image via Tennessee State Athletics
Tennessee State used a strong second half to break open what was a fairly close game in the first half on the way to a comfortable 69-55 and secure a spot in the OVC Semifinals.
Lindenwood took an early 8-0 lead at the 17:06 mark. TSU would walk the Lions down over the next 6:30, taking their first lead of the evening on Aaron Nkrumah’s jumper that made the score 14-13 with 10:36 left in the half. The Tigers continue to show the way for the balance of the half, with Lindenwood drawing as close as 22-20 on Aly Tounkara’s bucket at the 5:09 mark. TSU responded by outscoring Limdenwood 9-4 on the way to taking a 31-24 lead Into halftime.
The early stages of the second half saw Lindenwood slice the TSU lead down to four points at 38-34 on Anias Futrell’s three-pointer with 16:10 remaining. Just as they did in the first half, Tennessee State responded with a 7-0 spurt that pushed their advantage to 45-34. Lindenwood was able to tamp the lead down to 50-43 on a Jadis Jones layup, Once again TSU answered the bell with a 7-0 spurt of their own to extend the lead to 57-43 with 6:49 left in the contest. The Tigers outscored the Lions 12-6 over the subsequent 4:46 ballooned their lead to twenty at 69-49 with 2:02 and would cruise to a 69-55 win.
Carlous Williams led two Tigers in double figures with 15 points; Aaron Nkrumah added 14 points and 7 rebounds.
Anias Futrell led Lindenwood with 12 points, while Jadis Jones, the only other Lion in double figures, scored 10 points.
With the victory Tennessee State advances to the semifinals where no.2 seed SIUE awaits; the Cougars defeated the Tigers in Nashville on January 16 and an 84-72 victory at home on February 15. Tip-off for the semi-final matchup is scheduled for 7:30 pm CST.
