Grambling State 81, Alabama A&M 78
GRAMBLING, La. – Grambling State earned its first conference win since 2014 with an overtime victory over visiting Alabama A&M. The 81-78 triumph also marked the first time in five years that GSU opened conference play with a win.
Mark Gray and Nigel Ribeiro scored 18 points apiece to lead the Tigers.
Grambling State (3-9, 1-0) outscored Alabama A&M 9-4 in overtime to snap its four-game skid.
Deonte Hearns scored 15 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, and Remond Brown cadded 15 points for the Tigers.
The Tigers led by as many as seven points three times during the second half, the latest at the 11:49-mark.
AAMU used a 13-4 spurt to take its first lead of the second half, 62-60 with six minutes left. Arnold Richmond made a pair of free throws to it at 62, and neither team held more than a two-point lead to force overtime.
Jackson State 68, Alabama State 61
JACKSON, Miss. –– Chace Franklin scored 21 points, including a late three pointer, to help Jackson State beat Alabama State 68-61 in a SWAC opener on Saturday night at the Lee Williams Assembly Center.
Jackson State (6-8) led nearly the entire second half but struggled throughout to get separation from the Hornets (5-8).
Paris Collins grabbed an offensive rebound with 50 seconds left and a three-point lead for the Tigers. Jackson State worked the renewed shot clock down to its final seconds and Franklin nailed a 3 with 22 seconds left to make it 67-61. Collins quickly stole an Alabama State pass and made 1 of 2 free throws to cap the scoring.
Raeford Worsham added 18 points and Collins grabbed 12 boards for the Tigers.
Bobby Brown scored all 18 of his points in the second half for the Hornets. His fourth three pointer narrowed the margin 64-61 for ASU with 1:20 left.
Texas Southern 88, Southern 66
HOUSTON – Two players notched double-doubles and one earned a triple-double as Texas Southern cruised to an 88-66 win over Southern University Saturday night in a rematch of last season’s SWAC Tournament Championship game.
Chris Thomas scored 25 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, Derrick Griffin scored 11 points and 12 rebounds, and David Blanks added 11 points, 10 rebounds and 16 assist to lead TSU.
Thomas, Malcolm Riley and Jose Rodriguez each made three three pointers each for the Tigers (2-11) while Orlando Coleman made four — as TSU hit 13 from beyond the arc, their most as a team since 2013. Rodriguez finished with 18 points and Coleman 12.
Southern (8-6) shot 36 percent from the field while Texas Southern was an even 50 percent, and the Tigers held a 47-30 rebounding advantage.
Alcorn State, Prairie View A&M 70
PRAIRIE VIEW, Texas — Octavius Brown hit an open jumper and Patrick Owenu went 4-for-4 at the foul line in the last 1:11 as Alcorn State rallied past Prairie View 73-70 in the Southwest Conference opener for each team Saturday night.
Brown scored 22 points, Tamarcio Wilson 19 but the Braves (3-9, 1-0) fell behind late, despite shooting 65 percent (15-23) in the second half. The game saw 16 ties and 14 lead changes.
Zachary Hamilton scored a season-high 31 points for winless Prairie View (0-13, 0-1) including a left-handed baby hook for a 65-63 lead with 2:26 to play. Hamilton made six 3-pointers in an 11-for-15 shooting night.
After Brown’s jumper tied the game at 65-65, Prairie View’s Jordan Giddingswas driving to the basket when his feet shot out from under him. He lost the ball and Owenu was fouled at the other end, making both to put Alcorn State back on top, 67-65.
points to lead six Jaguars who scored at least nine points.
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