South Carolina State junior Jason Johnson had 16 points and 12 rebounds for his third straight double-double and his fifth of the season to lead the Bulldogs to a 68-60 victory over Maryland-Eastern Shore Monday night.

Bulldog freshman Carrio Bennett also had 16 points to share scoring honors with Johnson while senior Robert Baker added 12 in the victory.

The win snapped a three-game losing streak for Coach Tim Carter’s team which improved to 5-11 on the year and 1-1 in the conference.

The visiting Hawks, who dipped to 2-14 and 0-2 in the league, were paced by freshman Denzel Jackson and Marc Davis with 13 points each and Ed Tyson with 12.

SC State, after trailing 12-6 in the early going, took command of the game midway the first period and went on to a 31-24 lead at the break.

The Bulldogs stretched their lead to as many as 15 points twice, the last time at 55-40 on a dunk by Johnson with 7:39 left, but the Hawks went on a 14-5 run to close the gap to 60-54 on Davis’s jumper with 1:26 remaining. SC State got a dunk from Baker and was good on six of eight from the charity stripe to hold on for the win.

Coach Carter’s team returns to action Saturday when the Bulldogs host Hampton in the second game of an MEAC doubleheader which begins at 12 noon with the women’s game that will be televised by ESPNU. The tip was originally set for 2 p.m. but moved to the earlier start for television. The men’s game is slated to start at 3 p.m.