Tigers Basketball Edges Alabama A&M on the Road Winning 9th Straight Game
NORMAL, AL – Needing some late game buckets to get over the hump Texas Southern got a big boost from Aaron Clayborn on Saturday night as he scored 18 points helping TSU knock off Alabama A&M 64-62 on the road. With the win TSU kept pace in the SWAC regular season title race.
The Tigers (14-14, 13-2 SWAC) held a 58-46 advantage with 7:56 remaining. Alabama A&M would attempt to make a run cutting into Texas Southern’s lead but Omar Strong ended the run with a layup bringing the score to 59-56 with 3:34 left in regulation. After a Bulldogs’ layup brought the score to 59-58, Texas Southern tallied four straight points for a 63-58 lead with 2:02 remaining.
“I thought our guys executed well down the stretch,” said TSU head coach Mike Davis. “Fred got some big time blocks for us on the defensive end and Aaron scored points when we needed him to. Overall I thought this was a solid team performance against a well coached Alabama A&M team.”
Alabama A&M converted 1 of 2 free throws to take the score to 63-62 with nine seconds remaining. Texas Southern’s Lawrence Johnson-Danner grabbed the rebound after the miss free throw attempt and was fouled. He would subsequently hit 1 of 2 at the line giving the Tiger’s a two point lead. A desperation shot for Alabama A&M was no good as Texas Southern got a big win on the road.
For the night Clayborn was 9-of-11 shooting from the field while Ray Penn added 11 points and Fred Sturdivant contributed 10 points. Sturdivant made several game changing plays on the defensive end of the floor rejecting a total of five AAMU shots in 31 minutes of play.
Inside the Numbers
Texas Southern outscored Alabama A&M inside the paint 36-30 while also outrebounding the Bulldogs 35-34. The Tigers shot 49 percent from the floor while holding Alabama A&M to 43 percent from the field.
Up Next
Texas Southern will get set to face Alabama State on the road on Monday at 7:30 pm. The Tigers will return home on Thursday as they are slated to host Southern on Thursday, February 28 at 8:00 pm at H&PE Arena.
Tiger Notables
- Omar Strong made a three-point basket for the 60th consecutive game which is the current longest active streak in the NCAA.
- Fred Sturdivant tallied five blocked shots against Alabama A&M.
- The Tigers had a total of three players score in double figures against Alabama A&M.
- Texas Southern leads the Southwestern Athletic Conference in points scored per game.
