Tennessee State finished the regular season on a high note with a nearly wire-to-wire 74-69 defeat of Southern Illinois.
Southern Illinois took an early 3-0 lead on Ryan Hall’s three-pointer on the Screaming Eagles and the contest’s opening possession. Following a Travis Harper II connection from downtown that knotted the game at 3, USI reclaimed the lead when Jack Campion’s layup pushed the Screaming Eagles back in front 5-3. Tennessee State jumped back in front at 6-5 on another Harper II three-pointer. The Tigers lead for the balance of the half, with USI drawing as near as 3 points before Tennessee State extended the lead to double figures on a pair of Harper II free throws to push their advantage to 39-28 heading into halftime.
The Tigers were able to largely enjoy a comfortable lead for the majority of the second half, building as much as a 17-point lead when a Harper II layup brought the score 45-28. The Screaming Eagles utilized a late 10-0 run to draw within a single point at 70-69 on Campion’s three-pointer with 0:16 left in the contest. However, TSU was able to stave off the would-be comeback by taking care of business at the foul line with Harper II and Justus Jackson each converting a pair of free throws to bring the score to its final count of 74-69.
Travis Harper II led the Tigers with a season-high 28 points. Carlous Williams added 21 points, with Justus Jackson was the other Tiger in double figures with 13 points and also dished out a team-high 9 assists.
Armed with an OVC Tournament bye, the Tigers will face the winner of the (6)Lindenwood/(7)Morehead State in the quarterfinals on Thursday, March 6.
