Mississippi State downs Arkansas Pine-Bluff 77-68 in Van Chancellor Classic

Photo by Darla Tamulitis-La Vida Loco Photography
Copyright 2023 All Rights Reserved

By Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2023 All Rights Reserved

KATY, TEXAS (November 25, 2023) In a heart-pounding clash at the Van Chancellor Classic, the No. 25 Mississippi State women's basketball team triumphed over Arkansas-Pine Bluff with a final score of 77-68.

The Bulldogs extended their undefeated streak to an impressive 7-0, but not without facing a gritty challenge from the Golden Lions (1-4), who fought tenaciously throughout the game.

Jerkaila Jordan emerged as the star for Mississippi State, delivering a remarkable 20-point performance while Erynn Barnum, contributed a valuable double-double with 12 points and 12 rebounds.

The game reached a fever pitch as the Golden Lions, trailing by 10 at halftime, narrowed the gap to a mere three points with less than eight minutes left. However, the Bulldogs countered with a late 6-0 surge, solidifying a 75-63 lead with just over a minute remaining.

Zaay Green spearheaded the Golden Lions' effort with an outstanding stat line of 19 points, seven rebounds, and seven assists, while Coriah Beck chipped in with 13 points.

Mississippi State's dominance in second-chance opportunities contributed to their success with an impressive 24 second-chance points. The Bulldogs' determination was evident in a 12-1 run led by Jerkaila Jordan, propelling them to a 39-29 lead just before halftime.

Next up for the Bulldogs is a Sunday matchup against the Tulsa Hurricane while Arkansas-Pine Bluff will face Clemson.

Five field goals leads Arkansas-Pine Bluff to 15-10 win over Texas Southern

By Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2018 All Rights Reserved

HOUSTON, TEXAS (November 17, 2018) Texas Southern could not overcome the fleet foot of kicker Jamie Gillan (Leonardtown HS, Leonardtown, Maryland) as he booted five field goals to lead the Arkansas-Pine Bluffs Golden Lions to a 15-10 win over the Tigers at BBVA Compass Stadium. The 2,045 fans in attendance, with the vast majority supporting the Tigers, witnessed Gillan kick field goals of 24, 37, 29, 46, and 37 yards and dash their hopes of TSU winning their second conference game of the season. TSU downed Mississippi Valley State by the score of 42-14 for the only conference win on October 27. 

The Tigers and Golden Lions traded scores in the first quarter, with TSU getting on the scoreboard first on a 24-yard kick by Aaron Cuevas (North Shore HS, Houston, Texas). That was followed by the first of Gillan's scores, a 37-yarder. He added the 39-yard field goal in the second quarter before Glen Cuiellette (Manderville HS, Manderville,Louisiana) romped 21 yards for the only touchdown of the game. Cuevas added the kicking conversion to give the Tigers a 10-6 lead at the half. Gill10 an's 46-yard and 27-yard field goals came in the third quarter, with the 22 yard field goal coming with 1:48 left in the game.

Texas Southern will conclude the season with a Saturday, November 24 match up against long-time rival Prairie View A&M. Game time is set for 1 p.m. at New Panther Stadium in Prairie View, Texas.

Texas Southern Tigers headed to NCAA Tournament

Story and Photos by Kristina McKay and Tommy Boatman

Copyright 2018 All Rights Reserved

HOUSTON, TEXAS (March 11, 2018) Texas Southern University Tigers faced off against The University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions Saturday for the SWAC Men’s basketball championship. The Tigers came out strong and in control and even when The Lions appeared to be coming back, TSU shut them down and came away on top winning the title for the second year in a row. They are now headed back to the NCAA tournament for their fourth time in five years and are the first team to start 0-13 and make the NCAA tournament. The team has battled through countless suspensions of multiple players, as well as losing the SWAC Player of Year from last season in Zach Lofton, who transferred to New Mexico State.

The Tigers started out the game like they were the No. 1 seed in the SWAC tournament, jumping out to a quick 13-point lead with 10 minutes left in the first half. The SWAC All-Tournament Player Donte Clark had 11 of them and finished with 14 points. The Golden Lions pulled within 4 points with about 4 minutes left in the first half but TSU refused to let UAPB get a strong hold and the half ended with the Tigers owning a 45-36 lead.

In the second half, Arkansas-Pine Bluff came out motivated and pulled to within two as Texas Southern started to make little mistakes. They let off the gas, gave up several turnovers and then Donte Clark fouled out for the second game in a row. However, as Clark stepped off Lamont Walker stepped up keeping the Tigers’ heads in the game. Luckily or blessed, depending on who you ask, Walker had just come back on their last road trip after being suspended. The senior was motivated to make a difference, as was the SWAC tournament Most Valuable Player Demontrae Jefferson who finished with 15 points with 7 assists and 6 rebounds, Trayvon Reed who had a double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds and Derrick Bruce who pitched in 13 points, including four 3-pointers. The game ended 84-69, and while it was the first time this season that TSU had managed to beat UAPB, getting swept by them during the regular season, this was the game that mattered most and bought them a ticket to the “big show”.

