BOX SCORE 

Final Score: Tennessee State 70, Austin Peay 68
Records: TSU (15-9, 7-4), APSU (16-8, 10-1)
Location: Nashville, Tenn.
Venue: Gentry Center
Attendance: 3,872

NASHVILLE – The luck of the Gentry Center brought good fortune to the Tennessee State men's basketball team Thursday night, as the Tigers served the Austin Peay Governors its first Ohio Valley Conference loss of the season, 70-68.

After working with only eight players for the last few games of the season, Big Blue utilized eight-of-10 players offensively during the first half. Jy'lan Washington led the team with eight points, while Wesley Harris and Shakem Johnson added six boards a piece. Michael Littlejohn summed seven points and dished out two assists. Entering the break, the Tigers led the Governors 37-36.  

Carlos Marshall Jr. proved to be the difference maker for TSU, shooting 7-of-9 from the field, 3-of-5 from beyond the arc and 2-of-2 from the charity stripe, summing 19 points in the second period alone. He also grabbed five rebounds, recorded an assist and blocked a shot to mark himself as player of the game as Tennessee State defeated the Govs, improving its home record to 9-1.

TSU is now 15-9, 7-4 in conference play leading into Saturday when the Tigers will take on Murray State.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• TSU Leaders
  • Points: Carlos Marshall Jr. - 19
  • Rebounds: Wesley Harris/Shakem Johnson - 9
  • Assists: Mark Freeman - 5
  • Blocks: Wesley Harris/Shakem Johnson/Ben Kone - 2
  • Steals: Michael Littlejohn/Shakem Johnson – 1
• The Tigers shot 61.9 percent from the field in the second period.
• TSU held the Govs to 34.4 percent shooting.
• APSU scored 19 points off of TSU's 18 turnovers.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• In the tradition of the Gentry Center, fans remained standing for the first 1:19 until Wesley Harris rebounded a missed jumper and layed it in for the first points of the night. 
• TSU followed with two three-point plays by Jy'lan Washington and Michael Littlejohn, granting Big Blue an early 9-3 lead. 
• The Tigers continued to show off on both sides of the court as Ben Kone executed a beautiful block off the backboard, allowing Mark to dribble the ball up court for a perfect lob to Emmanuel Egbuta. 
• Efficient shooting allowed the Tigers to lead by as much as 10 throughout the first ten minutes of play. 
• Mark Freeman ended the short scoring drought on both sides of the ball with back-to-back three pointers. 
• Terry Taylor drove the lane for a tip in layup to bring the Govs within one of TSU at the break. 
• Carlos Marshall Jr. who was quiet in the first half, kicked off the second with a jumper. 
• Austin Peay took the lead with a 5-0 run, before TSU went 9-0 punctuated by a Freeman three. 
• Carlos Marshall Jr. hit a crowd-pumping pull-up three on a stolen ball. Tigers led 56-54.
• With 37.4 seconds left in the game, TSU held the Govs off after the lead changed 10 times. 
• Harris dunk served as the dagger for the Govs, TSU winning its ninth game in the Gentry Center, 70-68.

GAME NOTES

• This marks the 78th matchup between Tennessee State and Austin Peay.
• TSU improved to 30-48 in the all-time series 29-48.
• Brian "Penny" Collins is 1-2 against the Govs.
• Jy'lan Washington fouled out with 1:47 left in the game.

UP NEXT
Big Blue hosts Murray State in the Gentry Center, Saturday, Feb. 8 with tip set for 7:30 p.m. on ESPN+.
 

#BigBlueRising