Hayes & Company pull out third straight victory in Double Overtime

Box Score

NORMAL – It took ten lead changes and four ties but the men’s basketball team found a way to win as they defeated Jackson State University 88-87 Friday night in Elmore gymnasium.

The Bulldogs had to recover from a 20-8 deficit of points in the paint but was able to take a 38-31 lead at half-time even though the Tigers held a seven point lead at the 13:40 mark in the first.

G. A. Hill opened the scoring for AAMU with the first four points, but it was the play of transfer senior Justin Wagner who dropped 10 which was a season high for the Greensboro, Alabama native. He would finish with 15 on the evening.

A&M opened the second half with a 10-4 run that extended their lead into double digits. Hustle points is what kept the Maroon & White in the game as second chance points (14-11) helped A&M start 2-0 in the Southwestern Athletic Conference for the first time since the 1999-2000 season when they were first eligible for the league title.

J-State decided they were not going to lie down as they made a 22-4 run of their own between the 16:32 mark until the 7:27 time on the clock. That included a controversial offensive foul call on Wagner who basket counted due to the ball leaving his hands before the contact was made. JSU’s Raymond Gregory hit two free throws to give Jackson another one point lead. Back and forth action continued between the Bulldogs and the Tigers as every score exchanged the lead between the teams.

With the score at 68-68, a time-out was called at the 2:04 mark in regulation by the Tigers as they held possession and wanted to talk about play for the remainder of the game. Coming out of the TO J-State’s Kelsey’ Howard hit a layup to put Jackson up 71-68. Hill was then whistled for the foul on the shot and Howard hit the charity stripe basket to earn three points the hard way. A&M brought the ball down the court and Hill hit the game tying three-pointer which resulted in the first overtime contest for Hayes and company during the 2012-13 season.

This would be head coach Willie Hayes third overtime game of his young coaching career and before this he held a 0-2 mark in extra period contests.

In the first overtime the game continued back and forth with A&M taking a four point lead 77-72 at the 1:59 mark. The Tigers Dundrecous Nelson hit a quick three to pull JSU within one 77-76. After an Demarquelle Tabb miss Jackson brought the ball down the court and called timeout but gave it right back after a bad inbound pass.

The Bulldogs fared no better giving the ball back to JSU with Brandon Ellis complimenting the turnover with an intentional foul. Howard would hit one of two to even the score at 77 all. Back down the floor seven-footer Justan Banks would tip in a Hill miss to give A&M a 79-77 lead but Nelson came right back and hit two more free throws to even the score at 79 all to send the game into a Hayes first double overtime.

In the second extra period the Bulldogs saw four starters with four fouls. On A&M’s first possession Ellis hit his first basket of the game to pull AAMU within one 82-81 but was unable to convert the three point play. Banks then picked up his fifth foul back down the court that sent him to the bench for the evening.

Ellis hot shooting resulted in the first four points for A&M to put them up 85-84. With 1:23 remaining and the Bulldogs ahead the Tigers called a timeout.

Another two pointer by Hill extended A&M’s lead 87-84 but a Nelson three-pointer with 23 seconds on the clock notched the game at 87 all. After the 54^th foul of the evening was called, which sent Jeremy Crutcher to the line, his free throw put A&M ahead 88-87 to give the Bulldogs a three game win streak.

“I knew Jackson guards were real good and we would have a tough time handling them,” mentioned Hayes. “They are a pretty good team and they weathered the storm but we were able to get the win tonight.”

The victory extends A&M home record to 5-1 on the year, a three game win streak, a 6-7 overall record, Hayes first overtime victory and an undefeated start in the SWAC.

Ten players saw action on the court with Hill leading them with 17 points and four rebounds. Crutcher finished the game with 14 points, seven assists and four rebounds while Justan Banks and Tabb each recorded 10 points with Tabb totaling eight rebounds.

A&M will hit the road for the first time in 2013 heading to the state of Mississippi where they currently hold a 1-0 record. Mississippi Valley State University will welcome the Bulldogs to a 7:30 p.m. contest on Sunday, January 6^th.

Fans can listen to the game by clicking on WJAB 90.9.

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