MONTGOMERY, Ala. – The Alabama State University men's basketball team begins a three-game homestand, starting on Saturday in the Coaches vs. Cancer game, as the Hornets welcome Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) member Arkansas-Pine Bluff to the Dunn-Oliver Acadome.
The Hornets (5-16 overall, 3-6 SWAC) are coming off back-to-back road losses to Texas Southern (70-68) and Prairie View A&M (72-52). Arkansas-Pine Bluff (5-18, 4-5) comes into the weekend matchup with two straight losses to Grambling State (61-53) and Jackson State (74-59). Also, the Golden Lions enter the matchup having dropped five out of their last six games.
Alabama State got 17 points from
Rodney Simeon, but it wasn't enough to derail Prairie View A&M. Simeon finished 6-of-13 from the floor and added two 3-pointers in the loss. Also, he chipped in with five rebounds and one assist.
Terrance LeFlore came off the bench to register 13 points, including four 3-pointers, four boards and two assists.
Reginald Gee tallied 11 points and three rebounds, while
Tony Armstrong recorded seven points and a team-high 10 rebounds.
The Hornets finished the night shooting 32.7 percent (16-of-49) from the floor and 30.8 (8-of-26) from behind the 3-point line. Also, they shot 62.2 percent (12-of-19) from the free-throw line.
Simeon is 12
th in the conference in scoring, averaging 11.8 per game, while Armstrong is 16
th at 11.0 per game.
Alabama State ranks third in scoring defense (73.0), while Arkansas-Pine Bluff is fifth (73.7). On the offensive glass, the Hornets are third (37.3 rpg.) and the Golden Lions rank eighth (31.8).
Arkansas-Pine Bluff shot 37.3 percent (19-of-51) from the floor in the loss to Jackson State on Monday, including a 6-for-22 performance in the first half.
Trent Steen led the way with 11 points, on 4-of-8 shooting, and five boards. Jaquan Lynch added 10 points. Ghiavonni Robinson came off the bench to pour in nine points in 21 minutes of action.
Steen is 18
th in the conference in scoring, averaging just over 10.0 points per game and 12
th in rebounding (4.9).
This will be the second meeting between the two schools this season. Arkansas-Pine Bluff defeated Alabama State, 71-63, in Pine Bluff, Ark., on Jan. 7.
In the first meeting,
Steve Rogers led the way with 13 points, while
Torloft Thomas and Demetrius Houston each had 11 and 10, respectively. The Hornets shot 23-of-63 (36.5 percent) in the loss.
Robinson paced Arkansas-Pine Bluff with 13 points and four rebounds. JoeRandle Toliver added 12 points and Jaquan Lynch finished with 11 points as the Golden Lions were 25-of-57 shooting (43.9 percent).
Alabama State will play its next three games at the Dunn-Oliver Acadome, starting on Saturday. Tip-off against Arkansas-Pine Bluff is set for 5 p.m.
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