TUESDAY'S SCORES
Bryant 97,
Tennessee State 85 (Chattanooga, Tenn.)
Western Illinois 64, @South Alabama 63
BRYANT 97, TENNESSEE STATE 85
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. - The Tennessee State men's basketball team fell 97-85 to Bryant in the finale of the Coke Classic on Tuesday evening.
The Tigers (3-5) had four players score in double figures, led by Brandon Weston, who had 24 points and six steals. Carlous Williams added 16 points and two steals and Antoine Lorick III chipped in as well with 16 points, seven rebounds and two steals off the bench.
Led by Ahmir Langlais' two offensive rebounds, Tennessee State did a great job crashing the offensive glass, pulling down 12 boards that resulted in 10 second chance points.
The Tennessee State defense was effective at taking away the basketball in Tuesday's game, forcing 21 Bryant turnovers while committing 10. Those takeaways turned into 20 points on the offensive end of the floor. Weston's six steals led the way individually for the Tigers.
After jumping out to a 25-23 advantage, Tennessee State went on a 6-0 run with 10:38 left in the first half to increase its lead to 31-23. The Tigers then surrendered that lead and entered halftime down 46-40.
After intermission, Tennessee State managed to gain control and had a 72-56 lead before going on a 9-0 run, finished off by Williams' layup, to grow the lead to 81-56 with 9:41 to go in the contest. Bryant then asserted control, outscoring the Tigers 41-4 the rest of the way to hand Tennessee State the 97-85 loss. Tennessee State capitalized on 15 Bryant turnovers in the period, collecting 12 points off those turnovers.
WESTERN ILLINOIS 64, SOUTH ALABAMA 63
MOBILE, Ala. - Western Illinois Men's Basketball defeated South Alabama 64-63 at the Mitchell Center in Mobile, Alabama on Tuesday night. The Leathernecks came out strong in the first half, scoring 41 points, largely thanks to their stellar three-point shooting.
WIU shot 11-15 from deep in the first half with eight of them coming from Ryan Myers and Marko Maletic, who each had four. Julius Rollins added two threes while Sean Smith had one three as the Leathernecks shot 60% from the floor in the first half. Despite struggling offensively in the second half with only 23 points, they held on to secure the win getting stops when it mattered the most.
Myers and Maletic each scored 20 points as Myers converted six three-pointers for the game while Maletic also hit six of his 12 three-point attempts. Rollins contributed 13 points and six rebounds, showing his versatility on both ends of the court. Smith played a pivotal role as a playmaker, dishing out a game-high 13 assists, while scoring five points and adding five rebounds.
Defensively, the Leathernecks were effective, recording three blocks and four steals. Tay Knox stood out on the boards, grabbing seven rebounds, with six on the defensive end. WIU's ability to limit the Jaguars second-chance opportunities proved crucial in a tightly contested second half. Additionally, WIU capitalized on their depth, with the bench contributing 20 points.
While the game became closer in the second half due to a resurgence from South Alabama, Western Illinois showed resilience in the final moments to clinch the win. With 11 seconds remaining in the second half, Ryan Myers knocked down two huge free throws to put the Leathernecks up three. On the ensuing possession, the Jaguars would miss a three and Julius Rollins would get a defensive rebound and would go to the free throw line. Rollins would add a free throw to put WIU up 4 with 1 second to go. South Alabama would hit a three as time expired giving the Leathernecks the one point victory.
For the game, the Leathernecks made 15 of their 40 attempts from three compared to South Alabama's five successful threes out of 26 attempts.
The win improves WIU's record to 4-3.