MONTGOMERY, Ala. | Jayla Crawford and Shmya Ward posted double figures in scoring for Alabama State, but it wasn't enough as the Lady Hornets fell, 65-57, on Saturday to rival Alabama A&M in a Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) game at the Dunn-Oliver Acadome.
 
In a thrilling back-and-forth affair that featured seven ties and five lead changes, Alabama State (9-14, 8-
4 SWAC) trailed by 12 (34-22) at halftime and outscored Alabama A&M (12-11, 7-5 SWAC) 20-7 in the
third quarter to pull within one (42-41) heading into the final ten minutes.
 
The Lady Bulldogs took a 54-50 lead with 4:30 remaining, but Ayana Emmanuel would answer back with a three-point play to cut the lead to one (54-53) with 3:10 on the clock. Tierra Dark hit two free throws on the Lady Bulldogs' next possession and Alabama A&M would force the Lady Hornets into a turnover before sinking one more free throw to bring the contest to its final score.
 
Crawford led Alabama State with 20 points on 50 (8-of-16) percent shooting while also adding six
rebounds. She was joined in double figures by Ward who chipped in 13 points and five rebounds.

Deshawna Harper led all scorers with 26 points, three rebounds, one assist, one block and two steals. Nigeria Jones recorded 17 points and five rebounds for the Lady Bulldogs.
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
For the game, the Lady Hornets shot 37.7 (23-of-61) percent from the field and was 23.1 (3-of-13) percent from three-point range. They shot 66.7 (8-of-12) percent from the charity stripe.
 
Alabama State narrowly won the rebounding battle, 45-40.
 
The Lady Bulldogs finished with 30 points in the paint, 16 bench points and 11 second chance points.
 
The Lady Hornets finished with 38 points in the paint, 17 second chance points and 11 bench points.
 
Alabama State now holds a 33-23 lead in the series.
 
QUOTES FROM HEAD COACH FREDA FREEMAN-JACKSON
General thoughts: "We got away from what we were doing and started playing selfish basketball. We didn't move the ball well and turnovers cost us down the stretch."
 
On struggling to score: "As we get deeper into the conference, my girls have to understand that teams are going to guard the girls that we normally go to and defend the perimeter. So we have to look for other ways to score and from different players."

On Alcorn: "We have to bounce back. The teams we beat the first go around are going to be hungry to beat us so we have to regroup and get back to work next week."
 
NEXT UP
Alabama State will have a week off before hitting the road to face Alcorn State on Feb. 23. Tip is set for 3 pm in Lorman, Miss.
 
Follow the Hornets
For complete coverage of Alabama State University women's basketball, follow the Hornets on social media @BamaStateWBB (Twitter), /BamaStateSports (Facebook) and @BamaStateSports (Instagram) or visit the official home of Alabama State athletics at BamaStateSports.com.