STARKVILLE, Miss. (November 5, 2025) – Basketball season is back for the University of North Alabama, as the Lions opened on national television at Mississippi State on Wednesday night. The Lions led by as many as nine points in the second half, but ultimately fell 86-62 in Humphrey Coliseum.
North Alabama (0-1) started 6-10 behind the arc behind strong shooting from junior guard
Canin Jefferson and true freshman
Braylon Patton, who combined for 27 points and seven triples. Trailing by one at the break, the Lions went on a 10-0 to go up by nine.
However, Mississippi State (1-0) took control with 14 second half points from All-SEC guard Josh Hubbard — 27 total — and shot well enough to secure the home win.
A number of potential stars emerged for UNA on Wednesday, including 14 points from sophomore
Kevin de Kovachich. Jefferson's first career start ended with a team-high scoring total, as he went 4-9 behind the arc. Making his collegiate debut, Patton had 11 points and was a perfect 3-3 behind the arc — including one he was fouled on to tie the game in the first half.
Facing one of the SEC's toughest bigs — Quincy Ballard — redshirt junior
Corneilous Williams held his own with eight points and a game-high 13 rebounds. Williams also added a game-high four blocks — all in the first half.
The first half is where UNA shined the most, shooting 14-30 from the field for 46.6 percent. Mississippi State was limited to 15-36 for 41.6 percent, but slightly picked things up in the second half with 16-35 from the field (45.7) and 11-14 shooting from the line (78.5).
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Half: The Lions hung tight with one of the SEC's toughest teams early on, fighting to a 38-37 deficit at the break. UNA went 6-10 behind the arc in the first half, including a game-tying shot by Patton at the 2:35 mark and a go-ahead triple by Jefferson with 40 seconds left. This marked the first lead for UNA in the game but was erased by a dunk at the other end. The Lions limited State to 3-13 behind the arc in the half. State scored 22 points in the paint to make up the difference.
Second Half: UNA took the lead on back-to-back makes from Williams and de Kovachich, going up 41-40 at the 18:27 mark of the second half. About a minute later, the Lions caught fire with a 10-0 run to go up 51-42 before the under-16:00 media timeout. In that run, de Kovachich had five points and ended it with an and-one. Jefferson also hit another triple. However, State ripped the lead back with a 15-0 run over the next four minutes and held it the rest of the way. UNA went just 1-9 behind the arc in the second half but held its own in the paint.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
- UNA remains one of only two ASUN teams to defeat an SEC team within the last four seasons. The Lions defeated Ole Miss 66-65 in 2022, while North Florida defeated South Carolina 74-71 in 2024.
- Braylon Patton had the best debut by a true freshman for UNA since Jacari Lane scored 11 points against Oakwood in 2022.
- The eight blocks for UNA are the third-most in a game at the Division I level — since 2018. The all-time record remains 11 blocks, set last season against Austin Peay in an 88-84 overtime win on Jan. 25, 2025.
- The four blocks for Williams were two shy of his own Division I school record set against Austin Peay last season. All four blocks came in the first half.
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UNA is now 4-4 in season openers at the Division I level, ending a three-game winning streak. Prior to the streak, UNA's last season-opening loss also came at Mississippi State in 2021.
COMING UP NEXT
The Lions will host Lane College on Friday, Nov. 7 at 6 p.m. inside CB&S Bank Arena.
This will be UNA's Night of Champions, as the Lions will honor the 2025 ASUN Regular Season Championship team with a ring ceremony and banner reveal. UNA will also recognize Coach Gary Elliott with the naming of Gary Elliott Court. Elliott coached the Lions to the 1991 NCAA Division II National Championship and is a member of the UNA Athletics Hall of Fame.
For more information on North Alabama Athletics, visit www.roarlions.com and follow UNA Athletics on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
