RUSTON – The Louisiana Tech men's basketball team led wire-to-wire in a dominating 108-52 victory over Jarvis Christian on Wednesday afternoon inside the Thomas Assembly Center on Karl Malone Court.
 
LA Tech (7-5) took out its frustration of losing three straight on JCU (3-7), exploding for 59 first-half points and then cruising in the second half to a triple-digit total that was the most scored by the program since 2017.
 
The separation started to happen four minutes into the game as Jordan Crawford made a driving layup to go up 11-7, becoming the last of the five starters to already sink a field goal. 
 
It ended up being an 11-0 run, making it a 20-7 lead.  That 13-point advantage was still there with 5:55 to play in the first half.  But then Dravon Mangum got hot, connecting on three three-pointers over the next two minutes to help extend the lead for the home Bulldogs. 
 
LA Tech ended the half on a 24-5 run to give it a 59-27 edge at the midway point.  The point different continued to grow in the second half as the home team clamped down even more so defensively, holding Jarvis Christian to just 26 percent shooting over the final 20 minutes.
 
All nine Bulldogs suited up got in on the scoring action with five of them reaching double-digit points.  Mangum led the way with a career-high 22 points (19 coming in the first half) followed by Isaiah Crawford with 20, Terran Williams with 15, Keaston Willis with 10, and Jordan Crawford with 13 to go along with a career-high 12 assists for a double-double.
 
Tory Cargo and Jamari Robertson anchored the visiting Bulldogs with 11 and 10 points, respectively.  
 
QUOTABLES
Head coach Talvin Hester
 
"I thought we played together today.  We had 23 assists, rebounded half of our misses.  We got better the second half defensively.  Really excited about the way we played.  Great way to go into Christmas break."
 
"We really moved the basketball, which I thought was a direct correlation to us making shots.  Instead of trying to make baskets on our own, we shared the basketball, got to the paint and sprayed it out.  The other day at UTEP, we tried too much of trying to score on our own.  We have to play better together."
 
"I was proud to see Isaiah get back to it.  I thought he was aggressive.  We found ways to get the ball in his hands and let him create.  I think Jordan being on the floor for more of the game helped us out a lot today with our offense.  He makes people better, gets the ball where it needs to go.  I thought Dravon did what we brought him here to do.  He rebounded the basketball and made shots."
 
NOTABLES

• With the 108-52 win, LA Tech now leads the all-time series with Jarvis Christian, 2-0.
• It was the 79th 100-point game in program history for LA Tech and the most scored by the Bulldogs since they put up 112 against UT Tyler in 2017.
• The 56-point scoring differential was the fourth largest victory by LA Tech in the Thomas Assembly Center.
• LA Tech set season highs in made field goals (40) and assists (23) while tying its season high with 12 steals.
• The Bulldogs forced 22 turnovers, marking the ninth time (out of 12 games) this season of forcing at least 15 (have forced 20+ seven times).
• Dravon Mangum registered a career-high 22 points while making a career-high five three-pointers. He also tied his season high with seven rebounds.
• Isaiah Crawford tallied 20 points, his second 20-point performance of the season and the fifth of his career. He also tied his career high with four steals (fifth time ever).
• Jordan Crawford recorded his first career double-double with 13 points and a career-high 12 assists. He also tied his career high with four steals.

UP NEXT
LA Tech returns to action on Thursday, Dec. 29 when they host the UTSA Roadrunners.  Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. inside the Thomas Assembly Center on Karl Malone Court.  The matchup will be streamed on ESPN+.
 
SOCIAL MEDIA
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