Illinois State beats Morehead St. 67-66 on last-second shot
NORMAL, Ill. (AP) DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell took a long inbounds pass near half court, zig-zagged through four defenders to kiss a right-handed layup off the glass and in, lifting Illinois State to a 67-66 last-second win over Morehead State Monday night.
The Redbirds (1-1) trailed 66-65 after Morehead State's Miguel Dicent hit a 3-pointer with six seconds left. That left just enough time for Akoon-Purcell to power like a fullback through the Morehead defense on his way to scoring the game-winner.
Morehead State (1-1) was unable to get a shot off in the final .7 seconds. The lead changed four times in the final minute.
Akoon-Purcell scored 23 points on 9-of-13 shooting while Deontae Hawkins scored 15 and was 3-for-3 from 3-point range. Paris Lee scored 9 points with seven assists and four steals.
Morehead State was led by Xavier Moon's 18 points with four 3-pointers, 16 points from DeJuan Marrero and 11 from Corban Collins.