Benedict Wins First of Season, Beating Central State 69-56

COLUMBIA, S.C. (Benedict) – Just five days after losing to Central State in Ohio, the Benedict College Tigers picked up their first win of the season with a 69-56 victory over the Marauders on Thursday night in the Benjamin E. Mays HRC Arena.

Brandon Morris had 15 points and 13 rebounds to lead the Tigers, now 1-3 on the season and 1-0 in the SIAC. Central State falls to 4-3 overall and 1-1 in the SIAC.

“Up there, we tried to go big, so we wanted to go smaller so we could match up better. In the second half, we played four guards and were able to move the ball better. That’s all we did differently,” Benedict head coach Fred Watson said. “Central State is good and I think they’re going to be there in the end. They’ve got some of the best guard play in the conference.”

Benedict shot 51.1 percent for the game, while holding the Marauders to 30.8 percent shooting, including 25 percent (7-for-28) in the second half.

The Tigers broke away from a 25-25 halftime tie by getting a pair of baskets by Umar Frost to open the second half. Benedict went on a 10-2 run to take a 42-32 lead. The Tigers then went on a nine-point run in the second half to build a 53-37 lead and held on to a double-digit lead the rest of the game.

Frost added nine points for Benedict, while Justice Morgan, Christopher Spencerand Rashee Hodges all contributed eight points.

Markese McGuire led Central State with 20 points, connecting on four 3-pointers.

Benedict is back in action at 3 p.m. on Saturday with a conference contest against Kentucky State University.