PRINCESS ANNE, Md. – Senior Preston Bungei scored 18 points on 8-of-12 shooting to lead the Norfolk State men's basketball team to a 74-63 win over Maryland Eastern Shore on Saturday afternoon at the Hytche Athletic Center.
 
The Spartans went into halftime up by three after never trailing in the entire first half. They never relinquished the lead in the second half either, pulling away ever so slightly at the end for their fourth straight win.
 
The victory improved NSU's record to 10-4 in the MEAC as well as 12-17 overall. After Savannah State and North Carolina A&T fell on Saturdray, the Spartans moved into a tie for third. Only Bethune-Cookman (11-3) and Hampton (11-4) sit ahead of NSU in the standings.
 
Sophomore Steven Whitley was the only other NSU player in double figures with 14 points, hitting 5-of-12 from the field to go with eight rebounds and seven assists. He helped NSU control the glass by a 48-31 margin for the afternoon.
 
Tyler Jones made 8-of-17 from the floor for the Hawks to lead all players with 21 points. MDES, however, fell to 2-13 in the conference and 6-24 overall.
 
The Spartans led from the beginning and pulled ahead by as much as 11 in the first half before the Hawks closed the gap.
 
MDES was last tied with NSU at 8-8 before Bungei scored seven points during a stretch for NSU that pushed the advantage to 20-11 with 9:12 left in the half. A little later, senior Stavian Allen had a layup and then two free throws to make it 31-20 at the 3:58 mark.
 
Colen Gaynor sank a trey for MDES with less than a minute to go as the Hawks closed the half on a 10-3 run to make it a 33-30 game at the break.
 
The Hawks closed the gap to one early in the second half but could get no closer. Bungei had a pair of layups, and Whitley knocked down a pair from deep to keep the Spartans ahead. Still, Maryland Eastern Shore trailed by just one after Ahmad Frost sank a trey halfway through the second stanza.
 
Junior Derrik Jamerson Jr. made a 3-pointer of his own to give NSU a little more cushion. Sophomore Nic Thomas completed a 3-point play at the 5:24 mark for a nine-point edge, and the lead went to double digits a few minutes later. It never sank below eight the rest of the way.
 
NSU shot 43 percent for the game on 28-of-65 shooting, including 48 percent in the second half. Thomas finished with nine points, and senior Bryan Gellineau added eight points and six boards.
 
Thanks also to a 17-8 edge in offensive rebounds, Norfolk State outscored the Hawks 21-7 in second chance points in addition to 34-22 in points in the paint.
 
The teams also combined for just 18 turnovers.
 
The Hawks connected on 22-of-54 (40.7 percent) despite hitting just 29 percent from deep. Cameron Bacote was the only other player besides Jones in double figures with 10 points. Four other players scored exactly eight points each to account for the rest of the Hawks' scoring.
 
NSU will close out the road trip at Howard on Monday night. The Spartans and Bison will tip off at 7 p.m. in a live broadcast on ESPNU.