The TSU men came out on the short end of a hard-fought matchup with/Southeast Missouri, 89-87 in overtime.
The first half was a closely contested affair that saw 11 vcties and 7 lead changes and by the time expired on the first 20 minutes of play it was SEMO’s turn to sit atop the see-saw as they led 32-31.
The Tigers and Redhawks swapped the lead in the early stages of the second half. Carlous Williams’ step-back jumper put Tennessee State back in front 40-39 at the 17:27 mark. Building as much as a 9-point advantage, Tennessee State showed the way until SEMO tied the game at 73 on Rob Martin’s layup with 2:27 remaining in the contest. SEMO would then capitalize on a Justus Jackson turnover to take a 75-73 lead on Teddy Washington Jr’s layup at the 1:53 mark. This was SEMO’s first lead since a 39-38 advantage with 17:51 left in the game.
TSU would quickly knot the game back at 75 on a layup from Williams at the 1:33 mark. Southeast Missouri snatched the lead back 77-75 when Rob Martin canned a step-back jumper with only 0:47 to go. Just as he did in the Tigers’ last game, Aaron Nkrumah provided late-game heroics, connecting on a turnaround jumper with 0:03 left that sent the game into overtime.
TSU quickly took the lead in the extra frame, going up 81-77 just 48 seconds into the period. The Tigers built as much as a 6-point advantage at 83-77 and 85-79, however just as they did in the second half, the Redhawks clawed their way back, tying the game at 87 on the second of a pair of Braxton Stacker free throws after being fouled by Ronald Jessup with 0:36 left. After a disastrous possession that included missing the go-ahead basket and followed by a turnover, SEMO had the ball with 8 ticks remaining. Teddy Washington Jr’s jumper gave SEMO an 89-87 lead with 0:02 left in overtime.
Brandon Weston’s game-winning three-point attempt was no good, preserving the win for the Redhawks.
Aaron Nkrumah led Tennessee State with a season-high 26 points; Ronald Jessup added 17 points, Brandon Weston scored 12 points of his own and Calous Williams chipped in with 10 points.
Rob Martin led the way for the victors with 22 points; Brendan Terry put in 20 points, while Troy Cole scored 14. In addition to scoring the game-winning basket, Teddy Washington Jr also put in 13 points.
The loss ends the Tigers’ 4-game winning streak, dropping them to 10-13 overall and 6-6 within the OVC.
Tennessee State will seek to bounce back on Thursday when they host Western Illinois; tip-off time is scheduled for 7:00 pm CST.
