Arkansas-Pine Bluff wins SWAC title for first NCAA bid

Bossier City, LA - Tavaris Washington had 14 points and four rebounds as the Arkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions took home the Southwestern Athletic Conference Tournament title with a 50-38 win over Texas Southern. Allen Smith had 11 points while Lebaron Weathers, George Davis and Savalance Townsend each chipped in with six points for the second-seeded Golden Lions (17-15), who are going to the NCAA Tournament on a tear as the team has won 11 of their last 12.

"This means a lot for our school and our fans," UAPB coach George Ivory said. "We worked all year to get to the Big Dance and now we can always brag that at least for one year, we got to The Dance."

DeAndre Hall had 14 points and 10 rebounds while Junior Treasure added 14 points for the fifth-seeded Tigers (17-16), who were looking to win their fifth tournament title. Texas-Southern held the early lead, but Arkansas-Pine Bluff chipped away and took a 12-9 lead on Washington's layup with 11 1/2 minutes left in the first half. The Tigers rallied with a 7-0 spurt, but then went almost the rest of the half without any points as the Golden Lions closed the half with a 12-2 run to take a 26-20 lead into the break. Texas-Southern cut its deficit to five points with 11 1/2 minutes to play in the second half, as Treasure's jumper made it a 36-31 game.

Photo Gallery:UAPB vs. Texas Southern

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Ark.-Pine Bluff 50, Texas Southern 38
From 0-11 to the Big Dance