SAVANNAH, Ga. — The
Clevan Thompson era of
Savannah State basketball got off to a good start, with the Tigers rallying from a nine-point deficit on their way to a 64-57 win over
Morehouse, in a game played on Wednesday evening in Tiger Arena.
Thompson, who is the first Savannah State alumnus to lead the program since Jack Grant (2000-02), saw his team down 48-39 with 8:24 remaining, but a 9-0 run by the Orange & Blue knotted the game up at 48.
A layup by
Ayjay Plain started the run, which was followed by a 3-pointer by
Javonte Landy, another layup by Plain, and a pair of free throws by
Jeremiah Barze with 6:22 left on the clock.
Morehouse scored the next five points, but Savannah answered with a 12-0 run, which proved to be the knockout punch they needed to secure Thompson's first win as a head coach at the collegiate level.
During SSU's big finish, four Tigers scored, with Plain hitting a 3-pointer and three free throws and
Qua Kingmaking two free throws. Landy and
Jaydon Cousin each made a layup.
Plain and King both hit two free throws apiece down the stretch to help seal the victory.
Savannah State held Morehouse to just one field goal in the final four minutes as they snapped the Maroon Tigers five-game winning streak.
It was the first win for SSU since a 70-61 victory over Lane on December 16, 2024.
Landy came off the bench to lead all scorers with 17 points. Barze added 16 points and five rebounds while Plain chipped in a dozen points, nine rebounds, five steals and four assists.
King opened the contest with a 3-pointer, and Barze followed with a layup for a 5-3 advantage, but the Maroon Tigers responded with a 13-2 run for a 16-7 lead after seven minutes of action.
The Tigers found themselves trailing by seven with 3:01 remaining in the first half and used a 5-1 mini-spurt to close the period with Lundy making a 3-pointer and a layup.
Morehouse took a 30-27 advantage into the locker room at intermission.
Four times during the first eight minutes of the second half, Savannah State would close their gap to a single point but Morehouse would always have an answer.
Following a steal by Plain and a fast-break layup by Lundy to pull SSU within 38-37 at the 12:27 mark, Morehouse went on a 10-2 run and looked as if they would run away with the game as they widened their lead to 48-39.
That's when Savannah State started its comeback.
Thompson spent four years as a linebacker at Savannah State and his team displayed the hustle, toughness and grit he wanted to see, out-rebounding Morehouse 37 to 35 and getting ten steals.
Savannah State had 23 points off 23 Morehouse turnovers, received 25 points from the reserves, had 11 second-chance points and 14 fast break points.
King had nine points for the Tigers, while Cousin scored eight and
Jerry Maxinaud had two.
Savannah State (6-6, 4-4 SIAC) will look to make it two wins in a row when they travel to Albany State on Jan. 11. Tipoff is at 3 p.m. ET.
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ABOUT THE SOUTHERN INTERCOLLEGIATE ATHLETIC CONFERENCE (SIAC)
The SIAC is a NCAA athletic conference consisting primarily of historically black colleges and universities with headquarters in downtown Atlanta, Georgia. The SIAC includes 15 member institutions (Albany State University, Allen University, Benedict College, Central State University, Clark Atlanta University, Edward Waters University, Fort Valley State University, Kentucky State University, Lane College, LeMoyne-Owen College, Miles College, Morehouse College, Savannah State University, Spring Hill College, and Tuskegee University), which are located within a contiguous seven-state footprint (Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Kentucky, South Carolina, Tennessee and Ohio). The SIAC sponsors nine men's and seven women's sports and is a proud member of the NCAA Division II. For more information, visit
www.thesiac.com.