LORMAN &8212; Preseason prognosticators picked Alcorn State ninth in the SWAC.

So much for those rankings.

Alcorn scored the game&8217;s final eight points and held Jackson State to just one point in the final three minutes, earning a dramatic 58-56 victory on Saturday night at the Whitney Complex.

The victory is the Braves&8217; third straight to start conference play.

&8220;It&8217;s not a shock to us,&8221; junior forward Almaad Jackson said. &8220;We were in every non-conference game, even though we didn&8217;t get any wins. These three wins? It&8217;s about time. Let&8217;s just say that.&8221;

Jackson State dominated the game&8217;s first 36 minutes, building a 31-15 halftime lead and leading 47-34 midway through the second half.

Alcorn used a 10-0 run to get back into the game, and Clif Douglass&8217; 3-pointer with 7:30 to play cut the deficit to 47-44.

Jackson State&8217;s lead swelled to seven, at 51-44, and the Tigers (2-1, 6-9) led 56-50 when Trey Johnson made a free throw with just more than three minutes to play.

Alcorn&8217;s Delvin Thompson then made a three-point play, and Jackson had a putback dunk with 1:55 to play to cut the Tigers&8217; lead to 56-55.

Alcorn finally took the lead &8212;

at 57-56 &8212; with 1:11 to play when Douglass hit two free throws.

Then, after an Alcorn turnover with 15.3 seconds to play, Jackson State had a chance to win.

Charlie White drove right and shot a short jumper, but his shot missed. Douglass rebounded and then made 1-of-2 free throws with 6.1 seconds to go.

Johnson got the ball into the frontcourt for Jackson State, but he was trapped. The Tigers didn&8217;t get off a shot before the buzzer.

Final score: Alcorn 58, Jackson State 56.

What sparked the comeback?

&8220;Coach told us we needed to get some stops,&8221; Thompson said. &8220;We were able to get some stops and make it happen.&8221;

Thompson led Alcorn with 18 points, seven rebounds and three assists. Jackson added 15 points and four blocked shots, while Juan Wyatt contributed 10 points and 13 rebounds for his second straight double-double.

&8220;They did it,&8221; Alcorn coach Sam West said. &8220;They executed what I asked them to do.&8221;

Alcorn shot 60 percent in the second half, making 15-of-25 shots. That made up for 23.1 percent shooting in the first half and just 3-of-16 shooting from the 3-point line. Alcorn also missed 10 free throws.

Nevertheless, Alcorn carries a three-game winning streak into Monday&8217;s home game against Grambling State.

&8220;It&8217;s giving us confidence with every victory,&8221; Thompson said.