SATURDAY'S SCORES
SIUE 69, @Hawaii 68
Tennessee State 69, Northern Arizona 65 (Santa Clara, Calif.)
SIUE 69, HAWAII 68
HONOLULU, Hawaii - SIUE men's basketball opened the 2016-17 season with a 69-68 win over Hawaii in the team's first game in the Outrigger Resorts Rainbow Classic at the Stan Sheriff Center.
The win marks the third consecutive season the Cougars have opened the year with a victory. It is the first time since 1992 that SIUE has opened the season with a true road win.
The win didn't come easy for the Cougars. With the score tied 22-22 and 9:34 to play before halftime, Hawaii went on a 12-0 run to lead 34-22 with 6:12 to play. SIUE answered with a 12-0 run of its own to even the score at 34 with 3:12 left.
SIUE trailed 38-36 at halftime, but started the second period strong. The game was tied 44-44 with 15:57 to play when the Cougars scored 13 of the next 15 points to take its largest lead of the game at 11 points.
This time Hawaii responded. The Rainbow Warriors fought back to take a 62-61 lead with 5:52 left. It was 66-65 Hawaii when Tre Harris connected on a three-pointer with 2:25 left to put the Cougars up 68-66. Hawaii tied the game at 68 with 2:10 left. Carlos Anderson put the Cougars up for good with a free throw with 1:19 left.
Hawaii's Noah Allen missed a three-pointer with nine seconds left. Burak Eslik sealed the win with a steal in the lane as time was running out.
Harris led SIUE with 13 points. He was three for six from three-point range. Eslik scored 11 points and freshman Christian Ellis scored 10 points. He added four assists and four steals. Keenan Simmons scored seven points and pulled down a game-high and career-best 13 rebounds.
Allen led Hawaii with 21 points. Sheriff Drammeh scored 17. Ido Flaisher added 13 points. Gibson Johnson scored seven points and grabbed 11 rebounds.
TENNESSEE STATE 69, NORTHERN ARIZONA 65
SANTA CLARA, Calif. - The Tennessee State men’s basketball team picked up key defensive stops when it mattered the most in a 69-65 victory over Northern Arizona on Saturday night at the Leavey Center on day two of the Cable Car Classic.
The Tigers improve to 2-0 for the sixth time at the Division I level and the first time since the 2001-02 season. The Lumberjacks fall to 0-2 on the young season.
TSU, which held Northern Arizona to 29.3 percent shooting for the game, was led offensively by 16 points from Tahjere McCall and 14 from Ken’Darrius Hamilton.
A tightly-contested first half saw neither team lead by more than four points. Hamilton scored the first six points of the game for TSU, helping the Tigers jump out to an 11-7 lead eight minutes in.
TSU regained a four-point edge later in the half at 27-23 with 1:24 remaining before halftime. The Lumberjacks were able to close the half on a mini 5-0 run capped by a three from Mike Green at the buzzer as Northern Arizona took a 30-28 halftime lead.
TSU held Northern Arizona to 24.2 percent shooting in the first half but was slowed by 12 turnovers in the opening 20 minutes.
There was more back-and-forth play in the second half with neither team taking control. On back-to-back plays, McCall gave the Tigers a five point lead at 61-56 on a tip in followed by a dunk.
With the game on the line, McCall drove to the basket and finished an acrobatic layup with 15.4 seconds left to put the Tigers up 68-65. TSU came up with a defensive stop and Darreon Reddick iced the game at the free throw line with 0.7 seconds left.
TSU held a 45-35 rebounding edge led by nine boards apiece from Jordan Reed and Wayne Martin.