Arkansas-Pine Bluff qualifies for SWAC men's basketball final with 71-65 win over Southern

Story and Photos by Kristina McKay and Tommy Boatman

Copyright 2018 All Rights Reserved

HOUSTON, TEXAS (March 9, 2018) Behind Player of the Year Martaveous McKnight, Arkansas-Pine Bluff eased past Southern 71-65, punching its ticket to the 2018 Toyota Southwestern Athletic Conference Men’s Basketball Tournament final.

A nip-and-tuck contest initially, Arkansas-Pine Bluff (14-19) managed to distance itself thanks to McKnight, who scored nine points in the first 13 minutes and knocked down a three-pointer to push the Golden Lions ahead 19-11 with 7:18 left in the half. 

Southern responded with a 11-2 run to take a 22-21 lead with four minutes left in the half, and Eddie Reese later keyed an 8-0 run – coupled with an UAPB scoring drought that lasted more than three minutes – to take a 30-23 advantage in the waning seconds of the half. However, Charles Jackson drew a foul on a three-point try with 0.7 seconds left, later converting all three from the stripe to cut Southern’s lead to 30-27 at the break. 

Jared Sam asserted himself following intermission, as he accounted for five early points as the Jaguars pushed their lead to seven. After that, however, the Jaguars struggled to find the bottom of the net, slogging through a 3:03 drought without a field goal. Meanwhile, the Golden Lions responded through their big man Trent Steen, as he nailed consecutive jumpers to bring UAPB within one.

Travon Harper later split a pair of free throws to tie the game at 38 with 14:47 left. Seconds later, a McKnight bucket pushed the Golden Lions ahead 40-39, but Chris Thomas dropped in a floater to put Southern back in front.

Arkansas-Pine Bluff remained in striking distance throughout the second half, and Harper later scored on a put-back of a McKnight miss to tie it at 55 with 5:42 left, and McKnight later swiped an errant pass, going coast-to-coast for a lay-up that gave UAPB a 57-55 lead with just under five minutes left.

From there, McKnight assumed the role of closer, scoring UAPB’s last nine points as the Golden Lions pulled away from the Jaguars late. McKnight scored a game-high 28 points on 10-of-15 shooting, grabbing eight rebounds. Harper added 23 points. Reese led the Jaguars (15-18) with 17 points, four assists and four rebounds. Sam added 13 points, and Emanuel Sheperd scored 11 points

Texas Southern upends Arkansas-Pine Bluff 27-10

Photo by Kris Gager, Houston Sports Images
Copyright 2016, All Rights Reserved

By Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2016 TexSport Publications

HOUSTON, TEXAS (November 13, 2016) The Texas Southern Tigers rolled to a 27-10 win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff in Southwestern Athletic Conference football action at BBVA Compass Stadium in Houston on Saturday, November 12, 2016. With the win, the Tigers moved to 5-6 in 2016 while the Golden Lions fall to 1-10.  The Tigers rolled up a 20-7 lead in the first half, with both teams scoring seven points in the third quarter. Arkansas-Pine Bluff added a 33-yard field goal in the fourth quarter to close out scoring.

TSU’s Brad Woodard rushed for 117 yards on 28 carries while Tylor Cook added 101 yards on eight carries. Johnathan Bowen scored on rushing TD off 14 carries for 66 yards. Tracy Johnson and Elie Nabushoi each caught one pass for a touchdown. Next up for the Tigers is a 2 p.m. CST matchup against Grambling State at BBVA Compass Stadium on Saturday, November 19, 2016.

Below are more photos from the game, courtesy of Kris Gager and Tommy Boatman, Houston Sports Images, Copyright 2016, All Rights Reserved.

Arkansas-Pine Bluff downs Texas Southern on late game score



Photo by Darla Tamulitis-La Vita Loca Photography
Copyright 2014 All Rights Reserved
 

By Robert H Kelly

Copyright 2014 TexSport Publications



 

HOUSTON, TEXAS (October 25, 2014)  With the score seesawing back and forth all afternoon, the Texas Southern Tigers could not contain Arkansas-Pine Bluff final drive and fell to the Golden Eagles by the score of 38-37 in front of 8,210 fans at BBVA Compass Stadium in Houston, Texas on Saturday, October 25, 2014.

In the first quarter, Texas Southern and Arkansas-Pine Bluff each scored a touchdown and a field goal to end the quarter in a 10-all tie.

