GRAMBLING, La. | Carte'Are Gordon racked up 18 points, helping lead the Grambling State men's basketball team defeat Prairie View A&M 68-64 at the Fredrick C. Howdy Assembly Center on Monday night.

Gordon, who showcased his muscle and shot making ability, also pulled down a game-high eight rebounds with one lock. 

Shawndarius Cowart added 12 points with three assists, two rebounds and two steals while Tra'Michael Moton continued to get back comfortable in the lineup, adding 10 points with three boards, three assists and two steals. 

After Grambling State (17-8 overall, 10-3 SWAC) opened up a 14-6 lead, Prairie View A&M (9-16, 5-8) scored the next six points to pull within two midway through the first half. 

With the Tigers leading 24-18, the Panthers used an 8-0 run to snag a 26-24 lead with 6:05 to go in the half. That's when Gordon came up with a three consecutive buckets for the GSU. His third basket was an emphatic dunk that put the Tigers back in the lead, 30-28.

PVAMU, however, carried a slim 35-34 into the halftime break.

The Panthers opened up a five point lead, 39-34, out of the locker room, but a 3-pointer from Gordon settled the Tigers down.With GSU trailing 44-42, Jourdan Smith decided to put the team on his back, scoring Grambling State's next nine points and giving the Tigers a 51-46 advantage with 8:07 left.

Prairie View A&M with a 6-0 run of its own to propel itself ahead, 52-51, with 7:21 remaining. Cowart gave GSU the lead back with a basket inside the paint to make it 53-52 with 6:24 to go.

Although PVAMU tied the game at 59, GSU never trailed again in the contest, wearing the Panthers down the rest of the way, preserving the 68-64 win. 

Defensively, Grambling State held Prairie View A&M to just 37.1 percent shooting (23-of-62). On the offensive end, GSU knocked down 53.3 percent of its shots (24-of-45)

Yahuza Rasas led the Panthers with a game-high 25 points to go along with nine rebounds, a steal, a block and an assist. 

Up Next
Grambling State heads to Salt Lake City, Utah to take on Southern University in the NBA All Star Weekend NBA HBCU Classic. Tip-off is set for 3 p.m. CST, and will be simulcast on NBA TV, TNT and ESPN2.