TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - TSU had a strong second half as they held off a late Florida A&M rally to claim a 62-57 road win Saturday evening.
TSU scored the first seven points to set the tone as they led by as much as eight (16-8) after a Jaylen Wysinger dunk with 11:13 remaining. FAMU would turn the tide and respond with a 13-5 run to knot it at 21-all as TSU committed four turnovers during that span. A Duane Posey layup with 5:21 left gave TSU a 23-21 lead but FAMU's Jaquan Sanders drained a trey for a 24-23 advantage. The Rattlers outscored TSU 10-7 over the final 3:40 to claim a 31-30 halftime lead.
Bryce Roberts opened the second half with a layup to regain a 32-31 lead but FAMU regained the lead (34-32) back after a Jordan Chatman trey. Troy Hupstead's floater tied it at 34-all and a FAMU turnover led to a Jordan Gorecki layup and a 36-34 lead. From there, TSU roared out to an 11-1 run as Hupstead led the way with five points for a 45-35 lead with 12:47 remaining.
TSU would maintain a two-plus possession lead for most of the second half but FAMU refused to go away as time ticked down. The Rattlers cut the lead to six at both the 5:21 and 4:42 marks but Bryce Robnerts came up big with back-to-back treys to move the lead back to nine both times. However, TSU missed its next four shots and FAMU took advantage from the free throw line to get within three (60-57) with 1:01 left. TSU would miss two shots at the basket with 27 seconds left and FAMU had two attempts from the three-point line to tie but missed both attempts. TSU's Duane Posey was fouled and made both free throws to seal the win.
Hupstead led TSU with 24 points and nine rebounds while Roberts and Wysinger added 14 and 11 points, respectively. Wysinger also had four steals and three assists.
TSU closes out its road trip at Bethune-Cookman on Monday at 6 p.m.
