EL PASO, Texas – The Norfolk State men's basketball team bounced back emphatically from an opening round loss of the WestStar Don Haskins Sun Bowl Invitational, putting together two triumphant halves against South Dakota State for an 84-65 victory on Thursday evening.
 
Getting his first career start, Jack Doumbia led NSU (9-6) with a career-high 17 points, shooting 7-of-11 from the floor and making both of his 3-point attempts. The team spread the wealth on Thursday, with four Spartans scoring in double figures: Doumbia, George Beale Jr. (14), Allen Betrand (13), and Jamarii Thomas (13).
 
While Norfolk State started slow the previous night, it got going straight from the tip on Thursday. Doumbia knocked down a 3-pointer on the team's opening possession, getting the game started in perfect fashion.
 
Tyrel Bladen took advantage of a South Dakota State turnover, slamming down a Jaylani Darden pass at the other end. Bladen would hustle for a second-chance basket soon after, before Darden drained a 3-pointer to put the Spartans ahead 10-6.
 
Coming off the bench, Betrand built quickly on his strong start to the tournament from Wednesday, making a 3-pointer and mid-range jumper in quick succession. The Jackrabbits tied the game 17-17 with a couple of successful possessions, but inside scores from Doumbia and Christian Ings put the Spartans back in front.
 
A 6-0 run thrust South Dakota State ahead, before NSU's Beale and SDSU's Zeke Mayo traded 3-pointers. The sequence gave South Dakota State a 26-24 advantage.
 
Thomas took over from there. The Greensboro, N.C. native began converting every tough shot he took, scoring 11 of the Spartans' next 13 points. Daryl Anderson knocked down a 3-pointer to end the half, sending NSU to the break with a 40-32 lead.
 
South Dakota State scored the first five points of the second half, cutting the deficit to three, but the Spartans had no plans to allow a comeback. Thomas finished through contact for NSU's first points of the period, sparking a 10-3 run that built the lead up to double digits.
 
Anderson drained another 3-pointer, before it was Beale's turn to catch fire. The Suffolk product made three shots from behind the arc, as well as a midrange pull up jumper, within a span of two minutes.
 
The hot stretch sprung the Norfolk State bench on its feet in celebration and gave the Spartans a 68-48 advantage. Betrand followed up his own miss for a putback layup, extending the NSU cushion.
 
An 8-0 run from the Jackrabbits chipped away at Norfolk State's advantage, but the victory never came into jeopardy. Doumbia knocked down another shot from behind the arc, then converted impressive layups with contact on back-to-back possessions to finish off the Spartans final win of the 2023 calendar year in style.
 
Checking The Box Score

• Making his first start of the season, Jack Doumbia tallied a career high 17 points on a 7-of-11 shooting day, making both of his 3-point attempts
• Four Spartans scored in double figures on Thursday: Doumbia, George Beale Jr. (14), Allen Betrand (13), and Jamarii Thomas (13)
• Tyrel Bladen tallied eight points and a team-high nine rebounds
• Kalen Garry led SDSU with 17 points
• Norfolk State shot 11-of-19 (57.9 percent) from behind the arc
• NSU's bench outscored South Dakota State's 33-16
• Norfolk State shot 13-of-17 (76.5 percent) from the free throw line, while South Dakota State shot 7-of-17 (41.2 percent)
• Thursday's game featured six ties and six lead changes, all occurring in the first half

News & Notes

• Norfolk State improved to 9-6 with the victory
• South Dakota State dropped to 6-6 with the loss
• Thursday marked the first-ever meeting between the Norfolk State and South Dakota State men's basketball programs
• Jack Doumbia recorded a career-high 17 points in his first start as a Spartan

 
UP NEXT
 
Norfolk State gets a short holiday break before its next action, facing Tennessee on Jan. 2 at 7 p.m. The Volunteers are nationally ranked at No. 8 in the latest AP Top 25 Poll.
 
For complete coverage of Norfolk State Athletics, please follow the Spartans on social media at @nsuspartans (Twitter), /NorfolkStateAthletics (Facebook), @NSUAthletics (Instagram), @nsuathletics (YouTube) or visit the official home of Norfolk State Athletics at nsuspartans.com.