Lakewood, N.J. - Georgian Court University men's basketball, behind the hot hand of Jelani Jackson and his game-high 31 points, put together an inspirational 40 minutes Wednesday afternoon as the Lions downed visiting Mercy College, 70-58, in an NCAA Division II Thanksgiving Eve triumph.

Making its 2021-22 home debut, GCU moves to 1-3 with the win. Mercy still seeks its first victory, falling to 0-4 with the setback. Playing with a just one reserve on the bench, Georgian Court never trailed in the wire-to-wire win as the Lions snapped a five-game losing streak vs. the East Coast Conference foe, dating back to the 2014-15 season.

Leading 29-22 at the half after a thunderous buzzer-beating dunk by Andreas Vonfricke, Georgian Court increased its cushion to a game-high 15 points on two separate occasions in the second stanza, outscoring the Mavericks, 41-36, in the frame. The victors shot a solid 40% from the floor and nailed 19 of 20 free throw attempts on the day.

Jackson with his career-high point total, hit 50% (7-of-14) of his field goals while going a perfect 13-for-13 from the charity stripe. Shane Williams (40 minutes) snared a game-best 10 rebounds and dished four assists in his complete-game performance. Vonfricke and Clint Wright Jr. also went the distance for the royal-and-blue as the duo provided 17 and 14 points, respectively. 

Garrett Kirkland (Jr.-Springdale, Md.) paced Mercy with his 20 points, including six three-pointers for the visiting team. Jayden Dewaal (So.-Toronto, Ont.) and Elijah Mitchell (Jr.-Edison, N.J.) each added 10 apiece for the Mavericks.

Georgian Court hits the road for its next outing as the Lions visit Queens College (NY) Monday at 6:00 p.m. in a non-conference tilt.