NASHVILLE — Tennessee State never trailed and used a balanced scoring effort to roll past Western Illinois 83-56 at the Gentry Center on Saturday night.
The Tigers (16-8, 10-4) had four players score in double figures, led by Antoine Lorick III, who had 18 points. Aaron Nkrumah added 16 points, six rebounds and three steals and Jabrion Spikes helped out with 16 points from the bench. Dante Harris also chipped in 11 points and dished out multiple assists to help pace the offense.
Tennessee State out-rebounded Western Illinois 39-32 in Saturday's game, led by Jalen Pitre's 10 boards. The Tigers also collected 11 offensive rebounds and scored four second chance points while controlling the paint throughout the contest.
Tennessee State's defense held Western Illinois to only 20 percent shooting from beyond the arc and 33.3 percent from the field while forcing 13 turnovers and limiting transition opportunities.
How It Happened
After jumping out to a 22-10 advantage, Tennessee State went on a 6-0 run with 10:03 left in the first half to increase its lead to 28-10. The Tigers then lost some of that lead, but still entered halftime with a 43-27 advantage. Tennessee State did most of its first half damage in the paint, scoring 26 of its 43 points close to the basket.
Following intermission, Tennessee State kept widening that lead, expanding it to 70-43 before going on an 11-0 run to grow the lead to 81-43 with 5:56 to go in the contest. The Leathernecks narrowed the margin somewhat before the game was over, but the Tigers still cruised the rest of the way for the 83-56 win. Tennessee State took care of business in the paint, recording 32 of its 40 points in the lane while its bench and defense sealed the result late.
Game Notes
» The Tigers held the Leathernecks to only 33.3 percent shooting from the field.
» Tennessee State never trailed on the way to an 83-56 victory.
» Tennessee State tallied 15 total assists in the game.
» Tennessee State had a great day defensively, holding Western Illinois to 20 percent from beyond the arc on 20 attempts.
» The Tennessee State bench came alive by scoring 26 points to its scoring output.
» Tennessee State had a 39-32 edge on the boards in the win.
» The Tennessee State defense forced 13 turnovers.
» Tennessee State cleaned up on the offensive glass, collecting 11 offensive boards in the game.
» Antoine Lorick III led the Tigers with 18 points.
» Tennessee State got a game-high 10 rebounds from Jalen Pitre.
