NASHVILLE – The Tennessee State men's basketball team reached the century mark against Fisk in the home opener, defeating the Bulldogs, 111-56.
FIRST HALF | The Tigers gained an early five-point lead over Fisk as Nashville native,
Kenny Cooper, sparked the action with a three-pointer on the game's first attempt. After back-to-back long-range jumpers from
Carlos Marshall Jr. and an "and-one" from
Christian Brown, TSU extended the lead to double-digits, 14-3. With 14:13 remaining in the half, Tennessee State went on 16-0 scoring stretch to increase the lead to 22 points. The Tigers penetrated the basket throughout the half and reached the bonus mid-way through the opening stanza. At the end of the half, three Tigers registered at least nine points (
Marshall Jr.,
Brown and
Dedric Boyd).
Kassim Nicholson, UAB transfer, grabbed a game-high five rebounds in the first 20 minutes of action. Tennessee State owned the free-throw line as they went 14-of-18 from the charity stripe while Fisk converted on 4-of-5. TSU ruled the glass, out-rebounding Fisk, 19-9. || TSU, 58-26
SECOND HALF | TSU opened the half with a 17-3 scoring run, extending the lead to 75-29, while
Marcus Fitzgerald Jr. tallied seven points.
Nicholson recorded nine points in the second half, totaling 14 points for the game. The Tigers continued to dominate the glass, as they secured 19 more rebounds than Fisk. TSU reached the century mark with 5:48 remaining in the game. || TSU, 111-56
INSIDE THE STATS:
- All 11 Tigers who made an appearance scored at least four points.
- Nicholson flirted with his second double-double of the year as he posted 14 points and nine rebounds.
- TSU had five players with at least 11 points, UGA transfer Christian Brown logged a game-high 18 points as he shot 6-for-7 from the field.
- Tennessee State dominated the boards and the free-throw line as the Tigers grabbed 42 rebounds and went 27-for-33 at the charity stripe.
BEYOND THE BOX:
- In all three games this season, Tennessee State has secured the first basket.
- TSU's scored at least 99 points in the last three meetings against Fisk.
- The largest margin of victory in "The Battle of Jefferson St." took place in 1993 when TSU won 148-57.
- Brown tallied a career-high four steals in 18 minutes of play.
UP NEXT: Tennessee State travels to South Dakota on Sunday afternoon for a non-conference battle at 2:00 p.m. in Vermillion, S.D.
