PRAIRIE VIEW, Texas – The Texas Southern men's basketball team suffered a close 78-74 loss Saturday evening at Prairie View A&M to close out the 2022-23 regular season.
A tumultuous first half that saw TSU (11-20, 7-11 SWAC) down by as many as eight and a bad start to the second half would see the Tigers down by as many as 45-34 less than a minute into the second half.
John Walker III's layup at the 15:04 mark in the second half would see the Tigers pull to within 46-45 thanks to an 11-1 run.
The PVAMU (13-18, 9-9 SWAC) lead fluctuated between 3-6 for most of the rest of the second half but the Tigers finally cracked the ceiling with 1:11 as Joirdon Karl Nicholas blocked a Will Douglas shot which led to his own layup and a 72-all tie with 1:02 left. However, the Tigers surrendered a crucial layup on PVAMU's next possession followed by a turnover on the offensive end which led to a Panther free throw and a 75-72 deficit with 20 seconds left.
TSU had a shot to tie with time winding down but misfired. The officiating crew went to the monitor to see which team knocked the ball out of bounds on the rebound but deemed it inconclusive as PVAMU gained possession. PVAMU hit two free throws on its next possession and TSU's PJ Henry was fouled on a three-point attempt but hit 2-of-3. PVAMU would ice the game with one free throw.
PJ Henry led the Tigers with 19 points while Davon Barnes and Walker III added 13 points each and Kolby Granger chipped in 11 points.
It was, however, Joirdon Karl Nicholas who had the best overall performance for Texas Southern as he recorded a 14-point, 12-rebound double-double. PVAMU's Will Douglass led all scorers with 27 points.
UP NEXT
The Tigers will advance to the SWAC tournament as the eighth seed and take on top-seeded Alcorn State at 8:30 p.m. on Wednesday, March 8 at the Bartow Arena in Birmingham, Ala.
