Box Score GRAMBLING, La. ^__ The Alabama A&M men's basketball team dropped a hard fought match in their Southwestern Athletic Conference opener on Saturday night, falling on the road at Grambling, 70-60.

The Bulldogs (3-9, 0-1 SWAC), entered the game having lost to Power five opponent Notre Dame to close out the first half of the year, struggled offensively in the opening half, but kept the game within striking difference for a majority of the first half. However, with 10:23 remaining before intermission, Grambling began rolling and closed out the half on an 18-8 run to close out the half to place the score at 28-40 going into the locker rooms.

In the second half, the Bulldogs found themselves down by as much as 16 with just under 14 minutes to play, but fought back to pull it to 12 on a lay up by freshman big man EJ Williams with 10:43 to go in the game. After trading baskets for the next couple of possessions, Grambling used a run to push the lead to 17, the largest of the game. After picking up the pressure, the Bulldogs made a run of their own, however fell short of the comeback, with the final of 70-60.

Williams led Alabama A&M offensively, as he earned his first career double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds on 5-for-8 shooting. Freshman Garrett Hicks finished with 13 points and three rebounds, as they were the only two Bulldogs to finish in double figures.

Post-Game Notes

• Alabama A&M starters: Cameron Tucker, Garrett Hicks, Cameron Alford, Gerron Scissum, EJ Williams
• The Bulldogs shot 21-for-61 (34.4 percent) from the field as a team for the game, 3-for-24 (12.5 percent) from the three-point line and 15-for-26 from the charity stripe (57.7 percent).
• Alabama A&M outscored the Tigers in the lane, scoring 30 points in the paint compared to the 26 by Grambling.
• Grambling out rebounded the Bulldogs 46-39. The Bulldogs grabbed 10 offensive rebounds for 13 second chance points, while the Tigers also grabbed ten offensive boards, and scored nine second chance points.
• The Tiger bench outscored the Bulldog bench 30-25. Walter Jones Jr. led with seven points off the bench for A&M.
• Turnovers: A&M won the turnover battle, forcing Grambling into 16 turnovers while only committing 12 of their own. Both teams scored 15 points off of mistakes.

 
Up next
Alabama A&M will continue their conference opening road trip as they continue on to face Jackson State on Monday, Jan. 6 at 7:30 p.m. before returning home to play next weekend.

For more information on the A&M men's basketball team, follow the Bulldogs on Twitter (@Bulldogs_Hoops) and Instagram (@Bulldogs_Hoops). For more on all Bulldogs sports teams, follow the official social media accounts of AAMU Athletics on Twitter (@AAMUBulldogs), Facebook (Facebook.com/aamubulldogs) and Instagram (@AAMUathletics).