ARKADELPHIA, Ark. — Pink Jones poured in 25 points and three other Reddies finished in double figures as Henderson State held off a second half rally to defeat Missouri Southern 81-78 on Tuesday night at the Duke Wells Center.

The Reddies (5-1, 2-0) led 48-36 at halftime after shooting a blistering 63.3% from the floor in the first 20 minutes of play. Missouri Southern began to rally in the second half, however, and used a gradual 17-11 run to close the gap to 59-53 with 2:50 remaining in the third quarter. A 4-0 response from Henderson, thanks to a 3-pointer from Lani Snowden and a free throw from Jones, ended the period strong for HSU and gave it a 10-point cushion, 63-53, heading into the fourth.

The Lions continued to climb back into the contest early in the final quarter and got within two points on five separate occasions before finally tying the score, 73-73, on an old-fashioned three-point play with 2:47 remaining. The Reddies had another answer, though, as a turnaround jumper from Jones and a huge 3-pointer from Hailey Estes pushed Henderson back in front 78-73 with 1:45 to play.

A 3-pointer by MSSU trimmed the lead to two points briefly, but another bucket from Jones restored an 80-76 advantage for HSU with under a minute to go. A layup from the Lions and a missed 3-pointer from the Reddies gave MSSU a chance as the clock ticked under 10 seconds, but good defense from Snowden forced a miss right at the rim by Southern's Amber Buch and Lexis Weber grabbed the rebound for Henderson. With only 1.5 seconds left, a make and a miss at the line from Weber was more than enough, as the Lions could not get a shot off and HSU claimed its fourth-straight win.

Jones had a season-high 25 points on 10-of-15 shooting from the field and seven assists to lead the Reddies. Snowden finished with 16 points, Estes had 11 and nine rebounds, and Karrington Whaley had 10 on the night. The victory is the second of the season for HSU over Missouri Southern.

Henderson returns to action on Monday, Dec. 2 when it travels to Wichita Falls, Texas to take on Midwestern State at 5:30 p.m.