HOUSTON, Texas |
Darian Burgin finished with a team-high 18 points but it wasn't enough as the Alabama A&M women's basketball team fell, 61-55, to Texas Southern in a Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) game on Saturday at the H&PE Arena.
Alabama A&M (8-10 overall, 3-3 SWAC) trailed by 10 in the final quarter and nearly pulled off the comeback, but Texas Southern (4-14, 3-4) escaped with the victory in the final minutes of the game.
Burgin shot 8-of-12 from the floor and 2-of-2 from the perimeter to pace the Bulldogs, along with two assists, one rebound, one block and one steal.
Amiah Simmons registered 14 points, one rebound and one steal, while
Alisha Wilson chipped in nine points with a team-high 13 rebounds, along with three blocks, three steals, and two assists.
Jaida Belton led Texas Southern with a double-double of 24 points and 18 rebounds with four blocks and two steals, while Taniya Lawson registered 10 points, two boards, one assist and one steal.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Texas Southern began the game with a 10-7 advantage following a Shomari Phillips layup within the first five minutes of the contest.
However, Alabama A&M cut the deficit to 17-14, after a turnaround jumper from Burgin with two minutes left in the opening period. TSU closed out the first quarter with a 20-16 lead.
The Tigers continued to extend the lead, pushing the margin to 32-23 after a jumper from Jordyn Turner with 5:09 left in the quarter.
AAMU trimmed the deficit 36-30 after a layup by Simmons with 2:22 left in the half.
The Bulldogs didn't score a field goal in the last two minutes of the half as the Tigers used an 7-0 run, capped by a Nya Harmon layup, giving Texas Southern a 43-30 lead at the break.
A jumper from Burgin cut the lead to 47-38 with 4:50 remaining in the third.
A hook shot by Belton sent Texas Southern into the final period with a 55-45 advantage.
The Tigers went through a cold stretch, going scoreless for six minutes as Alabama A&M used a 5-0 run to close the gap to 57-52 after a layup from Simmons with 3:49 remaining in the contest.
A Belton layup with 1:12 pushed the margin 61-52, but Simmons knocked down a 3-pointer, as the Bullogs trailed, 61-55, with 1:02 remaining.
Alabama A&M could not respond as Texas Southern escaped with the victory.
GAME NOTES
- Alabama A&M shot 40 percent (24-of-60) from the floor and 28.6 percent (2-of-7) from the charity stripe
- AAMU pulled down 30 rebounds, 16 coming off the defensive glass
- Darian Burgin tallied 18 points, two assists, one rebound and one steal
- Amiah Simmons added 14 points, one rebound and one steal
- Alisha Wilson recorded 13 rebounds, nine points, three blocks, three steals and two assists
- The Bulldogs finished with 32 points in the paint, 18 bench points, 14 points off 16 TSU turnovers, eight second-chance points and four fastbreak points
- Texas Southern went 25-of-61 shooting (41 percent) and 9-of-14 (64.3 percent) from the charity stripe
- TSU recorded 46 rebounds with 24 coming off the defensive glass
- Texas Jaida Belton posted a double-double of 24 points, 18 rebounds, four blocks and two steals
- Taniya Lawson chipped in 10 points, two rebounds, one assist and one steal
- Texas Southern finished with 40 points in the paint, 19 points off 13 AAMU turnovers, 15 second-chance points, nine bench points and two fastbreak points
UP NEXT
Alabama A&M wraps up its short two-game Texas road trip on Monday at Prairie View A&M. Tip-off against the Panthers is set for 5:30 p.m. from the William J. Nicks Building
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) Twitter (@_aamuathletics).
