NASHVILLE - The Tennessee State men's basketball defeated the Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles, 67-53 at the Gentry Center on Saturday afternoon. 

The Tigers (16-11, 8-6) had four players score in double figures, led by Jr. Clay, who had 16 points, seven rebounds and five assists. Dedric Boyd added 15 points and six rebounds and Adong Makuoi helped out with 12 points, two steals and two blocks.

Tennessee State collected 42 rebounds in Saturday's game compared to Tennessee Tech's 34, led by Clay's seven boards.

The Tennessee State defense held Tennessee Tech shooters to only 28.3 percent from the field, including 26.7 percent from three-point range. The Tigers also kept Diante Wood to 3-of-13 shooting in the game. The Golden Eagles did not get many second opportunities on the offensive end, as they grabbed only eight offensive rebounds and scored eight second-chance points while Tennessee State pulled down 33 defensive rebounds.

OVC Statement

The OVC game between Tennessee Tech and Tennessee State was suspended with 3:04 remaining and TSU leading 67-53 due to an injury suffered by a TTU player.

In accordance with the NCAA Rulebook (Section 4), both teams agreed to end the game at the point of interruption and declare Tennessee State the winner.

Because the contest had reached "a reasonable point of conclusion" (at least 30 minutes for basketball), the statistics will count for both teams.

How It Happened

After jumping out to a 14-13 advantage, Tennessee State went on a 6-0 run with 12:40 left in the first half, culminating in a bucket from Zion Griffin, to increase its lead to 20-13. The Tigers then surrendered that lead and entered halftime down 31-28.

Tennessee State narrowed its deficit to 42-40 before going on an 8-0 run, finished off by Boyd's three, to seize a 48-42 lead with 13:02 to go in the contest. The Tigers kept expanding the margin and coasted the rest of the way for the 67-53 win.

Game Notes

» The Tigers held the Golden Eagles to only 28.3 percent shooting from the field.
» Tennessee State had a 42-34 edge on the boards in the win.
» Jr. Clay led the Tigers with a game-high 16 points.
» Tennessee State got a game-high seven rebounds from Jr. Clay.

Up Next

The Tigers will be back in action on Thursday as they head to Kentucky to face Morehead State. The game will be nationally televised on ESPNU at  9:00 PM ET / 8:00 PM CT.