For the first time since the 2004-05 season, the South Carolina State men’s basketball team has posted five straight victories. The Bulldogs broke open a close contest in the second half led by Arsenio Williams who finished with 13 points and Brandon Smalls who came off the bench with nine points for the second straight game.

With the win, the Bulldogs (13-8, 7-3) will either have second place outright or share it with Delaware State, which was leading Norfolk State 41-39 with 3:12 remaining. Bethune-Cookman fell to Morgan State 48-47 in the final seconds. 

It was a tale of scoring runs in the first half for the Bulldogs. After several early lead changes, S.C. State opened a 20-14 advantage before getting outscored 16-3 over the next five minutes. The Bulldogs had gone cold from behind the arc, while Curtis White connected on a pair to put the Bison ahead.

The Bulldogs answered by scoring the final seven points of the first half. Darnell Porter broke the dry spell from behind the arc with a three-pointer, then connected on a twisting, driving layup. With less than 10 seconds remaining, Carrio Bennett forced a turnover and converted it into a layup with four seconds left to tie the game at halftime.

The Lady Bulldogs hold off a late rally by the Lady Bison to snap a three-game losing streak. The win improved S.C. State to 7-15 overall, 2-8 in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference.

After managing just 12 first-half points in Saturday’s loss, a much more fiery Lady Bulldogs’ squad matched that total in less than five minutes.

Three-point shooting by Whitney Wiley, who had 11 points on 3-3 from behind the arc, allowed S.C. State to stretch its lead as many as 12 points. The Lady Bison would rally to cut the deficit to four by halftime, led by Saadia Doyle’s 14 points and 12 from Zykia Brown, but not before becoming the first team to trail the Lady Bulldogs at halftime in about a month.

Despite missing five open fastbreak scoring opportunities, the Bulldogs matched head coach Tim Carter’s longest winning streak at four with the victory. S.C. State led as many as 17 points despite having two players (Carrio Bennett and Darnell Porter) foul out and the missed scoring opportunities.

S.C. State returns to action Monday to face Howard.

A late run to answer a scoring barrage by Hampton senior guard Vincent Simpson has the Bulldogs holding a five-point halftime advantage. The Bulldogs led as many as 12 points before Simpson scored 14 points, including four, three-pointers, two well within 25 feet, to put the Pirates ahead 27-26. The Bulldogs answered back by scoring eight of the last 10 points of the first half.

In earlier action, S.C. State fell to 6-15 overall, 1-8 in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference following a 67-47 loss to the Lady Pirates. The Lady Bulldogs were held scoreless for close to seven minutes and managed just five field goals in the first half in falling behind 32-12.

GREG BEACHAM AP Sports Writer

Randy Couture and Mark Coleman have been headed for this fight since the UFC’s event numbers were in the teens.

These two pioneers of mixed martial arts are now in their mid-40s, and they’ve been circling each other since their sport’s infancy. During the years when Coleman fought mostly in Japan, when Couture became an actor in his spare time away from the octagon, they never stopped anticipating a fight that nearly happened in 1998.

February 9 will be here before all the S.C. High School League teams know it. Region tournaments are right around the corner for all SCISA teams. The point I’m trying to make here is the playoffs are coming. While some teams have already solidifed a spot in the postseason, some teams are still fighting for a shot at having a second season.

Personally, I’m looking forward to seeing who’s in and who’s out.

“And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and multiply My signs and My wonders in the land of Egypt.” — Exodus 7:3