Box Score Dec. 18, 2015 Box Score | Photo Gallery 
LOS ANGELES - LMU shook off finals week to remain perfect at home in non-conference play, earning a 77-60 win over Jacksonville State in the final tune-up before West Coast Conference action of the season on Friday night at Gersten Pavilion. The Lions improve to 7-4 overall and 5-0 at home while Jacksonville State falls to 3-10.
The Lions had a pair of players with 20 or more points for the second straight game. Steven Haney Jr. repeated the effort, scoring 21 on 7-for-11 shooting while Adom Jacko had his third double-double of the season with 21 and 11 rebounds. Malcolm Drumwright had 16 points to lead the Gamecocks.
The lead changed hands six times in the first five minutes. Trailing 7-6, the Lions went on 19-5 run to take a double digit lead they would never let go of.
"We did a good job tonight of keep them at arms length for most of the game," said Head Coach Mike Dunlap. "Our defensive pressure was outstanding in the first half. We lost focus a tad in the second half, but I thought we did a good job coming out focused after a grind through finals week."
The Lions out rebounded JSU 43-31 and finished with a 17-10 edge in second chance points. Jacko finished with eight offensive rebounds, the most be a Lions since Alex Osborne had eight on Dec. 21, 2013. The Lions, who lead the WCC in offensive rebounds, finished with 17.
LMU held Jacksonville State to 31.8 percent shooting and allowed a season-low 22 points to take a 35-22 at the break. The Gamecocks finished shooting 36.4 percent on the game while the Lions finished hitting 45 percent.
The Lions begin WCC play with three straight on the road, starting with the Pacific Northwest trip. They face Portland to open WCC play on Monday, Dec. 21 at 6 pm. The game can be seen on ROOT Sports and heard on KXLU 88.9 FM.
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