Porter leads Pilots past Rush in top-10 matchup
February 14, 2008

Box Score

NEW ORLEANS — Josh Porter scored 19 of his 25 points in the second half Thursday to lead NAIA No. 3 LSU-Shreveport to a 71-55 Gulf Coast Athletic Conference men's basketball victory over No. 8 Xavier University of Louisiana at The Barn.

The Pilots (23-1 overall, 12-1 GCAC) earned their sixth consecutive victory and avenged their only loss of the season. Xavier beat LSUS 75-72 in overtime in Shreveport on Jan. 23.

Clarke Jackson added 17 points and seven rebounds in 18 minutes for LSUS, and Jamon Morris had 14 points and 13 rebounds for his 10th double-double in 13 conference games.

Alfred Williams, with 14 points, was the only double-figure scorer for Xavier (20-5, 10-3), whose season-best seven-game win streak ended. Mark Stewart, who entered the game with a team-leading 14.3 scoring average, was limited to six points on 2-of-10 shooting.

Porter, who scored seven points in the Pilots' loss to Xavier, had two baskets and assisted on another during a 14-2 run which opened the second half and put LSUS ahead to stay at 43-33. The Pilots extended the lead to 18 in the final minute.

Williams scored 11 in the first half for Xavier, which led 31-29 at the break but was outshot 55 to 31 percent from the floor in the second half.

For the game LSUS outshot Xavier 48 to 39 percent from the floor and outrebounded the Gold Rush 41-26.

Porter, the GCAC scoring leader and No. 4 in NAIA Division I, has averaged 25.5 points during the Pilots' winning streak LSUS is 5-0 in The Barn, Xavier's 70-year-old gymnasium.

LSUS extended its GCAC lead to two games over Xavier and Mobile, which lost 67-59 Thursday at Loyola.

Xavier's next game will start at 7 p.m. Saturday against Tougaloo at The Barn. LSUS will remain in New Orleans and play Dillard at 2 p.m. Saturday.