MONTGOMERY, Ala. – Alabama A&M (4-11, 3-2 SWAC) fell to Alabama State (5-13, 3-2 SWAC) within the last minute in an NCAA Division I men's basketball game on Saturday, January 15. 

Junior forward Jalen Johnson (Indianapolis, Ind.) led the Bulldogs with a game high 16 points, two blocks and five rebounds while sophomore forward Anjay Cortez (Charlotte, N.C.) had 13 points and five boards. Sophomore guard Dailin Smith (Colorado Springs, Colo.) chipped in with 11 points, three rebounds, two assists and a pair of blocks while junior guard Garrett Hicks (Madison, Ala.) added nine points, two boards and two assists.
 
Over the first nine minutes the Hornets built a 17-9 lead that included five points each from Trace Young and Isaiah Range. The Bulldogs would respond with a 7-2 burst that included four points from Cortez to close the gap to 19-16 with 5:47 showing on the clock. For the remainder of the frame ASU would score 11 of 17 to head to the break leading 30-22.
 
Alabama A&M would start the second half with a bang registering a 19-9 rally that consisted of six points from Johnson and a trey from Hicks to flip the switch and take the lead, 41-39, with 7:58 left on the clock. The Hornets would then respond with a 14-10 run to once again take the advantage and push the score to 55-49.
 
Over the next two minutes the Bulldogs would have a 6-0 burst to tie the game at 55-55 with 1:12 remaining. ASU would then use the remainder of the frame to outscore AAMU with a 4-0 run that consisted of a layup from Kenny Strawberry and E.J Clark hitting both of his free throws in the final seconds to close out the 59-55 victory.
 
Young would lead Alabama State with 15 points and two rebounds with Clark following with 13 points, five boards, four assists and three steals. Range added 11 points and four rebounds while Liddell Gerald finished with nine points and seven boards to round out the top performers.
 
Alabama A&M will return to the court on Saturday, January 22 as they travel to Houston, Texas to take on Texas Southern. Game time is set for 6 p.m. at the H&PE Arena.