It’s the second and final day of the First Four of the NCAA Tournament as a member of the Northeast Conference takes on one from the SWAC in the Buckeye State. The Fairleigh Dickinson Knights take on the Texas Southern Tigers Wednesday night with the winner advancing as the 16th-seed in the East Region to take on top-seeded Purdue Friday night. Fairleigh Dickinson was beaten 67-66 in the NEC Tournament championship game by Merrimack on March 7 though they covered as a 4.5-point underdog. They got the conference’s automatic bid due to the transition rule that made Merrimack ineligible for March Madness. Texas Southern earned the SWAC’s bid by downing Grambling State 61-58 in the title game of the SWAC Tournament Saturday, winning outright as a 3.5-point underdog. This marks the first time that the two programs have met at Division I opponents.
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Texas Southern had a rough season but made up for it with three straight wins in the SWAC Tournament to earn their spot in the field. The Tigers finished the regular season 14-20 overall and were 7-11 in the conference. Against Grambling State, Texas Southern led 21-5 with 9:29 to play in the first half and held a 13-point advantage at intermission. The Tigers sputtered in the second ahead, allowing Grambling State to tie the game with 7:12 remaining before going on a 10-3 run to take a 53-46 edge with 2:54 to go. They didn’t let Grambling State closer than three the rest of the way. Texas Southern shot 30.2% from the field, including five of 12 from three-point range, and went 24 of 34 at the charity stripe in the game. PJ Henry led the Tigers with 19 points and five rebounds in the victory.
On the year, the Tigers are 233rd in scoring offense as they put up an average of 69.6 poi nts per game this season. Texas Southern is good on the glass, ranking 38th in rebounding with 37.7 boards a contest, while they are 301st in assists by handing out 11.6 per game. The Tigers are below average when it comes to slowing the opposition as they are 228th in scoring defense by allowing 71.8 points per game. Davon Barnes leads the team with 13.6 points plus 4.4 rebounds per game. PJ Henry (12.7 points), John Walker III (12.6 points, 4.2 rebounds) and Joirdon Karl Nicholas (10.7 points, 8.9 rebounds) each average in double figures on the season. Zytarious Mortle, Kolby Granger, Kehlin Farooq, Chris Craig, Jordan Gilliam, Isaiah Marin and Grayson Carter have all logged solid minutes for coach Johnny Jones this season. Texas Southern shoots 42.7% from the floor as a team on the year. The Tigers are just 357th in threes per game with 4.8 per contest and 361st in three-point shooting as they connect on 28.4% of their long-r ange attempts. Texas Southern struggles at the charity stripe, ranking 333rd in the nation by hitting 66.1% of their attempts at the line as a team.
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