Thursday, December 5
Hattiesburg, Miss.
2:30 PM
Southern Miss
4-4,0-0Sun Belt
81
vs
64
Alabama State
3-6,0-0SWAC
1
2
F
Alabama St.
33
31
64
Southern Miss.
30
51
81
MBB: Harris' 20-Point, 20-Rebound Game Powers Southern Miss Past Alabama State
12/5/2024 6:09:00 PM | Men's Basketball
HATTIESBURG, Miss. – Have a game, Denijay Harris and Cobie Montgomery. The duo helped spark Southern Miss (4-4, 0-0 Sun belt) to an 81-64 win over Alabama State (3-6, 0-0 SWAC) at Reed Green Coliseum on Thursday afternoon.
Harris became the fourth player in program history to record a 20-point, 20-rebound game as the forward finished with exactly those numbers. It was the 17th game in program history with a Golden Eagle finishing with at least 20 points and 20 rebounds.
Despite the win, Alabama State held the lead three minutes longer than Southern Miss. The Hornets were buzzing in the first half as they never trailed in the opening frame. Alabama State built its lead to as many as nine that half thanks to a three-point barrage from CJ Hines and Jalen Keago.
For the Golden Eagles, though, Cobie Montgomery was matching each made triple. The Louisville, Ky. native answered on the tail end of a 7-0 Golden Eagle run with his first three-pointer of the game, which cut the Hornets' advantage to two. That first three-pointer with 4:36 left in the first half was just a foreshadowing of what he was about to do later in the game.
Alabama State would go on to take a three-point lead into the break, but not before Harris grabbed 11 rebounds in the first half. Southern Miss and Alabama State went punch-for-punch over the first four minutes of the half, but Montgomery lit a fuse that wouldn't be put out when he nailed his third-straight three-pointer to give Southern Miss a three-point lead.
Montgomery started the second half by going five-for-five from deep – he eventually finished with six three-pointers. That is tied for the seventh-most in a single game in program history. After his final trey, Southern Miss went on a 15-0 run that built its lead to 18 with 7:22 play.
In what was the longest run of the season for the Golden Eagles, four different players scored. No points during that run were louder than Christian Watson's dunk that brought the roof down at The Greenhouse. His slam put Southern Miss ahead, 62-46.
The Southern Miss lead hit 22 after DeAntoni Gordon delivered a dunk to make it 76-54 with a just over three minutes to play. Montgomery would go on to finish with a career-high 21 points, while five Golden Eagles finished in double figures.
Alvarez finished with 13 points and six rebounds, while Watson had 12 points and eight rebounds. Gordon recorded 10 points, six rebounds and three blocks. After shooting 37.5 percent from the floor in the first half, Southern Miss shot 64.3 percent in the second half.
Alabama State's 32.4 percent shooting clip was the lowest a team has shot against the Golden Eagles this season. Southern Miss' 48 rebounds were the most it's had against a Division I opponent this season.
The Golden Eagles are back on the road next week when they travel to Tulane on Tuesday, Dec. 10. Tip-off in New Orleans is slated for 7:30 p.m. CT.
Game Notes
- Southern Miss starters today were #1 DeAntoni Gordon, #7 Christian Watson, #10 Cobie Montgomery, #12 Neftali Alvarez, #13 Denijay Harris
- That starting lineup variation is 2-1 on the season
- Southern Miss' 15-0 run that ended at 7:22 in the second half was its longest of the season
- The 48 team rebounds were the most against a Division I opponent this season
- Southern Miss held Alabama State to a 32.4 percent shooting clip, which is the lowest a Golden Eagle opponent has registered this season
- Southern Miss shot 64.3 percent from the floor in the second half and shot at least 50 percent in a game for the third time this season
- The seven blocks are the second-most in a game this season
- Southern Miss moved to 30-3 at home since the start of the 2022-23 season
- Five Golden Eagles scored at least 10 points in the same game for the third time this season
Player Notes
- Jett Montgomery and Christian Reid were the first Golden Eagles off the bench
- Harris finished with 10+ rebounds for the third time this season. He had 11 rebounds in the first half alone
- Harris' 20 rebounds were a career best and topped his previous high of 14
- As of today, his 20 rebounds are tied for the most by a player in a game this season in all of Division I
- Harris became the fourth player in program history to have at least 20 points and 20 rebounds
- It's the 17th game in program history where a player has recorded at least 20 points and 20 rebounds. The last 20p/20r game was recorded by Mike Coleman on Feb. 13, 1975. Coleman had 38 points and 26 rebounds
- Watson's seven rebounds tied his career-high, which was set at Montana State earlier this season
- Cobie Montgomery's six three-pointers are tied for the seventh-most in a single game in program history. It was the most by a player since Jaron Pierre Jr. had seven on Jan. 29, 2022
- Montgomery finished with a career-high 21 points
- Harris also logged a career-high four assists
Harris became the fourth player in program history to record a 20-point, 20-rebound game as the forward finished with exactly those numbers. It was the 17th game in program history with a Golden Eagle finishing with at least 20 points and 20 rebounds.
