JACKSON, Miss. – A 44-point first half would prove insurmountable against one of the best teams in the league as Alabama A&M (10-5, 8-5 SWAC) fell to Jackson State (14-5, 13-1 SWAC) by a 65-51 score in an NCAA Division I women's basketball game on Thursday, March 4.
 
Junior forward Dariauna Lewis (Omaha, Neb.) finished with 18 points, six boards, three steals and three blocks to lead the Bulldogs while senior guard Deshawna Harper (Indianapolis, Ind.) matched her scoring output with 18 points with three triples.
 
Freshman guard Darian Burgin (Cincinnati, Ohio) put together a solid game with four points, four assists and a career-high nine rebounds while redshirt-junior center Elexis Evans (Greensboro, Ala.) ripped down 10 boards and senior guard Nigeria Jones (Lincoln, Neb.) had six rebounds, five assists and a pair of steals.
 
In a battle of top teams, it would be a defensive slugfest over the first 10 minutes as the clubs combined for just 17 points. The first 6:24 of that would see two lead changes, a tie and a scoreless stretch of 3:35 before a Dayzsha Rogan jumper put JSU up 8-5.
 
It would be another two and a half minutes before either team would crack the seal on the rim and it would be the Tigers Ameshya Williams to stretch to a five point lead before a bucket by Harper made it 10-7, a margin the teams would take to the period break.
 
In a tale of two quarters, scoring would not be in short supply in the second as Jackson State ran off a 12-1 run to extend to a 22-8 lead by the 5:27 mark. That stretch would see Keshuna Luckett knock down a pair of threes for half of those points before A&M scored seven of the next nine to cut it to 24-15 before heading to the half down 11 following a pair of JSU free throws.
 
The teams would be nearly even in the third quarter, but for A&M that meant treading water as they entered the second half trailing by 11 points. After closing to within seven in the opening minute, the Bulldogs would see JSU score 18 of the final 29 points and would find themselves down 14 points, 44-30, by the end of the frame.
 
Alabama A&M continued to put up a fight in the fourth and would get as close as 10 on three occasions, the last of those at 59-49 with 3:15 to play. From there, however, the Tigers closed things out by scoring six of the final eight points for the 65-51 victory.
 
Rogan fueled the JSU offense with a game-high 19 points and added four steals while Luckett wasn't far behind with 16 points behind the force of a 4-of-5 performance beyond the arc. Williams added 11 points, six boards and a pair of blocks and J'Niya Tallie chipped in with four points, six caroms and four assists. Antionette Womack rounded things out with six points and five rebounds.
 
The Bulldogs wrap up the regular season on Saturday, March 6 as they head to Grambling. Game time is set for 6 p.m. in Ruston, Louisiana.