BATON ROUGE, La. – A 13-0 Jaguar run in the second half proved fatal for Alabama A&M (6-5, 4-5 SWAC) as they dropped a 73-57 decision on the road against Southern (7-8, 7-4 SWAC) in an NCAA Division I men's basketball game on Wednesday, February 24.  
 
Sophomore forward Jalen Johnson (Indianapolis, Ind.) scored a team-high 19 points on 8-of-12 shooting from the field along with grabbing five rebounds and three assists while freshman guard Jevon Tatum (Snellville, Ga.) dropped 17 points and dished out three assists in 34 minutes of work. 

The Bulldogs came out firing to open the game, scoring the first basket off of a three from Tatum and gained a 7-2 lead over the first two minutes of the half. The Jaguars responded with a long ball with just under 18 in the opening frame and pulled within a single point, 9-8, following a 6-2 swing. 
 
Tatum ended the Jaguar run with his second score of the afternoon, and the two teams traded baskets to head into the first media timeout with A&M leading 13-10. 
 
Southern produced a 12-0 run coming out of the break fueled mainly by Jayden Saddler and Samkelo Cele, who combined for 10 points during the stretch and gave the Jaguars a 24-13 lead with nine minutes remaining in the half. 
 
Johnson ended the eight-minute scoring drought for the Bulldogs with a basket inside with 7:38 to play and was followed with another inside score from sophomore center EJ Williams (Cincinnati, Ohio) to reduce the deficit to seven at 24-17. 
 
The Jaguars extended their lead to double figures twice more in the half, at 27-17 and later 36-26 after a three from Brendon Brooks with just over two minutes remaining in the frame, however the Bulldogs closed out the half on a five-point swing and headed into the locker room trailing 36-31.  
 
The teams traded scores once more to open the second half, with A&M closing the gap to four at 38-34 and once more to five points with 16 minutes to play after a jumper by sophomore guard Garrett Hicks (Madison, Ala.) brought the score to 43-38. 
 
The Bulldogs continued to claw back, after consecutive scores on a triple from freshman guard Dailin Smith (Colorado Springs, Co.) and a jumper from Tatum reduced the deficit to just a single point, 44-43, at the 13:27 mark. 
 
On the next possession, Southern began what would become a dominant 13-0 run and held A&M scoreless for three minutes as they took a commanding 57-43 lead with just over 10 minutes to play. 
 
Johnson ended the scoring drought for the Bulldogs once again with a pair of free throws at the 9:22 mark. That trend would not continue however, as the Jaguars pushed their lead back to 14, at 59-45, on the next trip down. Southern continued to methodically expand their lead, as they found themselves up 19 at the six-minute mark for their largest lead of the game.   
 
The Bulldogs staged one more comeback run to get within 10, at 67-57, however could not complete the comeback and fell to the Jaguars by a score of 73-57. 
 
Cele led Southern with a game-high 20 points to go along with four steals and three rebounds, while Saddler added 19 points, eight assists and four rebounds on the afternoon. 
 
Alabama A&M will now return to Huntsville for the final home stretch of the year as they host Prairie View A&M on Saturday, February 27. Tip-off is scheduled for 4:30 p.m. in Elmore Gymnasium.