Image via Tennessee State Athletics
When Jabrion Spikes knocked down a jumper to put Tennessee State up 72-67 with 1:07 left in regulation, it seemed that TSU was on the way to a hard-fought road victory, but that was nearly not the case. A late 6-0 run from UNCA, which was capped off by a Kameron Taylor steal and layup, put Asheville up 73-72 with just 0:09 remaining.
Donte Harris’ potential game-winning three-pointer was blocked by Myles Mayfield, it appeared that the Bulldogs’ late-game heroics earned them their third win on the young season.
Other, larger news outlets reported on the Bulldogs’ close win over the Tigers.
However in the words of that great American philosopher Lee Richard Corso, “Not so fast, my friend!” A foul had been called on Harris’ three-point attempt, sending him to the charity stripe with 0:03 left in the contest. Harris knocked down all three throws, putting Tennessee State up 75-73 with 1.1 seconds to go. UNC Asheville was unable to get a shot off on the ensuing inbounds play, securing an improbable win for TSU.
How it went down
The first half was not a great one for the Tigers, as they shot just 11-35 (31.4%) from the floor and just 2-11 (18.2%) from downtown. From an offensive efficiency standpoint, the game’s first 20 minutes went far smoother for their opponents, as UNCA shot a blistering 13-19 (68.4%) from the field and 4-5 (80%) from the land of three. Despite this offensive discrepancy, Tennessee State somehow found itself down only 40-34 at the half. The Tigers were able to stay in striking distance thanks to the 13 turnovers they forced, which TSU turned into 13 points. TSU also hit the boards, grabbing 8 offensive rebounds, doubling that of UNCA, which turned into 9 points.
Tennessee State trimmed Asheville’s lead to 42-40 on Travis Harper II’s alley-oop at the 17:41 mark of the second half. An 11-2 spurt by the Bulldogs over the next 5 minutes ballooned UNCA’s lead to 53-42 with 12:41 remaining. TSU responded with an 11-0 run of their own, tying the game at 53 on Kaviien Taylor’s jumper at the 9:08 mark. The contest would be locked again at 55 before Tennessee State took their first lead since 12-10 at 12:06 of the first half. The contest would see ties at 57, and 62 apiece. The ballclub exchanged the lead 2 more times before Tennessee State took a 64-63 lead on Travis Harper II’s layup with 3:46 left in the contest. TSU extended its lead to 72-67 with just 1:07 remaining in the contest, setting the stage for the aforementioned late-game fireworks.
Aaron Nkrumah led a trio of Tigers in double figures with 18 points; Dante Harris added 17, including the critical go-ahead free throws late in the game and Travis Harper II scored 12 points.
In a losing effort, Kameron Taylor led the Bulldogs with 23 points; Toyaz Solomon put in 21 points to go along with 9 rebounds and Justin Wrings contributed 20 points.
Up next for the Tigers (3-3, 0-0) is a trip to Chattanooga, TN, to take part in the Coke Classic, where they will face Tennessee Wesleyan Saturday at 1:00 pm CST.
