EVANSVILLE, IND. — The Tennessee State men's basketball team came up just short in a 71-69 loss to SIUE in the OVC Semifinals at Ford Center Friday.

The Tigers (17-16) had three players score in double figures, led by Josh Ogundele, who had 19 points. Ronald Jessamy added 13 points, six rebounds and two blocks off of the bench and Justus Jackson helped out with 13 points.

Led by Jessamy's four offensive rebounds, Tennessee State did a great job crashing the offensive glass, pulling down 11 boards that resulted in 16 second chance points.

How It Happened

Tennessee State struggled out of the gate, falling behind 42-32 heading into halftime.

Tennessee State narrowed its deficit to 57-49 before going on a 6-0 run to shrink the deficit to 57-55 with 7:25 to go in the contest. The Tigers were unable to cut further into the deficit by the end of the game, losing 71-69. Tennessee State took care of business in the paint, recording 24 of its 37 points in the lane.

Game Notes
» Tennessee State cleaned up on the offensive glass, collecting 11 offensive boards in the game.
» Josh Ogundele led the Tigers with 19 points.
» Tennessee State got six rebounds from both Ronald Jessamy and Travis Harper II.