title image via Carlton Rice
Courtesy of Brian Howard, Assistant AD for Communications, Alabama A&M Athletics
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. | The Alabama A&M University men’s basketball shot over 53 percent from the floor in the opening half and led by as many as 17 points as the Bulldogs stunned Austin Peay, 81-71, during the Hugh Durham Classic in the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament, presented by BSN SPORTS, on Wednesday night at the F&M Bank Arena.
Alabama A&M (12-22) advances to semifinals and will travel to Norfolk State for the John McLendon Classic on Saturday at Joseph G. Echols Memorial Hall. Tip-off against the Spartans is set for 3 p.m (central time). Austin Peay concludes the season at 19-16.
Chad Moodie, the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) Freshman of the Year, scored 18 of his game-high and career-high 24 points in the second half to pace the Bulldogs. Moodie went 11-of-13 from the floor and added five rebounds, two blocks and one steal. Omari Peek scored 14 of his 18 points in the first half, along with seven boards and one assist. Caleb Blackwellchipped in a career-high 13 points, with three boards, two assists, one steal and one block and defensively, Cameron Tucker grabbed a career-high 13 rebounds.
Dezi Jones led Austin Peay with 21 points, four rebounds, four assists and one steal. Sai Witt chipped in 13 points, seven boards and two steals, while Dez White tallied 11 points and five boards. Demarcus Sharp, who fouled out, recorded 10 points, two assists, one rebound and one block.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Alabama A&M got out of the gate quickly with buckets by Chad Moodie and Omari Peek just 1:04 into the game
- However, Austin Peay responded on a 10-1 run over the next three minutes to take a 10-5 advantage after a Sai Witt layup with 16:56 remaining
- The Govs pushed the margin to 15-9 after free throws by Demarcus Sharp with just over 14 minutes to play
- Back came the Bulldogs with a 12-2 run over the next four minutes, as Caleb Blackwell drained the triple to give AAMU a 21-17 lead with 11:05 remaining
- Alabama A&M stretched the advantage to 40-27 after back-to-back dunks by Moodie with 1:44 left
- Austin Peay trimmed the deficit to 42-31 at the break after a bucket by Demarcus Sharp
- The Bulldogs extended the margin to 48-31 to open the second half after a layup by Cameron Tucker with 17:28 remaining
- Austin Peay closed the gap to 50-40 after a layup by Isaac Haney with 13:48 remaining, but back came AAMU as free throws by Jayland Randall and a layup by Moodie pushed the lead to 54-40 with 13:15 left
- The Govs continued to trim the deficit, cutting it to 54-46 after a pair of free throws by Haney with just under 12 minutes to play
- Alabama A&M, on the strength of Randall and Moodie, pushed the lead back to double digits, 63-48, with 8:53 remaining
- Austin Peay never got any closer than eight points over the final eight minutes as AAMU
GAME NOTES
- Alabama A&M shot 53.4 percent (31-of-58) from the field and 75.0 percent (18-of-24) from the free-throw line
- The Bulldogs grabbed 47 rebounds, including 35 off the defensive glass
- Chad Moodie registered 24 points, five rebounds, two blocks and one steal
- Omari Peek scored 14 of his 18 points in the first half, along with seven boards and one assist
- Caleb Blackwell chipped in a career-high 13 points, with three boards, two assists, one steal and one block
- Cameron Tucker grabbed a career-high 13 rebounds
- The Bulldogs finished with 50 points in the paint, 24 bench points, 16 second-chance points, 14 points off 11 Austin Peay turnovers and 13 fastbreak points
- Austin Peay went 24-of-67 shooting (35.8 percent) and 17-of-22 (77.3 percent) from the foul line
- The Govs grabbed 29 rebounds, with 11 coming on the offensive glass
- Dezi Jones registered 21 points, four rebounds, four assists and one steal
- Sai Witt chipped in 13 points, seven boards and two steals
- Dez White tallied 11 points and five boards
- Demarcus Sharp, who fouled out, recorded 10 points, two assists, one rebound and one block
- The Govs finished with 36 points in the paint, 13 points off 17 AAMU turnovers, 12 second-chance points, 10 bench points and seven fastbreak points
