Title image via Stefan Smith
Courtesy of Tuskegee Athletics
75 Tuskegee 1-3,0-0 SIAC
Final
39 Cheyney 0-4
| Team | 1 | 2 | F |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tuskegee | 32 | 43 | 75 |
| Cheyney | 25 | 14 | 39 |
Tuskegee men’s basketball (1-3, 0-0 SIAC) took down Cheyney (0-4, 0-0 Southland) Sunday night at the Mohegan Sun Arena in dominant fashion, 75-39, to take home third place in the Chris Paul HBCU Tip Off.
The Golden Tiger defense was sharp in the win, forcing a season-high 18 turnovers, and holding the Wolves to just 28.3 percent (15-of-53) from the field and 28.6 percent (6-of-21) from three-point range in the game.
After Cheyney opened the scoring with an early layup, Tuskegee seemed to take control from that moment on, gaining a 15-10 lead halfway through the first half. Minutes later, TU went up by nine at 19-10, before gaining the first double figure lead of the game at 26-15 with 4:24 left in the first half. Cheyney clawed back into the game to close the period, pulling within seven at the break with the score at 32-25.
Kusamae Draper led all players by setting a new career-high in points (22), popping in 7-of-14 shots from the field and 8-of-9 from the free throw line. He also grabbed five boards and dished out two assists. D’Anthony Pennington poured in 16 points along with six assists and a steal, while Martez Jones just missed a double-double with nine points and a game-high ten rebounds in the win.
The Golden Tigers made 25-of-63 shots (39.7 percent) from the field, 7-of-25 (28.0 percent) beyond the arc and shot a season-high 81.8 percent from the charity stripe (18-of-22).
Tuskegee came out of the break inspired, as Chip Culpepper opened the half with a three to go back up ten, sparking a 15-4 run over the first six minutes of the second to seemingly put the game out of reach with TU leading 47-29.
The Golden Tigers later extended their lead to over 20 points with just over 13 minutes remaining and extended the lead to as many as 36 points for the final score.
Jalen DeLoach led Cheyney on the day as the lone double figure scorer, finishing with 15 points and two rebounds in 29 minutes.
UP NEXT
November 22, 2023: vs. Talladega
The Golden Tigers will return to play this week as they host their 2023 home opener inside the Daniel “Chappie” James Center on Wednesday against Talladega at 3 p.m. for Macon County Day.
