of-11 from the three-point line, while the Argos were just 3-of-15.
- Junior Brandon Boston led the Choctaws with 14 points and seven rebounds, going 6-of-16 from the floor with two blocked shots and two steals.
- Freshman Zach Jones came off the bench and scored 10 points with seven boards in 16 minutes, all of which are career-highs for the rookie.
- Senior Marcus Lytle and sophomore Dyllan Taylor were also in double-figures with 11 points apiece, while senior Howard Thomas and junior Tre Jenkins pitched in nine apiece.
- Jon Brown led all scorers with 25 points for the Argos, while Jarrett Henderson (14) and Maxwell Benoit (10) were also in double-figures.
 

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HOW IT HAPPENED

- The Choctaws opened the game with the first four points on buckets by Boston and Thomas, but neither team was able to open a lead bigger than six points the entire contest.
- The first half saw MC lead by as many as five and they would take a 35-34 advantage into halftime.
- The Argos took their largest lead of the night with 13:56 to go when Jon Brown knocked down a jumper to make the score 50-46.
- MC responded with five straight points and neither team would lead by more than three the rest of the way.
- Ventoniemi gave UWF a 68-67 lead with 2:36 remaining, but Lytle hit a pair of free throws on MC's next possession, and they would go on to pick up the victory.
 

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NEXT UP

The Choctaws will be at home on Wednesday (Feb. 20) night when they host Shorter University at 7:30 p.m. in A.E. Wood Coliseum. This is the make-up game from a January 7th contest that was postponed in Rome due to "unforseen circumtances."
 

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Mississippi College is a private Christian university located in Clinton, Mississippi with an enrollment of over 5,000 students. MC recently finished their transition process back to NCAA Division II and the Gulf South Conference and will be competing for conference and national championships in the 2016-17 academic year.

The athletic department sponsors 17 intercollegiate athletic programs: Baseball, Men's and Women's Basketball, Men's and Women's Cross Country, Football, Golf, Men's and Women's Soccer, Softball, Men's and Women's Tennis, Men's and Women's Indoor Track & Field, Men's and Women's Outdoor Track & Field and Volleyball.

For more information on Mississippi College athletics, please contact David Nichols at 601-925-3234 or nichols@mc.edu.