It came down to the last possession, but Tennessee State was able to put away a Southern Illinois team that would not quit, 73-71 in a crucial OVC matchup.
The slow starts that have plagued Tennessee State once again raised its ugly head as they connected on 2 of their first 10 field goal attempts and fell behind 10-4.
TSU continued to trail until Aaron Nkrumah’s jumper tied the game at 17 at the 9:58 mark. The Screaming Eagles outscored the Tigers 20-5 over the next 8:06 to take their biggest lead of the half at 37-24.
Khalil London’s three-pointer as the first half came to a close, trimmed the lead to 37-29, it would be his last action of the contest as he was injured on the scoring play.
The Tigers took their first lead of the game at 46-45 on Dante Harris’ jumper with 14:41 remaining in the half. TSU enjoyed brief leads at 48-47 and 49-48 before USI reclaimed the lead 51-49 on Ismail Habib’s tre ball at the 12:31 mark. Tennessee State continued to play from underneath until retaking the point position 59-58 on a pair of Aaron Nkrumah free throws.
Travis Harper II’s shot from downtown put TSU up 64-58 with 6:37 and it seemed that Tennessee State was starting to seize control of the game , the Screaming Eagles responded with six points to knot the contest at 64 with 4:33 leftint he contest. The game was tied at 66 and 68 apiece and USI reclaimed the lead, albeit briefly, at 69-68. However, Tennessee State reclaimed the lead, 70-69, via a pair of Travis Harper free throws with 2:12 to go in the game.
Cardell Bailey’s layup knotted the game at 71 with 1:52 remaining, but that didn’t last long as Carlous Williams’ offensive rebound and score put the Tigers up 73-71 with 76 seconds left. The Screaming Eagles had an opportunity to tie the contest with 0:01 left , however, they were unable to convert. The free throw line was a house of horrors for USI as they shot 15-34 from the charity stripe on the evening.
Travis Harper II led the Tigers with 22 points and 7 rebounds. Aaron Nkrumah added 17 points and 6 boards, while Dante Harris, the last TSU player in double figures, contributed 14 points.
With the win Tennessee State lifts to 17-8 overall and 10-4 in the OVC. The Tigers are now in a tie for first place in the OVC with UT Martin. The Tigers return to action with a road meeting against Morehead State; TSU defeated Morehead 105-100 earlier this year in an overtime thriller.
