Wallace State’s basketball teams sweep Southern Union during homecoming

HANCEVILLE, ALA. – Wallace State’s basketball teams convincingly swept Southern Union during homecoming at Tom Drake Coliseum on Sunday.
The Lady Lions coasted to a 91-61 victory in the doubleheader opener, and the men’s team won its second conference game in four days with a 78-63 triumph over the Bison.
Wallace State’s women (14-6, 3-1 Alabama Community College Conference) had four players finish with double figures as they rebounded nicely from their first conference loss on Thursday.
Jemaiya Lee and Taylor Hollingsworth scored 16 points apiece off the bench for the Lady Lions, both finishing with career-highs in points. Lee, a sophomore from Spain Park, has fully rebounded from a knee injury suffered last season, and Hollingsworth, a freshman from Hanceville, registered her first double-digit scoring effort this season.
Wallace State’s Morgan Higgins scored 13 of her 15 points in the first half and freshman Joy Sadler chipped in with 12 points as the Lady Lions missed matching their season-high output by one point.
“We played hard the entire game and everyone got to play, which is good for morale. We learned a tough lesson on Thursday night. It was good to see that loss didn’t carry over,” said Wallace State women’s coach Ron Burdette, whose team has already matched its win totals from last season, both overall and in the conference. “We have some players who still have some learning to do, but they are getting there. I believe we are in a good positon.”
Wallace State charged out to a 22-13 lead by the end of the first quarter and maintained a 44-29 cushion at the break.
The Lady Lions stayed on cruise control in the second half. Gabby Hill pushed Wallace State’s lead to 53-35 with seven minutes remaining in the third quarter, and the Lady Lions closed the quarter with a Lee layup for a 70-44 advantage.
Wallace State, winners of five of its last six games, padded its lead to as much as 31 points in the second half.
Kelsey Houston added eight points for Wallace State, while Janese Richardson scored six.
For Southern Union, Bria Reeves finished with a game-high 24 points. Tykeaise Williams and Arit Asanga each added 10 points for the Lady Bison (6-10, 0-3 ACCC).
Wallace State’s women are dipping out of conference play for an upcoming three-game stretch. The Lady Lions host West Georgia Technical College on Wednesday at 5 p.m.
Men’s game
Wallace State 78, Southern Union 63 
Three days after knocking off rival Shelton State, Wallace State led throughout against Southern Union and kept the early conference momentum rolling into an eight-day break.
Sophomore guard Zach Allison scored 11 of his career-high 19 points from the free throw line, Desmian Devane poured in 15 points and Jaylen McCoy contributed 13 for the Lions (11-10, 3-1 ACCC), who have won three of their first league games.
“I feel like this is the toughest stretch we’ll play all season, so it’s good we’ve protected our home court. That’s what you have to do in this league,” said Wallace State coach John Meeks. “We had a lot of guys hit some big shots when we needed it the most.”
Wallace State jumped out to a 13-8 advantage on a Devane 3-pointer with 11:46 to go in the first half, and Jalen Glover added a jumper with 10:40 remaining for a 19-10 advantage.
The Lions stretched their lead to as many as 14 points in the first half on a Rashawn Green trey with just under two minutes to go.
Wallace State led 39-28 at halftime.
Five minutes into the second half, Wallace State maintained a 13-point cushion before Southern Union made one of its main runs of the game.
A pair of Marcus Gilbert 3-pointers for Southern Union trimmed Wallace State’s edge to 47-44 with 12:38 to go. Allison and the Lions answered with a 12-3 run over the next four minutes. Allison drained four free throws during the surge, LaParis Hall had a pair of buckets and Hunter Davis capped with the stretch with an emphatic dunk, giving the Lions a 59-47 advantage.
Southern Union later cut its deficit to five points before McCoy scored eight straight points for Wallace State, fueled by a pair of 3-pointers. The Bison never threatened again.
“Zach Allison and Jaylen McCoy are catalysts for our team on both ends. They tend to pick each other up,” Meeks said.
Green added eight points to Wallace State’s output, while Glover and Josh Hill contributed seven points apiece.
Cole Bennett led Southern Union (7-9, 0-4) in the loss with a game-high 25 points. Demarcus Addie added 16 points.
Wallace State’s men are idle until a Jan. 30 contest at Marion Military Institute.
For more information about Wallace State athletics, visit www.athletics.wallacestate.edu.