Texas Southern has that championship DNA.
When it comes to the SWAC basketball tournament, it’s time to shine for the Tigers.
On Saturday night, TSU won the conference tournament for the third straight season, earning their third straight NCAA tournament automatic berth in the process. It was a rousing three-game run at Bartow Arena in Birmingham, Alabama for the Tigers.
Victory wasn’t easy after a fast start. The Tigers led consistently but were defeated by Grambling State 61-58 and denied GSU their first NCAA tournament.
The Tigers (14-20) led by as much as 17 points – 22-5 – and were only tied once late 43-43 with 7:15 remaining in the game. But TSU derailed GSU’s comeback attempt in a Tigers meeting.
Losing their last three games of the regular season, TSU turned up the heat in Birmingham under coach Johnny Jones.
And Tigers guard PJ Henry turned it on late in a game he was struggling with shooting. After starting 1-of-13 from the field, TSU’s spark hit two late 3-pointers and scored seven crucial points in the remaining three minutes and 18 seconds.
TSU won its 11th conference tournament championship in its sixth straight title game appearance. The 2020 championship game was not played due to COVID-19. The Tigers are 11-7 in SWAC championship games.
Grambling missed 11 of his first 12 field goals and had to make up the rest of the game.
Second-place Grambling (24-9) set a program record for most wins in a season. The G-Men have had victories over Vanderbilt (64-62) and Colorado (83-74) this season.
Henry was 5-of-18 off the field. But when the Tigers needed him most, he delivered. The 5-10 point guard made four of his last five field goal attempts, ending with 19 points.
John Walker III added 14 points and Von Barnes amassed 13 points and eight rebounds for the Tigers, who overtook their opponent 46-35 and led 31-18 at halftime.
Jonathan Aku accumulated 11 points and 10 rebounds for Grambling.
Selected to finish first in SWAC last season, eighth-seeded TSU defeated Alcorn State (66-62) and Alabama A&M (74-61) to reach the tournament finals. TSU is 10-2 against Grambling in the postseason, with GSU’s last tournament win coming over the Tigers in 1988.
Grambling, who shared the regular season title with Alcorn State, won the season series with the Tigers, winning 85-72 at the H&PE Arena and 65-46 at Grambling. The G-Men defeated Bethune-Cookman (87-72) and Jackson State (78-69) to advance to the finals.
TSU had the benefit of the extra rest. The Tigers finished their semifinal game at 2:30 p.m. on Friday. Grambling’s semifinal game didn’t start until six hours later.
In his fifth season at TSU, Jones has a 26-8 record in games played in March. Donte’ Jackson was aiming for his 100th coaching win at Grambling.
Though Henry missed 11 of 12 shots in the first half, TSU led 31-18 at the break and passed GSU 28-13 in the first 20 minutes.
TSU started quickly, taking advantage of Grambling’s bad shooting and bad troubles. After less than three minutes, the Tigers were 8-1 up with Walker scoring six of the points.
Shortly thereafter, the Tigers had their largest lead at 17 points. Conference Player of the Year Cameron Christon conceded his third foul at 9:29 before halftime. A couple of free throws from Henry gave TSU a 22-5 lead at the 9:29 mark.
Christon was on the bench for a full nine minutes of the half and only scored four points. Christon scored his team’s first field goal at 13:23, giving it a 13-4 score. Aku, a 6-11 post, was called out for his second foul less than four minutes into the contest. Joshua Phillips, who started as a forward, also faced early fouls, amassing three in the first half.
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