The loss dropped the Tigers to 5-3 for the season and 3-3 in the Southwestern Athletic Conference. Pine Bluff raised their conference record to 1-4 and 2-5 for the season.

The Golden Lions scored at the 6:31 mark with a 26-yard field goal by Tyler Strickland. He also scored the extra point after Benjamin Anderson connected with C.J. Branch on 34-yard pass with 4:41 remaining in the quarter.

The Tigers tallied their points on a 41-yard touchdown pass from Homer Causey to Daveonn Porter and Eric Medina’s extra point. Medina added a 42-yard field goal with 42 second left in the quarter.

Pine Bluff put the pedal to the medal in the second quarter, scoring 16 points to make the score 26-17 at halftime.

Walk on running back Brian Hanley scored two touchdowns, on runs of 17 and 23 to give the Golden Lions 12 points. Strickland connected on one of the extra points, missing one and added a field goal to close out second quarter scoring.

TSU added seven points with 17-yard pass from Causey to Malik Cross and a Medina extra point at the 8:12 mark in the third quarter and an additional seven points with 4:25 left in the quarter. That closed out the scoring, giving TSU a 31-26 lead with 15 minutes to go.

Pine Bluff regained the lead with a Willie Young 60 yard pass reception, making the score 32-31. Texas Southern responded with their own aerial touchdown when Causey hit Larry Clark from 16 yard out for the score and the lead with 2:31 left in the game.

After the ensuing kickoff, Anderson unleased a monstrous pass on the second play from scrimmage, again connecting with Young. He grabbed the ball on the 69-yard pass play and the final score of the game.

Porter carried the ball 18 times for 187 yards and one touchdown while Causey completed 27 of 35 passes for 333 yards and three touchdowns.

Anderson completed 12 of 23 passes for 288 yards and three touchdowns. Porter caught seven passes for 83 yards and one TD, while Clark added 78 yards on the ground with five carries.

Next on tab for TSU will be Grambling State on November 1, 2014 with a 5:30 p.m. kickoff at BBVA Compass Stadium. The Tigers are 5-3 for the season and 4-0 in SWAC action with their most recent win a 63-39 victory over the Golden Eagles on October 18, 2014.

McNeese State Cowboys down Arkansas-Pine Bluff, 58-14 in home opener

Photo by Darla Tamulitis-La Vita Loca Photography

By Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2013 TexSport Publications

LAKE CHARLES, LOUISIANA (September 7, 2013) The McNeese State University Cowboys won their second game of the 2013 season by knocking off Universityof Arkansas-Pine Bluff Lions by the score of 58-14 in front of 15,217 fans at Cowboy Stadium in Lake Charles, Louisiana.

McNeese got on the scoreboard at the 11:40 mark in the first quarter when tailback Marcus Wiltz took the hand-off from quarterback CodyStroud and scampered 12 yards for the touchdown.  Ryan Rome’s kick was good to give the Cowboys a 7-0 lead

Arkansas-Pine Bluff battled back with a 73-yard drive that ended with a seven-yard run by Jamie Smith to tie the score with six minute remaining in the quarter.

The Cowboys found the end zone with 24 second left in the first quarter when Dylan Long plunged through the defense and over the goal line to take the score to 14-7.

The Lions would not be denied, as they drove 75-yards in six plays to add another touchdown to their tally on a two-yard run by Jeremiah Young at the 14:30 mark to again tie the score.

Diontae Spencer took the ensuing kickoff for the Cowboys and returned it 80-yard to the Arkansas-Pine Bluff 17-yard line.

Four plays later, quarterback Tyler Bolfing rushed seven-yard for the third touchdown of the night for the Cowboys to take the score to 21-14.

McNeese further extended their lead to 23-14, when they scored an additional two points at the 11:42 mark on a Lion miscue which resulted in a safety.

The Cowboys added another touchdown at the 10:11 mark on a Wiltz run and a Rome kick.

Both teams headed to the locker room at halftime with McNeese leading 37-14.

In the second half, McNeese continued its assault on the scoreboard with touchdowns by Ernest Celestie, on a 33-yard pass, and a 12-yard pass reception by Long, which took the score to 51-14.

McNeese added an insurance touchdown in the fourth quarter on a nine-yard run by Jontrey Tillman.

DE Chris Loveless, who played his high school football at South Houston High School (South Houston, Texas), was credited with three tackles and one tackle for a loss.

Offensively, Wiltz rushed for 115 yards on 12 carries and three touchdowns.

Stroud completed 21-of-30 passes for 251 yards and two touchdowns.

The Lions were led by Smith, with 15 carries for 91 yards, while Benjamin Anderson completed 13-of-25 passes for 110 yards.

The Cowboys will next face West Alabama on Sept. 12 at home, while the Lions host Alabama State on the same date.