Jacksonville St. wins 57-56 as EIU misses FT in final second (Dec 31, 2016)
CHARLESTON, Ill. (AP) Norbertas Giga had 15 points and 11 rebounds for his fourth double-double of the season, Christian Cunningham grabbed a career-high 19 rebounds and Jacksonville State held off Eastern Illinois 57-56 on Saturday.
Ray Crossland hit two free throws for Eastern Illinois with 9.5 seconds left to cut it to 56-55 and Malcolm Drumwright went 1 of 2 at the stripe to give Jacksonville State a two-point lead with 7.9 seconds left.
Muusa Dama grabbed the rebound, Cornell Johnston went the length of the court and had a layup blocked just before the buzzer but a foul was called. He made the first of two free throws with 0.7 seconds left and his second attempt hit the front of the rim.
Erik Durham added 14 points for Jacksonville State (9-7, 2-0 Ohio Valley) and Greg Tucker had 12. The Gamecocks were just 2 of 18 from 3-point range and 9 of 17 at the stripe.
Johnston led Eastern Illinois (8-6, 0-1) with 13 points. Demetrius McReynolds and Dama added 10 points apiece. Dama also grabbed 15 rebounds to give him 33 in his last two games.
