Tuskegee advances in SIAC tourney, downing Clark Atlanta 76-66

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BIRMINGHAM, AL  (goldentigersports.com) — With the turn of the calendar on Tuesday, March Madness has officially began around the country for NCAA Division II basketball.

And it began in earnest late Monday night, for the Golden Tigers.

After a hard-fought victory in the opening round of the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Tournament Monday night, the Tuskegee University men’s basketball team will look to extend their season as they face top-seeded Stillman College for the third time Wednesday night.

Tuskegee (14-12) overcame a 16-point second half deficit – their largest of the season – against Clark Atlanta to win 76-66 behind five players in double figures.

The Golden Tigers and Stillman (23-5), the West Division champion, met two times during the regular season with the Tigers winning both over Tuskegee by an average of 21.5 points per game. However, the Golden Tigers led the opening meeting between the two at Stillman until nine minutes to go in the contest and have challenged many of the top teams in the conference this season.

Freshman James Eads and senior Camden Foster were held well below their season average in the two games. In two games, Eads has averaged just seven points against Stillman – nearly five points below his average – while Foster has averaged just five points per game in the two meetings – nearly six points below his average for the season.

Elijah McMillan led Tuskegee in the second meeting between the two with 17 points and five rebounds. He also had 10 points in the first meeting between the two in Tuscaloosa.

Stillman is led by Player of the Year – Rodnerius Lewis – and Newcomer of the Year – Ronald Singleton – and last loss in conference play to Benedict back on January 7. Since then, the Tigers have reeled off 14 consecutive victories.

The Tigers average just over 83 points per game, and although they have won the previous two meetings with Tuskegee, have been held below their scoring average both times. In the first meeting, Stillman was held to 70 points and in the second they were held to 75.

The meeting between the two teams on Wednesday will be the second time the Golden Tigers have played on Wednesday this season. The first came in February when they hit the road and upset 20th-ranked Montevallo.

The winner of the game advances to the semifinals on Friday at 7:45 pm.