PRAIRIE VIEW – There's an old adage that goes, "It's not how you start, but how you finish."

For Prairie View A&M men's basketball, the inverse was true Saturday evening as the Panthers opened the 2020 Southwestern Athletic Conference play in the same way they ended it in 2019: with a resounding win over Alcorn State in the Baby Dome. The defending conference champions handed the Braves an 84-70 loss.

Senior Gerard Andrus led with 21 points and seven rebounds with a sparkling 9-of-12 line from the floor. Devonte Patterson added 19 points, six assists and five rebounds.  Senior Antione Lister scored 14 points, and Leon Sneed nearly posted a double-double with 12 assists and eight points.

The Panthers (5-9, 1-0 SWAC) wasted no time seizing control of matters, opening the game on a 9-2 run. Alcorn State's Troymain Crosby knocked down a three to try and keep the Braves (4-8, 0-1 SWAC) in it, but that shot only served to wake up the Panthers as Andrus converted a second-chance basket to spark a 20-2 surge giving PVAMU a commanding 31-7 lead with 11:38 left in the half

Though a late Braves push would shrink the Panthers' lead to 17 going into the break, Patterson ensured that Prairie View A&M remained in the driver's seat. The senior scored six quick points early in the second half as the Panthers pushed their lead to 22.

However, after senior Darius Williams converted a lay-up to make the game 66-43 Panthers with 11:22 left, Alcorn State mounted its best charge of the night, using the long ball to power a 19-3 run that cut the Panthers' lead to single digits with 6:24 remaining.

Andrus derailed the Braves' rally with a pair of baskets that helped the Panthers put together a 6-2 spurt to go back up by 11 with 4:41 remaining.

From there, the Panthers defense stiffened, holding the Braves scoreless for a near-three minute stretch and cushioning their advantage via the charity strip on their way to their eighth-straight win over Alcorn State.

Prairie View A&M shot 56.4 percent from the field, with 22 assists on its 31 field goals. The Panthers dominated inside with 48 points in the paint.

Maurice Howard and Corey Tillery scored 17 points each for Alcorn.

Next Up:
Prairie View A&M is back at it Monday night versus Southern. Tip-off is set for 8 p.m. on ESPNU