As a high school player in Kentucky, Quel’Ron House helped lead Seneca High to its first state championship appearance since the 60s with a 31-point triple-double to advance his team.

Jacksonville State coach Ray Harper took notice of that, signing him to play for the Gamecocks.

“He’s one of those kids that likes big games and can make big plays,” the coach said.

The freshman guard shined for Jax State in his postseason debut, scoring 18 points and going 6-for-11 from the field as the No. 2-seeded Gamecocks earned a 65-56 win over Florida International in the Conference USA tournament on Wednesday.

“It’s expected. He’s not a freshman anymore,” Harper said. “Jaron thinks he’s a freshman. He’s not, he’s a sophomore. I’ve seen him play since he was probably a freshman or sophomore in high school.

“He played at a high school that I don’t think they had won since Wes Unseld played at high school, and then he got that team to a regional championship last year. He just put them on his back and took them.”

The freshman also led the Gamecocks with 4 assists and had just one turnover in 35:41 minutes of play in the win, also grabbing 3 steals.

“It was fun to watch,” forward Marcellus Brigham Jr. said. “I see it all the time from him in practice and it was good to see him showcase that tonight.”

Along with a big night from House, Conference USA player of the year Jaron Pierre Jr. had a double-double for the Gamecocks with 19 points and 11 rebounds, also dishing out two assists in the win as he logged 38:47 of play.

House and Pierre were the two Gamecocks to score in double figures, as Michael Hogue added 9 points and 7 rebounds off the bench for Jax State.

“Pierre is a great player, and tonight he got 19 points, but we made him get it in 18 shots, we turned him over seven times, we made it work for everything,” FIU coach Jeremy Ballard said. “Then he stepped up, House stepped up, made big shots. He played almost 36 minutes and only had one turnover, so credit to him, credit to coach Harper for having him ready as a freshman to step up in his first conference tournament. That’s what it’s all about.”

This marked the third game between Jax State and FIU, with Jax State winning the first 71-67 before winning in double overtime in Miami.

“I feel like it sets us up for some good to come,” Pierre said. “It was a learning lesson. We played them twice, so that’s our third time playing them. We knew they were going to come out and play hard. It’s just one down, two more to go.”

Both coaches credited each other with being tough outs, as Harper said Ballard’s FIU squad is always “going to get after you” in any situation.

“I thought we had an inspired effort last night in last night’s game, and I thought we really competed hard tonight. Ultimately, we didn’t play well enough,” Ballard said. “Credit to Jacksonville State, they had a great season. Coach Harper has done an amazing job with this group, they’re poised to win it all. They’re very tough, they’re very physical, they’re very smart. We had three really hard-fought games with them this year that we came up short.”

The Gamecocks will face either MTSU or Louisiana Tech in the semifinals on Friday.

“I was just proud of our guys,” Harper said. “I thought we competed. It wasn’t always pretty tonight, but give Jeremy and FIU a lot of credit. They compete this time of year. It’s about win and advance, and we were able to do that this evening.”