Box Score HUNTSVILLE ^__ Strong second half play by the Panthers of Prairie View costs the Bulldogs as they fell 69-54 in Elmore on Monday night.

Garrett Hicks led the Bulldogs with 16 points and three rebounds, while Cameron Alford scored 14 points along with six rebounds in the conference loss.

First Half

• TJ Parham opened the scoring for the game on the first possession by A&M, which started an 8-0 run to start the half for the Bulldogs, as they went into the first media timeout leading 9-2.
• The Bulldogs continued their strong play through the under 12 media timeout, leading 14-6 with 11:50 remaining in the half.After trading baskets coming out of the media timeout, the Panthers trimmed the lead to five, 19-14, with 8:16 to play in the half.
• After the Bulldogs went up 21-17 with five minutes to go, Prairie View closed the lead to two after a pair of free throws with 4:41 to play in the half. However, on the next possession, freshman Garrett Hicks knocked down a three to put A&M back up five, at 24-19, heading into the final media timeout of the half.
• Hicks hit his second three of the half to beat the shot clock with 2:40 remaining, and put the Bulldogs up 27-21, and they controlled the lead for the remainder of the half.
• A&M headed into the locker room for halftime leading 29-26, with Garrett Hicks (10) and Cameron Alford (8) leading the Bulldogs.

Second Half

• Prairie View scored first on their opening possession of the second half, and scored once more from the free throw line before the Bulldogs scored their first basket at the 16:48 mark.
• After finding the game tied at 32, the teams traded buckets before heading into the first media timeout, before the Panthers took a 41-34 lead with 14 minutes to play, before TJ Parham scored for a response by A&M.
• The Panthers stretched their lead to eight, 44-36, at the 13-minute mark, and went up double digits, 46-36, a minute later.
• The Bulldogs responded with an 8-5 run over the next few possessions to pull the game back within five points, and headed into the next media timeout trailing 51-44 with 7:22 remaining in the game.
• The Panthers once again got their lead to double-digits, at 57-46, after two free throws with just over five minutes to play, and maintained the lead heading into the final media timeout of the game.
• With just under three minutes to play, Prairie View stretched the lead to 15, their largest of the game, at 63-48 and again with two minutes remaining as they led 65-50, and ended the game by a final of 69-54.

Post-Game Notes

• Alabama A&M starters: Cameron Tucker, Garrett Hicks, Cameron Alford, TJ Parham, Evan Wiley
• The Bulldogs shot 17-for-58 (29.3 percent) from the field as a team for the game, 3-for-17 (17.6 percent) from the three-point line and 17-for-20 from the charity stripe (85­ percent).
• Prairie View won the battle in the paint, outscoring Alabama A&M in the lane 26-22 in the contest.
• A&M won the rebounding battle 39-32. The Bulldogs grabbed 15 offensive rebounds, and scored ten second chance points. Prairie View scored eight second chance points off of eight offensive boards of their own.
• The Panther bench was a key factor in the matchup, as they outscored the Bulldog bench 26-8.
• Turnovers: Prairie View won the turnover battle, scoring 19 points off of 15 Bulldog turnovers, while A&M scored 10 points off of eight Panther turnovers.

Up Next
The Bulldogs will hit the road next weekend to face Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Feb. 8 and Mississippi Valley on Feb. 10, both at 7:30 p.m.

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