JACKSONVILLE, AL— Winthrop suffered a tough overtime loss at Jacksonville State on a last second three as it falls 79-76, Wednesday night in non-conference men's basketball action.

After tying the game with 11 seconds left on a Keon Johnson free throw, JaQuail Townser knocked down a three with 1.4 seconds left in overtime.

"The kid made a heck of a tough shot," said Winthrop head coach Pat Kelsey. "With two hands, one in his face and one contesting hand-to-ball and it went in. It seems like a lot of those shots are going in against us right now and sometimes that's how it goes. You tip your cap to the young man that made the big shot and you tip your cap to Jacksonville State for finding a way to win a hotly contested game down the stretch."

Winthrop drops its second straight road contest and is now 3-3 on the year Jacksonville State wins its fifth straight game as it improves to 5-3. Winthrop will be back in action on Saturday, Dec. 6 as it travels to College Park, MD to take on 21^st-ranked Maryland at 2 p.m. Fans can catch the game on ESPN3.

The Eagles overcame a 10-point second half deficit sparked by an 8-0 run over a two and a half minute span when the Eagles trailed by seven points with just over four minutes to play for a 63-62 lead.

Johnson played a huge role in the Eagles comeback as he scored 18 of his team-high 22 points in the second half and overtime. Johnson was an impressive 12-for-13 at the foul line. Johnson was one of three Eagles in double-figures as Tevin Prescott finished with his first career double-double setting career-highs with 15 points and 11 rebounds. Jarad Scott set a new career-high for the second straight game as he finished with 16 points as he and Scott were a combined 11-for-13 from the floor. Scott also finished with a career-high four blocks.  

Winthrop came out and built a quick six point lead just over two minutes into the second half as an Andre Smith made it 39-33. Jacksonville responded with a 7-0 run to take a 40-39 lead with 15:27 to play after Jamal Hunter scored on a dunk and was fouled in the process. Hunter didn't convert the three-point play as Prescott scored to get the lead back for Winthrop at 41-40.

A Townser three-pointer followed by a basket inside by Darion Rackley put Jacksonville State on top by four points with 11:40 to play that forced a Winthrop timeout. That put the Gamecocks in front 45-41 and pushed it to seven points at 52-45 with just under 10 to play after Rackley knocked down two free throws. Winthrop had a chance to cut into the deficit as Andre Smith went to the line for a one-and-one but the ball bounced on the rim and wouldn't fall in.

Jacksonville State's Avery Moore made the Eagles pay as he drained a three for a double-figure lead, 55-45 with 9:18 to play. Scott ended the 7-0 run by the Gamecocks with his second three-pointer of the game to pull the Eagles back within seven points. The next possession the Eagle defense forced a turnover and Scott hit two free throws to make it a five point game with 8:38 remaining.

After Jacksonville State pushed the lead to seven points, Winthrop came right back as Johnson drove the lane and scored while getting fouled as he completed the three-point play with just over eight minutes left as the Eagles trailed 57-53. Johnson made two free throws on the Eagles next possession to make it a three-point game but the lead for Jacksonville State was back to seven points when Jeremy Watson got ahead of the Eagles after a missed jumper from Moore and Watson dunked the ball for the 62-55 lead.

The entire game was back-and-forth as the teams were tied on 11 occasions and there were 15 lead changes.

Winthrop finished the game shooting 49 percent from the floor, 50 percent from three and 77 percent at the foul line. The Eagles were 8-for-16 from three and 20-for-26 at the line. The Gamecocks finished shooting 42 percent from the field, 31 percent from three and 65 percent at the line. Jacksonville State won the battle of the boards 39-33 and finished with 18 offensive rebounds that led to 16 second chance points.

Townser led all scorers with 24 points as he was 9-for-15 from the floor and 4-for-7 from three. Rackley finished with 16 points while Hunter posted a double-double with 11 points and 16 rebounds.

Winthrop raced out to an 8-3 lead three minutes into the game as Prescott got it started with back-to-back made jumpers as the run was capped off by a steal by Xavier Cooks, who then got to finish with a lay-up on the other end to force a Gamecock timeout.

Following the timeout, Jacksonville State scored five straight to tie the game at 8-8 before Keon Moore buried a three-pointer. Jeremy Watson answered right back with a tip-in off a Hunter miss but Winthrop responded with a Scott three for a 14-10 advantage with 13:24 left.

Over the next 11 minutes, the team's traded blows as neither team held more than a two-point lead. That changed with just over two and a half minutes left in the half as Derrick Henry buried a three-pointer for a 29-26 lead for the Eagles. The lead increased to five points, but the Gamecocks were able to cut it to two points at the break as Winthrop led 33-31.

Winthrop held Jacksonville State to 33 percent shooting from the field and 20 percent behind the arc in the first 20 minutes but offensive rebounding helped keep the game a one possession game. The Gamecocks had 11 offensive boards that led to 10 second chance points. The Eagles shot 50 percent in the first half and were 4-for-7 from three. The first 20 minutes saw six ties and eight lead changes.