FINAL BOX

Cookeville, Tenn. --- The Tennessee State women's basketball team saw the game slip away in the final few minutes as the Lady Tigers fell to Tennessee Tech, 70-60, on the road Thursday night in the Eblen Center.

Tennessee State led for 37 minutes and 31 seconds of the game but could not hold off a late rally by Tennessee Tech. The Golden Eagles only had the lead for 1:07 but it was enough to seal the win. TSU was outscored 31-16 in the fourth quarter.

The loss snapped Tennessee State's (9-10, 4-2 OVC) four-game winning streak and dropped the team to 9-10 (4-2 OVC). I'mani Davis led TSU with 22 points and nine rebounds while Brianna Lawrence finished with 18.

Tennessee Tech was led in scoring by Samaria Howard's 23 points while Yaktavia Hickson (14) and Alliyah Smith (10) also registered double-digits.

TSU was leading 8-7 in the first quarter when an 8-0 run fueled by three-pointers from I'mani Davis and Brianna Lawrence put the Lady Tigers on top, 16-7. Tennessee Tech, however, answered with a spurt of its own while TSU went 0-of-6 from the floor over a span of three minutes.

Despite the scoring woes the Lady Tigers maintained at least a four-point cushion. As time expired in the opening quarter, Lawrence sank a 15-footer to end the scoring drought and give TSU a 19-14 advantage.

Six unanswered points by Tech to start the second frame cut the TSU lead down to just one, 21-20. A triple from Diamond Beatty on TSU's next possession silenced the crowd before another long range bomb from Jordan Brightwell increased the lead to 27-21.

Over the next three-minutes both teams would go scoreless.

Both teams managed to score again late in the quarter as TSU led, 29-22, at the halftime break.

In the third quarter, the Lady Tigers increased their lead to 35-22 following two quick buckets from Brianna Lawrence and I'mani Davis.

TSU moved ahead, 40-28, at the 2:45 mark but the offense went cold. Tech took advantage of the scoring drought and cut away at the lead.

Despite being outscored in the third quarter, TSU held on to a, 44-39, lead heading into the final stanza.
Tech pulled to within two, 47-45, with just two minutes ticked off the clock in the fourth period and from there the teams traded buckets.

TSU built a seven point cushion behind an old fashioned three-point play from I'mani Davis but Tech answered with a deep three from Hannah Goolsby to cut the deficit to four. A few Lady  Tiger turnovers and empty possessions led to the Golden Eagles pulling to within one with 2:36 remaining.

Tennessee State used a timeout to regroup but Tech continued to push. The Golden Eagles took a, 61-60, lead on a free-throw before Goolsby nailed a three-pointer to make the score, 64-60 with 31.2 remaining.

TSU attempted a three-pointer on its next trip down the floor but it was off the mark. Following another couple of free-throws by the home team, TSU once again attempted a long heave but it clanked off the backboard, essentially putting the game out of reach.

Following a dead-ball technical foul called on Tennessee State, Tech was allowed to shoot four free-throws with 6.6 seconds remaining to make the final score, 70-60.

TSU knocked down 10 three-pointers in the game but only connected 62.5 percent of its free-throw attempts. The Lady Tigers turned the ball over 15 times in which the opponent scored 12 points off the miscues.

Tennessee State returns to action on Saturday, Jan. 23 at Belmont. Game time is set for 7 p.m. in the Curb Event Center.

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