JACKSON, Miss. | AC Bryant finished with a career-high 39 points, including 23 in the second half, as the Alabama A&M University men's basketball team could not overcome a six-point deficit in triple overtime as Jackson State picked up a 103-93 Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) victory on Monday night at the Lee E. Williams Assembly Center.
Bryant finished with career highs in points, 3-pointers made and attempted, and field goals made and attempted.
In a game when neither team had a lead larger than six points during regulation, Alabama A&M (6-11 overall, 2-2 SWAC), which has not won on the road this season, led 67-64 with 29 seconds left, but a 3-pointer by Keiveon Hunt with 12 seconds remaining sent the game into overtime.
In the first overtime, AAMU led 77-74 before JSU tied the game at 77 after a Daeshun Ruffin layup sent the game into double overtime. In the second overtime, a layup by Romelle Mansel tied the game at 88 with three ticks on the clock and
Darius Ford missed a trey as time expired, moving the game into a third overtime.
Jackson State (3-13, 3-0) dominated triple overtime, outscoring Alabama A&M, 15-5, to earn the conference win.
Bryant registered a double-double of 39 points and 10 rebounds, along with two steals and one assist.
Lorenzo Downey added 11 points, seven boards, three assists, three steals and one block, while
Quincy McGriff chipped in 10 points and four boards.
Mansel led Jackson State with 23 points, five rebounds, four steals, three assists and three blocks. Hunt recorded 18 points, five assists and three steals, while Ruffin poured in 17 points, five assists, four rebounds and four steals. Jayme Mitchell Jr. added 16 points, while Tamarion Hoover chipped in 12.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Alabama A&M started the game 1-for-10 from the floor as Jackson State jumped out to a 7-3 advantage after a 3-pointer by Daeshun Ruffin with 15:49 remaining in the opening half.
Jackson State went more than four minutes without a point as the Bulldogs used a 9-3 run, capped by a
Darius Ford jumper, as AAMU tied the game at 12 with just over nine minutes to play.
Neither team could get much going offensively as
Chad Moodie and
Warren Yeh scored on a back-to-back layups as Alabama A&M went into the break with a 24-22 lead.
Jackson State opened the second half strong, using a 7-3 run to grab a 29-27 lead after a triple by Dorian McMillian with 19:10 remaining.
The Bulldogs took advantage of a shooting slump by JSU as a Bryant dunk gave Alabama A&M a 41-35 advantage with just under 14 minutes to play, but the Tigers responded with an 8-2 run, capped by a trey by Mitchell, to close the gap to 44-43 with 12:26 left.
The Tigers grabbed their first lead of the second half as Mitchell drained a triple as Jackson State took a 53-51 lead with 8:35 remaining. However, Alabama A&M rallied and tied the game at 60 after a Bryant 3-pointer with just over four minutes left.
Bryant continued his hot hand from behind the arc, draining another triple with 3:03 remaining as the Bulldogs grabbed the 63-62 lead.
With Alabama A&M holding a 67-64 lead, Hunt tied the game with a triple with 12 seconds left as the Bulldogs failed to get a shot off during the final seven seconds, sending the game into overtime.
In the extra period, Jackson State got free throws by Ruffin to give the Tigers a 73-70 lead with 2:38 left, but back came the Bulldogs as
Darius Ford sank two shots at the foul line and
Lorenzo Downey drained a triple as AAMU took a 75-73 lead with 1:46 remaining.
However, Jackson State rallied and got a layup from Ruffin with 21 seconds left, tying the game at 77 and neither team could knock down the game winner in the final seconds, sending the game into double overtime.
The Tigers found a way to force the third overtime period as Romelle Mansel scored on a layup with three seconds left and
Darius Ford's 3-point attempt was off target.
In triple overtime, Jackson State took advantage of an AAMU shooting slump to grab a 99-90 advantage after a Ruffin layup with 1:33 remaining.
Alabama A&M could not recover in suffering the conference setback.
GAME NOTES
- Alabama A&M shot 41.5 percent (30-of-74) from the floor and 65.6 percent (21-of-32) from the free-throw line
- The Bulldogs grabbed 53 rebounds, including 35 off the defensive glass
- AC Bryant registered a double-double of 39 points and 10 rebounds, along with two steals and one assist
- Lorenzo Downey added 11 points, seven boards, three assists, three steals and one block
- Quincy McGriff tossed in 10 points and four boards
- Alabama A&M finished with 36 points in the paint, 22 fastbreak points, 21 bench points, 16 second-chance points and 11 points off 15 JSU turnovers
- Jackson State went 32-of-82 shooting (39.0 percent) and 29-of-39 (74.4 percent) from the charity stripe
- The Tigers grabbed 41 rebounds, with 26 coming off the defensive glass
- Romelle Mansel recorded 23 points, five rebounds, four steals, three assists and three blocks
- Keiveon Hunt recorded 18 points, five assists and three steals
- Daeshun Ruffin poured in 17 points, five assists, four rebounds and four steals
- Jayme Mitchell Jr. added 16 points
- Tamarion Hoover chipped in 12 points
- Jackson State finished with 48 bench points, 40 points in the paint, 25 points off 31 AAMU turnovers, 19 fastbreak points and 17 second-chance points
UP NEXT
Alabama A&M returns home for three consecutive games inside the AAMU Event Center, starting on Saturday against rival Alabama State. Tip-off against the Hornets is scheduled for 4 p.m. and streamed on the SWAC Digital Network.
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), Facebook (aamubulldogathletics), Twitter (@_aamuathletics) and TikTok (aamuathletics).
