GRAMBLING, La. | The Grambling State University men's basketball team rallied from a 12-point deficit to lead by eight with 3:12 remaining, but could not hold on as Texas Southern picked up an 86-85 Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) road win on Saturday night at the Fredrick C. Hobdy Assembly Center.
 
Grambling State (13-12 overall, 7-5), which saw its four-game win streak snapped, fell behind 54-42 with 16:31 remaining. GSU used a furious rally and grabbed its largest lead of the night, 81-73, with just over three minutes left. Texas Southern closed out the game on a 13-4 run to narrowly escape with the one-point win.
 
Dallas Polk-Hilliard paced Grambling State with 22 points, four rebounds, two steals and two assists. Prince Moss came off the bench and provided 17 points, five rebounds. Axel Mpoyo posted a double-double of 11 points and 10 boards, along with three assists and one block, while Ivy Smith, Jr. registered 11 points, six assists, two boards and one steal.
 
Jeremy Combs, the SWAC Player of the Week, finished with a double-double of 26 points, 11 rebounds and a pair of steals. Eden Ewing added 18 points, 13 boards, three steals and one assist, while Derrick Bruce registered 17 points, three rebounds and one steal. Devocio Butler chipped in 10 points, five boards, two steals and one assist.
 
Turning Point
Texas Southern (13-11, 8-3) took a 43-35 advantage into the half and built a 54-42 lead after a pair of free throws by Jeremy Combs with 16:31 remaining.
 
Grambling State slowly chipped away at the deficit and tied the game at 68 on a dunk by Axel Mpoyo with 6:55 left. GSU used a 13-5 run over the next three minutes to take an 81-73 advantage after a Dallas Polk-Hilliard 3-pointer.
 
Texas Southern kept the game close and cut the margin to 85-84 after a Jayln Patterson 3-pointer with 17 seconds left. A turnover on the next offensive possession by Grambling State resulted in the final points as Combs scored on a layup with four seconds remaining.
 
Grambling State had one final look to win the game, by Smith's shot at the buzzer was blocked by Tyrik Armstrong to secure the victory.
 
Inside the Numbers
> Grambling State shot 50.0 percent (29-of-58) from the floor and 66.7 percent (18-of-27) from the charity stripe
> Texas Southern was 28-of-74 (37.8 percent) from the field and 21-of-30 (70.0 percent) from the foul line
> GSU registered 42 rebounds, including 33 on the defensive glass
> TSU pulled down 46 rebounds, with 17 coming on the offensive end
> Grambling State finished with 33 bench points, 32 points in the paint, 21 points off 13 TSU turnovers, eight second-chance points and four fastbreak points
> Texas Southern recorded 38 points in the paint, 26 bench points, 25 points off 17 GSU turnovers, 15 second-chance points and six fastbreak points
> There were 10 lead changes and six ties
 
News & Notes
> Grambling State and Texas Southern split the season series
> GSU was predicted to win the conference and are defending its regular season crown
> Grambling State leads the conference in 11 different categories
> Dallas Polk-Hilliard paces the Tigers with seven double-doubles
> Ivy Smith, Jr. leads the conference in assists per game, free-throws made and total assists
 
Up Next
Grambling State ends its two-game homestand on Monday against Prairie View A&M. Tip-off against the Panthers is set for 7:30 p.m.
 
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