GRAMBLING, La. | The Grambling State University men's basketball team trailed by as many as 14 points, but outscored Arkansas-Pine Bluff by 20 points in the second half to pick up a 76-65 victory in a Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) game on Monday night on Willis Reed Court at the Fredrick C. Hobdy Assembly Center.
Grambling State (7-12 overall, 5-2 SWAC) trailed 27-13 with just over seven minutes to play in the opening half. However, the Tigers never went away as GSU erased the deficit with a huge second half to win their third straight game.
Shawndarius Cowart posted a season-high 23 points, along with six assists and four rebounds to lead the Grambling State offense. Cameron Christon recorded 20 points, three blocked shots and two boards, while Tra'Michael Moton poured in 12 points, four assists and three rebounds.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Grambling State got off to a slow start, trailing the Golden Lions, 5-2
- Cameron Christon sunk a three-pointer at 17:50 to tie the game at seven
- With the score tied at 9, Arkansas-Pine Bluff used an 18-5 run over an eight-minute stretch of the first half to grab a 27-13 advantage with 7:41 remaining
- Grambling State closed the gap to 29-21 after a 3-pointer by Cameron Christon with just under five minutes left in the first half
- A 3-pointer by Christon trimmed the margin to 33-26 with 3:31 remaining
- However, the Golden Lions quickly extended the margin to 38-26 after a three-point play by Dequan Morris with 1:36 left
- A layup by Shawndarius Cowart cut the deficit to 39-30 right before the half
- A Trey Sampson jumper with 17:19 remaining to push the margin back to double digits, 43-32
- The Tigers cut the deficit to 45-40 after a layup by Tra'Michael Moton with 14:52 left
- A layup by Cowart with 8:42 left tied the game at 54 and a free throw by Christon with 6:44 game the Tigers their first lead of the night, 55-54
- Arkansas-Pine Bluff (4-17, 2-6) took a 58-57 lead after a Kylen Milton bucket with 5:19 remaining
- However, the Tigers closed the game on a 19-7 run to earn their third straight victory
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
- Grambling State shot 51.7 percent (31-of-60) from the field and 90.9 percent (10-for-11) from the free-throw line
- The Tigers finished with 48 points in the paint, 31 bench points, 14 fastbreak points, 14 points off 13 Arkansas-Pine Bluff turnovers and five second-chance points
- Arkansas Pine-Bluff shot 51.9 percent (28-of-54) from the field and 53.8 percent (7-of-13) from the charity stripe
- Dequan Morris led the way for the Golden Lions with 22 points and three rebounds
- Trey Sampson recorded 15 points, one assist and one rebound
- The Golden Lions finished with 34 points in the paint, 16 bench points, nine second chance points, eight points off 11 Grambling State turnovers and six fastbreak points
UP NEXT
Grambling State will look to extend its season-long three-game winning streak on Saturday against Jackson State in the Bridge Builder Classic. Tip-off for the SWAC contest is set for 5 p.m. in Mobile, Ala.
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