ALCORN STATE, Miss. - Prairie View A&M's SWAC opener didn't go as planned as Alcorn State claimed a double-digit first half lead and held on tightly in the second half as they fell 68-54 to the Braves in the Davey L. Whitney Complex on Wednesday evening.

The first half was an up-and-down affair as both teams combined to shoot 3-of-15 from the field within the first five minutes. Even though their shots weren't falling, the Panthers remained in the contest thanks to their defense as they altered several ASU shots at the basket in addition to their rebounding prowess.

The Braves began to heat up from the outside as Marquiz Baker and Anthony Nieves combined to hit four straight three-pointers during a five-minute span which allowed ASU to turn a 6-5 lead into an 18-9 advantage with 10:27 remaining. With their outside shots falling short, the Panthers turned to their inside game to get back into the contest as junior post Josh Eleby hit a pair of jumpers to trim PV's deficit to 20-14 at the 6:53 mark.

Baker converted an offensive rebound off a missed free throw on the following possession to extend ASU's lead back to eight at 22-14. The Panthers would draw within seven on two occasions from that point but ASU upped its lead back to double-digits at 26-16 following Alcorn State's sixth three-pointer of the first half. Prairie View A&M continued to have trouble finding their shot as they failed to hit a field goal over the final 6:53 of the first half. On the other side of the court, ASU remained hot as the Braves went into the half ahead by 14 points at 33-19.

The second half was an uphill battle for the Panthers as Alcorn State opened up with a 17-point lead following a trey from Nieves. However, Prairie View A&M found its groove on both ends of the court and clawed back in the game as they drew to within eight (41-33) after a 6-0 surge which featured four points from sophomore Montrael Scott and a basket from Jourdan DeMuynck.

Alcorn State's LeAntwan Luckett stopped the run with a jumper but Demondre Chapman kept the Panthers within 10 points following a big layup in the paint at the 9:31 mark. However, ASU answered and pushed its lead up to 16 (51-35) with 6:57 remaining. The Panthers wouldn't go away though as they went on a 11-5 run over the next four minutes to draw within eight points at 54-46 at the 2:32 mark. Following a 30-second timeout by PV after a jumper from Carl Blair, the Panthers suffered a defensive lapse and allowed ASU to push its lead back to double-digits as Ian Francis recorded a fast break dunk.

The Panthers kept trying to get back into the contest from that point but the double-digit lead proved too much for them to overcome as PV dropped its second straight SWAC season opener.

Blair led PV with 14 points, five rebounds and three assists while DeMuynck chipped in with 11 points and five boards.

The Panthers return to action on Friday night as they'll travel to Baton Rouge, La. for a matchup at Southern. Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m. at the F.G. Clark Activity Center.