ITTA BENA, Miss. - A late second half surge by Mississippi Valley State was just enough to hold off the Prairie View A&M Panthers on Saturday evening as they claimed a 73-64 win at the Harrison HPER Complex.

Playing in a gym where MVSU is known for its three-point accuracy, the Delta Devils continued the tradition in the first half as they drained seven treys. With PV ahead 6-5 at the 15:23 mark, the Delta Devils went on a 15-4 surge to claim a 20-10 lead as they nailed four treys during that span.

Prairie View A&M responded from MVSU's early surge and cut its deficit to 20-17 nearly two minutes later as they clamped down defensively with two steals coupled with baskets from Jules Montgomery, Ryan Gesiakowski and Cory Jones. MVSU upped its lead to as much as five on two occasions from that point but Jones drew the Panthers to within 24-22 at the 6:20 mark with a big three-pointer as he scored a career-high eight points in the first half.

Once again, MVSU turned to the long ball and pushed its lead up to nine points at 33-24 with 1:10 left in the half. The Panthers struggled from the field on the offensive end as they shot 0-for-5 along with two turnovers during that span. Junior post Demondre Chapman broke the drought thanks to a layup with 33 ticks remaining but MVSU countered with a basket of its own to close out the half en route to a 33-26 halftime advantage.

After a sluggish first half, the Panthers opened the second stanza with a solid 7-0 surge to climb within two points (35-33) at the 18:33 mark as senior Jourdan DeMuynck scored five of the team's seven points during a two-minute run. However, the team struggled after the initial run and began to play uncharasteristically as they committed seven turnovers over a five-minute period which turned a two-point deficit into an eight-point deficit as MVSU upped its lead to 43-35 with 13:08 remaining. The lead grew to as much as 10 nearly two minutes later but the Panthers would begin to emerge from its struggles shortly thereafter.

Down 47-39 with 10:17 remaining, the Delta Devils lost their leading scorer on the season, Davon Usher, to an injury and had to leave the contest. Immediately after the injury, things began to change for the Panthers as sophomore Montrael Scott logged a steal and scored for a 47-41 deficit. MVSU turned the ball over on the ensuing possession and Mayol Riathin scored a basket followed by a free throw from Carl Blair as he was fouled while attempting a layup. Mississippi Valley turned the ball over once again after the free throw and PV was there to take advantage as Jules Montgomery nailed a short jumper to close the gap to one point at 47-46 with 9:08 left on the clock.

In what became the common theme throughout the game, as soon as the Panthers were on the verge of climbing over the hill, momentum would swing in favor of Mississippi Valley State as Prairie View struggled with its shooting in addition to costly turnovers. With PV down 53-52 at the 4:50 mark, MVSU's Usher returned to action and connected on a three-point play for a 56-52 advantage 23 seconds later. The Panthers committed two untimely turnovers on its next two possessions and by the time the damage was done, MVSU turned a one-point lead into an 11-point margin (63-52) with 3:07 left on the clock.

Prairie View A&M would draw to within five points on two occasions in the final 1:08 but it was too late as MVSU was solid down the stretch from the free throw line to seal the win.

DeMuynck led PV with 16 points, six rebounds and three steals followed by 10 points apiece from Blair and Demondre Chapman. Blair also grabbed seven rebounds while Montgomery and Chapman both recorded six rebounds apiece. Mississippi Valley State was led by Matt Smith's 21 points.

Prairie View wraps up its brief road trip on Monday night in Pine Bluff, Ark. as they'll face Arkansas-Pine Bluff at 7:30 p.m.