Tigers Escape in Overtime Thriller over Alcorn

HOUSTON – A closely contested game that could have gone either way just didn't end in favor of the Alcorn State University men's basketball program as it dropped a 94-88 final in overtime to Texas Southern on Thursday at H&PE Arena.
 
Alcorn (16-12, 13-4 SWAC) trailed TSU (19-11, 15-2 SWAC) by two points when senior DeAndre Davis tipped in a rebound with 17 seconds left to tie it up. The Braves then got a stop defensively in the closing seconds to send the game to overtime.
 
In the extra period, the Tigers shot 60 percent from the field and made eight free throws to come out on top.
 
Davis scored a season-high 23 points on 10-of-15 shooting and also secured eight rebounds. Senior Marquis Vance notched a double-double of 19 points and 12 rebounds. Junior Reginal Johnson ended with 17 points and eight rebounds, and freshman Maurice Howard recorded 14 points, five rebounds and five assists.
 
The Tigers were led by Zach Lofton who scored 30 points. Kevin Scott and Demontrae Jefferson aided the attack with 17 points apiece, and Jalan McCloud had 15.
 
It was a back-and-forth battle early as the lead exchanged hands eight times in the first seven minutes and was tied 16-16 at the 13:00 mark.
 
Three consecutive three-pointers by Howard, followed by a pair of free throws by Howard put Alcorn up 27-19 with 10:59 remaining. A fourth three-pointer by Howard, followed by a long-range shot by Vance extended the advantage to 36-23 as the Tigers called timeout with 8:31 to go.
 
TSU responded with a big 12-2 run to cut the deficit to 38-35 with 4:12 left.
 
A pair of lay-ups by Johnson, and one by senior Denzel Dulin got the Braves back up 45-35 with 1:03 remaining. The Tigers scored the last four points of the half, but Alcorn carried a 45-39 lead at the intermission.
 
TSU came out hot in the second half and quickly tied it at 45 at the 18:02 mark. The Tigers took their first lead of the half 47-46 with 15:20 to go.
 
TSU used a 9-0 spurt to extend the edge to 58-50 with 11:38 remaining.
 
Still down 66-59 with 7:34 left, Davis hit a mid-range jumper, Johnson made a floater and Vance drilled a three-pointer to tie it at the 5:39 mark. On the next possession, junior Juwan Henderson laid in a bucket to put the Braves on top 70-68 and cap a 9-0 run with 4:39 remaining.
 
After an inside basket by Davis put Alcorn up 72-69, TSU's Scott scored on back-to-back drives as the Tigers leaped back ahead 73-72 with 3:22 to go. TSU extended the lead to 80-76 after a jumper by Lofton with 1:21 left.
 
The Braves used a jumper by junior A.J. Mosby to make it a two-point game and then got a stop defensively. Alcorn tied it after Davis tipped in a rebound with 17 seconds left. The Tigers had a chance on the last possession, but a contested mid-range shot in the closing seconds was off the mark.
 
A pair of lay-ups by TSU's Lofton put the Tigers in front 86-82 with 3:34 remaining in overtime. The Tigers were getting stops defensively, and the Braves were forced to foul with under a minute left. A pair of free throws put TSU up 90-84 with 41 seconds to go.
 
Vance hit a long-range shot with 29 seconds left, but after a review it was ruled it was a two-pointer as the Braves trailed by four. TSU made its final four free throws to hang on.
 
The game featured nine ties and 19 lead changes.
 
Alcorn will wrap-up the regular season Saturday at 5 p.m. at Prairie View A&M. The Braves, who are locked into the No. 2 seed, will host a first round game in the SWAC Championships on Tuesday, March 7 at 6 p.m.
 
NOTES
- Alcorn completed its 11-game winning-streak which was the fifth longest active streak in the country. It was also the fourth longest winning-streak in program history. The Braves also closed out their six-game road winning-streak which was the seventh longest streak in the nation.
 
- Head coach Montez Robinson is now 26-9 in the SWAC in two seasons. He's coached the Braves to back-to-back winning seasons in conference for the first time since 2001-02, 02-03.
 
- Davis' 10 made field goals marked a career-high. It was the second-highest point total of his career after he scored 26 last year at Alabama State on Feb. 22, 2016. He entered the game ranked sixth in the league in field goal percentage in league games with a .574 mark and will improve upon it after going 10-for-15. It was Davis' third career 20-plus scoring game and second this year. It was also his 19th career double-figure scoring game and 26th this season.
 
- Vance etched his 10th career double-double and fourth this year. It was his 69th career double-figure scoring game and 19th this season. Vance is now up to 1,274 career points. He was 8-for-13 from the field in the contest.
 
- Johnson has scored at least 11 points in 26 of the last 27 games. He posted his 45th career double-figure scoring game.
 
- Howard registered the second-highest scoring total of his career and his seventh double-figure scoring game. It was the third time that he's sunk at least four three-pointers in a game.
 
- The Braves outscored the Tigers 55-48 in the paint and 33-8 off the bench. Alcorn also outrebounded TSU 51-43.
 
Quoting Alcorn head coach Montez Robinson
Opening Statement
"Our guys fought, but this was a tough one. Our guys gave it 100 percent; they gave it all they had. Some things didn't go our way, some plays here and there. Just a really tough one."
 
On sending the game into overtime
"Well DeAndre Davis played out of his mind. He carried us especially in the last four minutes of regulation. But there's a lot of hurt bodies in the locker room right now. We were on the cusp of achieving a goal that we set at the beginning of the year and we just let it slip out of our hands. We obviously played a good team tonight."
 
On getting out to a lead in the first half
"There was a play in the first half where Marquis grabbed a rebound and the other guy fell on his knee. He was hurt after that and I felt that set him back about 15 to 20 minutes in this game. I think his adrenaline picked up near the end of the game and he was able to play within himself but we got stagnant because he couldn't play for a long period."
 
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