Despite the win, Alabama State held the lead three minutes longer than Southern Miss. The Hornets were buzzing in the first half as they never trailed in the opening frame. Alabama State built its lead to as many as nine that half thanks to a three-point barrage from CJ Hines and Jalen Keago.
For the Golden Eagles, though, Cobie Montgomery was matching each made triple. The Louisville, Ky. native answered on the tail end of a 7-0 Golden Eagle run with his first three-pointer of the game, which cut the Hornets' advantage to two. That first three-pointer with 4:36 left in the first half was just a foreshadowing of what he was about to do later in the game.
Alabama State would go on to take a three-point lead into the break, but not before Harris grabbed 11 rebounds in the first half. Southern Miss and Alabama State went punch-for-punch over the first four minutes of the half, but Montgomery lit a fuse that wouldn't be put out when he nailed his third-straight three-pointer to give Southern Miss a three-point lead.
Montgomery started the second half by going five-for-five from deep – he eventually finished with six three-pointers. That is tied for the seventh-most in a single game in program history. After his final trey, Southern Miss went on a 15-0 run that built its lead to 18 with 7:22 play.
In what was the longest run of the season for the Golden Eagles, four different players scored. No points during that run were louder than Christian Watson's dunk that brought the roof down at The Greenhouse. His slam put Southern Miss ahead, 62-46.
The Southern Miss lead hit 22 after DeAntoni Gordon delivered a dunk to make it 76-54 with a just over three minutes to play. Montgomery would go on to finish with a career-high 21 points, while five Golden Eagles finished in double figures.
Alvarez finished with 13 points and six rebounds, while Watson had 12 points and eight rebounds. Gordon recorded 10 points, six rebounds and three blocks. After shooting 37.5 percent from the floor in the first half, Southern Miss shot 64.3 percent in the second half.
Alabama State's 32.4 percent shooting clip was the lowest a team has shot against the Golden Eagles this season. Southern Miss' 48 rebounds were the most it's had against a Division I opponent this season.
The Golden Eagles are back on the road next week when they travel to Tulane on Tuesday, Dec. 10. Tip-off in New Orleans is slated for 7:30 p.m. CT.
Game Notes
- Southern Miss starters today were #1 DeAntoni Gordon, #7 Christian Watson, #10 Cobie Montgomery, #12 Neftali Alvarez, #13 Denijay Harris
- That starting lineup variation is 2-1 on the season
- Southern Miss' 15-0 run that ended at 7:22 in the second half was its longest of the season
- The 48 team rebounds were the most against a Division I opponent this season
- Southern Miss held Alabama State to a 32.4 percent shooting clip, which is the lowest a Golden Eagle opponent has registered this season
- Southern Miss shot 64.3 percent from the floor in the second half and shot at least 50 percent in a game for the third time this season
- The seven blocks are the second-most in a game this season
- Southern Miss moved to 30-3 at home since the start of the 2022-23 season
- Five Golden Eagles scored at least 10 points in the same game for the third time this season
Player Notes
- Jett Montgomery and Christian Reid were the first Golden Eagles off the bench
- Harris finished with 10+ rebounds for the third time this season. He had 11 rebounds in the first half alone
- Harris' 20 rebounds were a career best and topped his previous high of 14
- As of today, his 20 rebounds are tied for the most by a player in a game this season in all of Division I
- Harris became the fourth player in program history to have at least 20 points and 20 rebounds
- It's the 17th game in program history where a player has recorded at least 20 points and 20 rebounds. The last 20p/20r game was recorded by Mike Coleman on Feb. 13, 1975. Coleman had 38 points and 26 rebounds
- Watson's seven rebounds tied his career-high, which was set at Montana State earlier this season
- Cobie Montgomery's six three-pointers are tied for the seventh-most in a single game in program history. It was the most by a player since Jaron Pierre Jr. had seven on Jan. 29, 2022
- Montgomery finished with a career-high 21 points
- Harris also logged a career-high four assists
Team Stats
ALST
USM
FG%
.324
.500
3FG%
.310
.360
FT%
.750
.706
RB
34
48
TO
7
13
STL
6
6
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
21
FGM
6
3FGM
6
FTM
3
Pts
20
FGM
8
3FGM
0
FTM
4
Pts
13
FGM
4
3FGM
2
FTM
3
Pts
12
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
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