Texas Southern had a strong start to the second half and withstood a furious Grambling State rally at the end to claim an 82-79 home win Saturday inside the H&PE Arena.
TSU led 9-8 to open the game but Grambling State heated up with an 11-3 run over the next 2:16 as they scored five consecutive field goals en route to a 17-12 lead. Jordan Gorecki ended the drought with a big dunk as TSU nearly matched GSU's efforts but remained down 26-19 with 10 minutes left. Once again, both teams matched each other's production (9-9) over the next 7:28 as Grambling State kept a 35-28 lead with 2:23 left. Zaire Hayes took matters into his own hands late as he keyed an 8-4 surge with six points of his own for a 39-36 halftime deficit.
Jaylen Wysinger's three-point play to open the second half tied it at 39-all as TSU came out on fire with a perfect 12-0 run for a 48-39 lead to open the second half. Fueled by defensive adjustments, TSU would maintain a double-digit margin for the next few minutes as they led 60-47 at the 12:13 mark. However, the lead would nearly evaporate in a matter of seconds literally as two TSU turnovers led to a 7-0 surge and a 60-54 lead in only 54 seconds.
From there, it turned into a dogfight as GSU outscored TSU 18-11 over the next 8:19 and found themselves trailing 71-70 with three minutes left. Troy Hupstead would draw a foul and hit 1-of-2 free throws to lead 72-70 but GSU hit 1-of-2 of its own for a 72-21 deficit. Wysinger made a nifty spin move despite drawing contact to up the lead to 74-71 but GSU's Roderick Coffee answered with a trey to knot it at 74-all. Gorecki came up with a big offensive rebound on the next possession and drew a foul which led to a 76-74 lead after two free throws.
Grambling State missed a three-pointer and Gorecki was fouled on the rebound attempt and hit a free throw to lead 77-74 at the 1:02 mark. Grambling State would commit a big turnover on the ensuing possession and Zaire Hayes hit a huge teardrop with 25 seconds left to lead 79-74. Grambling State hit a layup to draw within 79-76 but Wysinger hit two free throws followed by a Hupstead dunk to seal the win.
Leading the way for the Tigers was Zaire Hayes, who finished with 17 points on 6-of-11 shooting, including four triples, while Troy Hupstead also posted 17 points and made 8-of-12 free throws to help seal the victory. Bryce Roberts provided a key scoring spark with 16 points on 5-of-9 shooting, and Jordan Gorecki added a season-high 15 points and steady play throughout the second half. Jaylen Wysinger chipped in 11 points and six assists as TSU found scoring depth in a tight contest.
TSU is back in action on Monday against Southern at 7 p.m. inside the H&PE Arena.
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