MONTGOMERY, Ala. | Alabama State led the majority of the game until Texas Southern went on a late run to overtake the Hornets, 78-68 in Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) action at the Dunn-Oliver Acadome Saturday night.
Alabama State finished the night 38.1 (24-of-63) percent from the floor and 33.3 (9-of-27) percent from beyond the arc, while also hitting 64.7 (11-of-17) percent from the free throw line. The Hornets forced 20 Texas Southern turnovers and led the game early on clutch three-point shooting to take a double-digit lead before Texas Southern came back to pull within a point at the break.
"We lost our poise down the stretch," Alabama State head coach
Lewis Jackson said. "We got away from what was working in the first half, and we made it hard on ourselves. Instead of doing what was working, we kept trying to attach the seven-footer. They were able to get out and run after our missed shots, we just have to be able to finish when we need to."
Jacoby Ross led three players in double figures with 15 points, while
Reginald Gee and
Tobi Ewuosho each finished with 10. Alabama State had four players with two-plus assists on the night, and
Kevin Holston was able to pick up three steals for the Hornets.
"We came out and shot the ball really well at the beginning of the game," Jackson said. "We just got away from our offense, and we can't do that against good teams. We have to know when we have the lead, and what to do with the basketball and stay with what works."
Alabama State (11-15, 9-6 SWAC) led the game 64-62 with 3:51 to play in the contest until a Tyrik Armstrong lay-up with 3:29 to play tied the game, and a Trayvon Reed dunk gave the Tigers the lead for good. From that point, Texas Southern outscored Alabama State 12-4 to pull away for the 10-point win.
Texas Southern finished the night shooting 52.8 (28-of-53) percent from the floor and 27.3 (6-of-22) percent from beyond the arc, while also hitting 59.3 (16-of-27) percent of their free throws. Jeremy Combs led the Tigers with a double-double, 22 points and 16 rebounds, while Tyrik Armstrong added 12. Three other players were in double figures for Texas Southern.
With three games remaining on the schedule, the Hornets find themselves percentage points ahead of UAPB in fourth, and two games ahead of Jackson State and Grambling State in fifth.
Alabama State returns to action Monday night on ESPNU against Prairie View A&M at the Dunn-Oliver Acadome. Tip is set for 8 pm.
"We just have to be ready to play for 40 minutes," Jackson said. "They are going to come in here ready to play, and we have to match their intensity. We want to close out our home schedule with a win, and we will need to be ready if we plan to do that."
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