NASHVILLE, Tenn. | The Alabama A&M University men's basketball team was searching for four straight wins to open the season for the third time during the Division I era, but the Bulldogs could not recover from a sluggish second half in falling, 81-71, to Tennessee State on Saturday night at the Gentry Center.
Alabama A&M (3-1) had opened the season with three consecutive wins and were looking join the 2015-16 and 2020-21 teams with 4-0 starts. However, Tennessee State had other plans and used a 21-4 run during an eight-minute stretch to pull ahead in the second half.
Chad Moodie was the lone Bulldog in double figures with 21 points, five rebounds, one assist and one blocked shot.
Brandon Weston paced Tennessee State (2-3) with 25 points, nine boards, three assists and three steals. Carlous Williams added 15 points, four boards, two assists, two steals and one block, while Justus Jackson chipped in 12 points, six rebounds, four assists and one steal.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Tennessee State jumped out to a 14-10 advantage after a dunk by Ronald Jessamy with 14:30 remaining in the opening half
- The Tigers stretched the lead to 19-14 after a Brandon Weston three-point play with 11:31 left
- AAMU got buckets by Clance Crosby and Moodie, closing the gap to 19-18 with just over 10 minutes to play
- The Bulldogs grabbed a 23-22 lead with a pair of free throws by EJay Greer with 8:07 left
- Tennessee State responded with an 8-2 run, capped by a Jessamy layup as the Tigers took a 30-25 lead with just over five minutes remaining
- Alabama A&M battled back as Moddie scored on back-to-back layups, giving the Bulldogs a 36-35 advantage with 55 seconds left
- However, a Justus Jackson triple right before halftime sent the Tigers into the break with a 38-36 lead
- The Bulldogs opened the second half strong, using a small 5-0 run, capped by Lorenzo Downey 3-pointer to grab a 41-38 advantage with just over 18 minutes remaining
- A dunk by Carlous Williams closed the gap to 45-44 with 16:26 left, but AAMU responded with a 9-2 run, capped by an AC Bryant dunk, pushing the margin to 54-46 with just over 13 minutes left
- Alabama A&M went cold from the floor as Tennessee State used a 21-4 run over an eight-minute stretch to take a 67-58 lead with 5:48 remaining
- The Bulldogs could not recover in dropping their first game of the season
GAME NOTES
- Alabama A&M shot 35.5 percent (27-of-76) and 58.3 percent (14-of-24) from the free-throw line
- AAMU grabbed 46 rebounds, including 23 on the offensive glass
- Chad Moodie recorded 21 points, five rebounds, one assist and one blocked shot.
- AAMU finished with 48 points in the paint, 29 bench points, 21 points off 20 TSU turnovers, 15 second-chance points and 10 fastbreak points
- Tennessee State went 26-of-59 (49.2 percent) from the floor and 18-of-32 (56.3 percent) from the charity stripe
- The Tigers grabbed 45 rebounds, with 32 coming on the defensive glass
- Brandon Weston registered 25 points, nine boards, three assists and three steals
- Carlous Williams added 15 points, four boards, two assists, two steals and one block
- Justus Jackson chipped in 12 points, six rebounds, four assists and one steal.
- The Tigers finished with 42 points in the paint, 19 bench points, 17 points off 17 AAMU turnovers, 15 second-chance points and 14 fastbreak points
UP NEXT
Alabama A&M returns to action on Tuesday as the Bulldogs visit Georgia. Tip-off is set for 6 p.m. (CT) from Stegeman Coliseum and streamed on the SEC Network+.
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