MANHATTAN, Kan. — Michael Beasley scored a game-high 20 points Tuesday night as Purple Reign defeated JHX Hoops 80-61 in the opening game of a best-of-three series between the two alumni basketball teams at Bramlage Coliseum.
A crowd of 3,192 attended Beasley’s first game at Bramlage Coliseum since his record-setting freshman season at Kansas State in 2007-08.
Beasley shot 6 of 13 from the field, 2 of 8 from 3-point range and 6 of 9 from the free-throw line. He also had six assists, three rebounds and three blocked shots in 30 minutes.
Xavier Sneed and Austin Trice each scored 16 points for Purple Reign, while Shaun Williams added 15 off the bench. Former Wake Forest guard Brandon Childress finished with seven points, a game-high seven assists and five steals.
Purple Reign shot 51.7% from the field, making 30 of 58 attempts. The team recorded 21 assists and scored 26 points off 19 JHX Hoops turnovers.
Billy Preston led JHX Hoops with 15 points and seven rebounds. Zeke Mayo scored 12 points, while Jacob Hanna and Frank Mason III each added 10.
Purple Reign never trailed and opened the game with a 10-1 run behind eight combined points from Beasley and Sneed. JHX Hoops cut the deficit to 13-9 on a Preston 3-pointer, but Purple Reign closed the first quarter with a 10-4 run to take a 23-13 lead.
A 14-2 run in the second quarter extended Purple Reign’s advantage to 37-19 with 3:40 remaining before halftime.
JHX Hoops pulled within 55-47 late in the third quarter and trailed 59-51 early in the fourth. Purple Reign responded with six consecutive points and pushed the lead back to 14.
The Elam Ending was activated with Purple Reign leading 72-59 and the target score set at 80. Childress scored the final four points to end the game.