Washington, DC---Charles "CJ" Williams scored 13 of his team-high 18 points in the second half and Dalique Mingo contributed all of his 12 after intermission, but it was enough to offset another torrid three-point shooting display as Howard fell, 72-59 to Jacksonville State in a non-conference men's game at Burr Gymnasium.
 
The Bison (1-8) trailed by as much as 18 at one point on the strength of a balanced attack, led by Jacara Cross (8 points), Erik Durham (7 points and Malcolm Drumright (6 points).  They shot 48 percent but 46 percent (six of 13) from beyond the arc.
 
Howard got seven points from Solomon "Solo" Mangham and six from Marcel Boyd, who returned to action after missing the last two with a foot injury.  The Bison appeared to be in good position near the end of the half when they cut the deficit to eight points.  But Jacksonville State closed out strong and took a 35-23 lead to the Locker room.
 
Mingo, Boyd and Williams led a spirited comeback and cut the deficit to 51-48 with an 11-3 run at the 9:37 mark.  With Williams scoring on jump shots and Mingo on drives to the basket, Howard was able to stay close and trailed by only four at 55-51 with 5:23 remaining.
 
"We fought to get back into the game after being down big," said Howard head coach Kevin Nickelberry.  "The guys never quit."
 
He continued.  "Offensively, Solo and CJ are performing well for us, but we need more from everyone on the defensive end."
 
That is when Jacksonville State turned to the three ball.  The visitors connected on 7 of 9 down the stretch and the Bison simply could keep up.  Jacksonville State shot 60 percent from there for the game.  Howard did not help itself as it missed on a number of opportunities at the free throw line and at the field that proved to be the difference.
 
"It's about making plays and we did not do that when we needed to," recalled Nickelberry.  "We are allowing teams to make plays, so it makes everything more difficult for us.
 
With starters James "J-Byrd" Daniel, III, James "JT" Miller and Damon Collins out with injuries, the Bison came away with too many empty possessions.  Williams finished with 18, making it the third straight game that he has led the team in scoring while Boyd and Mingo each had 12 and Boyd with 10 and six rebounds.
 
"It was great to have Boyd back in the middle for us," noted Nickelberry.  He started off a little slow but it did not take him long to get into a groove."
 
Jacksonville State (6-6) was led by Erik Durham, who led all scorers with, including six of eight from the three-point line, Drumwright wth 16, Cross with 13 and Norberta Gigas with 10.
 
NEXT UP: Howard will be looking to get its second win of the season when it hosts Shenandoah on Friday at 6 pm in the Burr.