Posted by
Eric Pilcher
-
Tue, Jan 24, 2012
- [
Men's Basketball
] - Viewed 106 times
Tougaloo, MS-The Tougaloo College Men's Basketball team played host to 19th ranked Xavier University here tonight in the Dawg Pound. The Bulldogs, who are ranked #24, knocked off the Gold Rush 69-64 to grab first place in the conference with a record of 5-1.
With a five game winning streak coming into tonight's game, the Bulldogs were looking for two things; to advance that win streak to six games and to grab first place in the conference. But to do that, they had to get past the Gold Rush, who was holding the first place slot with a 5-1 conference record. Early in the first half, the Gold Rush would attack the basket, taking an early lead over the Bulldogs. The Bulldogs would struggle offensively for the top of the first half, but would pull together midway through the half to gain the lead. The Bulldogs and the Gold Rush would battle, but it would be the Bulldogs who would go into the locker room with a 33-32 halftime edge.
In the second half, the battle of the Top 25 would continue between the Bulldogs and the Gold Rush. The Bulldogs would maintain the lead for majority of the half, but the Gold Rush would try to take the lead from under the Bulldogs. With 1:24 left in the game, the Gold Rush would pull within two with a pair of free throws by Cordell Hadnot. With the Bulldogs having possession of the ball, Marquise Mems would be fouled and sent to the line. Mems would go 1-2 to move the Bulldogs lead to 62-59 with 1:19 left in the game. The Gold Rush would get the ball and tie the game 62-62 with a 3-pointer by Chris Iles.
With less than a minute left in the game and a couple of fouls by both teams, the score would be 67-64. With 0:15 left in the game and a missed free throw by Mems to give the Gold Rush the ball, Xavier's coach would take a timeout. With 0:06 left, the Gold Rush would turn the ball over with the steal by Juan Gray. Gray would miss the shot, but Mems would rebound the ball and make the ending lay up to secure the 69-64 victory.
Mems led the Bulldogs with 26 points and 11 rebounds. Donteeno Todd chipped in 13 points and Juan Gray tacked in 11 points. Horace Whitehead, who ended the night with 8 points and 6 rebounds, had a game-high 6 blocks for the Bulldogs. The Bulldogs will be back in action on Saturday, January 28, 2012 as they play host to Edward Waters College of Jacksonville, FL. Tip-off is set for 7:00 P.M.
