By Curtis Ford, Grambling State Associate AD for Athletic Communications
PRAIRIE VIEW, Texas — Grambling State, the defending Southwestern Athletic Conference champion, were hoping to open conference play with a win, but stumbled out of the blocks, falling 73-55 to Prairie View A&M on Saturday afternoon at the William J. Nicks Building.
GSU (3-11 overall, 0-1 SWAC) struggled to protect the basketball, committing a season-high 23 turnovers.
Despite shooting 55.6 percent (25-of-45) from the floor, the Tigers were just 3-of-10 from three-point range and 2-of-8 at the free throws line. In comparison, PVAMU (2-12, 1-0) drained 61.1 percent from behind the arc (11-of-18) and 85.7 percent at the charity stripe (6-of-7).
PJ Edwards scored a team-high 15 points on 7-of-11 shooting. He added six rebounds to his tally. Kintavious Dozierregistered his eighth double-figure scoring game of the year, contributing 12 points with five boards, one steal and one assist.
Ernest Ross also reached double-figures for the Tigers, adding 10 points with a pair of rebounds and an assist.
Grambling State started the game off strong, surging to a 20-13 lead with 11:30 remaining in the first half. The Tigers went cold from that point as the Panthers used a 12-0 run, capped by a Tanahj Pettway triple, to grab a 25-20 advantage with 7:09 on the clock.
Edwards put GSU back in front briefly, 26-25, on a jumper with 4:05 to go until halftime. That, however, was last time the Tigers led the contest. Dozier’s three-pointer with 2:28 on the clock tied the game 29-29, but PVAMU’s Braelon Bush responded with a triple of his own to give the Panthers a lead it wouldn’t relinquish the rest of the way.
Grambling State couldn’t find its rhythm in the second half, running out of steam midway through the period.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
- Grambling State shot 55.6 percent from the field (25-of-45) and 30 percent (3-of-10) from three-point range. The Tigers were 2-of-8 at the free throw line (25 percent).
- GSU grabbed 24 rebounds.
- The Tigers committed 23 turnovers.
- Grambling State scored 40 points in the paint, 14 points off turnovers, seven second chance points, four bench points and four fastbreak points.
- Prairie View A&M shot 53.8 percent from the floor (28-of-52) and 61.1 percent from behind the arc (11-of-18). The Panthers were 6-of-7 at the charity stripe (85.7 percent)
- PVAMU grabbed 20 boards.
- The Panthers committed 13 turnovers.
- Prairie View A&M scored 28 bench points, 26 points in the paint, 21 points off turnovers, eight fastbreak points and six second chance points.
- PVAMU’s Tenahj Pettway scored a game-high 23 points with three assists, one rebound and one steal.
Up Next
Grambling State looks to bounce back when it travels to Houston, Texas to face Texas Southern on Monday night at the H&PE Arena in a rematch of last season’s SWAC title game. Tip-off is scheduled for 8 p.m. and will be broadcast live on ESPNU.
