INDIANAPOLIS - The IUPUI basketball team shot 63 percent from the floor in the second half and needed every bit of it as the Jaguars fended off the feisty Kentucky State Thorobreds, 86-82 at Indiana Farmers Coliseum on Saturday (Nov. 21). Junior Nick Osborne turned in 18 points and eight boards in just 22 minutes and Darell Combs added 16 points and three steals in the win. Two other transfers - Jordan Pickett and Matt O'Leary - also finished in double-digits with 15 and 13, respectively.

Dorian Jordan led five KSU (1-2) players in double-digits with 14 points and seven assists.

IUPUI (2-2) needed an 18-5 run late in the game to send away the Thorobreds and get back to .500 on the season.

"We showed a lot of heart," Pickett said. "We continued to believe in each other and just had enough heart to get the win."

After trailing by two at the half, IUPUI appeared to have things in order to start the second half as the Jaguars opened with a 13-2 burst to take a 50-41 lead with 15:56 left. Both O'Leary and Osborne had four points apiece during the run and Marcellus Barksdale capped it with a corner three in front of the Jags' bench. However, Kentucky State opted to go to a full-court press and rattled off an impressive 16-0 run to take a seven-point lead with just more than 11 minutes remaining. At one point, KSU scored eight points in 40 seconds, thanks largely to three straight steals, prompting an IUPUI timeout.

Down seven, IUPUI made a concerted effort to get the ball in close, primarily to the 6-foot-8 Osborne. He and O'Leary combined to score the Jaguars next 11 points before Barksdale dropped in the go-ahead jumper with 7:24 to play. The lead grew to 11 with under two minutes to play on a pair of an Aaron Brennan reverse, but the guests made a furious late rally to make it a game. Eight straight points, capped by a Tryston Ford trey made it 83-80 with 33 seconds to go, but IUPUI regained a two-possession advantage when Combs split a pair of free throws. After KSU closed within two, Pickett sealed it with an uncontested layup, thanks to O'Leary's pass over top of the full-court press.

"We got the win and that's what matters," IUPUI Head Coach Jason Gardner said. "They were a scrappy, tough team and they really tested us. I think we got out of our game a little bit and took some bad shots and some quick shots in the first half. When we get the ball in the paint, we can be pretty good.

"I think we're a pretty good shooting team, but we did too much settling for shots. We talked to the guys about not settling for threes and instead, driving the ball to the hole and making things happen."

IUPUI finished the game shooting nearly 52 percent from the field and scoring 44 of 86 points in the paint. Osborne and O'Leary combined to make 10-of-16 field goal attempts and grab 15 boards while Barksdale was a perfect 4-of-4 from the floor, finishing with nine points. O'Leary also delivered a team-high seven assists, five of which came in the second half as he consistently fed Osborne for easy buckets.

"Those two work well together in the high-low," Gardner said. "They're both pretty good passers and good finishers. I liked how well they worked off each other today."

Pickett, making his IUPUI debut on Saturday after missing the season's first three games, provided energy off the bench with his 15 points coming in just 22 minutes. The Indianapolis-native played just five games during the 2013-14 season at Loyola before sitting all of last season as a Division I-transfer. While he was rusty at times, he also showed flashes of brilliance, specifically at the offensive end.

"I'd like to thank the guys and this coaching staff for sticking with me," Pickett said. "It's crazy to say, but the game did kind of slow down for me in the second half. I'm still kind of a freshman out there, so I'm asking the (older) guys to help me out and talk to me and teach me."

Kentucky State closed at 45 percent from the floor and just 5-of-16 (31.3 percent) from three-point range.

The Jaguars will be back in action on Monday (Nov. 23) when they begin the second leg of the Legends Classic subregional round, being hosted by Kennesaw State. IUPUI will take on the host Owls on Monday at 6:30 p.m. in game broadcast on ESPN3 and locally on 107.5 FM as Morgan Adcock (pxp) is on the call. The Jaguars will face either Belmont or South Alabama in game two of the event on Tuesday (Nov. 24).