HUNTSVILLE, Ala. | The Alabama A&M University men's basketball team could not recover from a big run to open the second half as the Bulldogs fell, 88-72, to Chattanooga on Saturday night at the AAMU Event Center.
Alabama A&M (1-10), which shot nearly 43 percent in the opening period, trailed, 39-34, at the half, but Chattanooga (7-3) opened the second half on a 13-4 run and didn't look back in picking up the road win.
For the third straight game,
Dailin Smith led the Alabama A&M offense. Smith scored 12 of his team-high 19 points in the first half and added two rebounds.
Cameron Tucker and
AC Bryant each recorded 10 points. Tucker tallied five assists and three boards, while Bryant pulled down one rebound.
Honor Huff paced Chattanooga with 24 points, on 7-of-15 shooting, with four assists, two rebounds and two steals. Myles Che registered 16 points, five assists, two boards and two steals, while Trey Bonham tallied 14 points, three assists and one board. Tyler Millin chipped in 13 points and five boards.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Both teams got off to a slow start, but Chattanooga grabbed a 7-2 lead before a Smith three-point play trimmed the deficit to 7-5 with 14:14 remaining in the first half.
The Mocs used a 12-4 run over the next four minutes, capped by a Huff layup, extending the advantage to 19-9 with 10:20 left.
Chattanooga slowly pushed the lead to double digits as Bonham scored on a layup as the Mocs took a 30-18 lead with just over six minutes to play.
Free throws by Tucker and a three-point play by Smith helped the Bulldogs close the gap to 32-25 with 3:48 left.
Alabama A&M continued to keep the game close as
AC Bryant scored on a putback and
London Riley drained a corner as the Bulldogs went into the break trailing, 39-34.
Chattanooga opened the second half 13-4 run, capped by a free throw by Tyler Millin as the Mocs pushed the lead to 52-38 with 16:31 remaining.
Alabama A&M responded with a layup by
Dylan Mclean and a dunk by
Darius Osborne as the Bulldogs trimmed the deficit to 54-44 with 15:18 left.
AAMU continued to battle from behind as Smith scored on a layup and
Chad Moodie completed a three-point play as the Bulldogs trailed, 60-52 with 11:41 remaining.
Buckets by Millin and Huff helped Chattanooga push the lead back to double digits, 69-55, with exactly eight minutes to play.
The Mocs stretched their lead to 75-57 after back-to-back 3-pointers by Bonham and Huff with 6:26 remaining.
Alabama A&M could not recover from the huge deficit as Chattanooga picked up the road win.
GAME NOTES
- Alabama A&M shot 48.3 percent (28-of-58) from the floor and 57.1 percent (12-of-21) from the free-throw line
- AAMU pulled down 31 rebounds, including 21 off the defensive glass
- Dailin Smith registered 19 points and two rebounds
- Cameron Tucker and AC Bryant each recorded 10 points
- The Bulldogs finished with 42 points in the paint, 38 bench points, 16 second-chance points, 12 fastbreak points and 12 points off 13 UTC turnovers
- Chattanooga went 29-of-54 shooting (53.7 percent) and 20-of-28 (71.4 percent) from the charity stripe
- The Mocs grabbed 38 boards, with 10 coming on the offensive glass
- Honor Huff registered 24 points, four assists, two rebounds and two steals
- Myles Che registered 16 points, five assists, two boards and two steals
- Trey Bonham tallied 14 points, three assists and one board
- Tyler Millin chipped in 13 points and five boards
- The Mocs finished with 38 points in the paint, 25 bench points, 24 fastbreak points, 22 points off 15 AAMU turnovers and eight second-chance points
UP NEXT
Alabama A&M returns to the road for its final two non-conference games, starting on Thursday at South Alabama. Tip-off against the Jaguars is set for 7 p.m. from the Mitchell Center and will be streamed on ESPN+.
For complete coverage of Alabama A&M Athletics, check out the official homepage at www.aamusports.com. Remember to follow us on social media: Instagram (@aamuathletics) and Twitter (@_aamuathletics).
