TSU Men's Basketball Runs Over Fisk, 92-53

NASHVILLE, Tennessee  --  The Tennessee State men's basketball team (2-5) had its best shooting performance since Feb. 19, 2011 en route to a 92-53 win over Fisk on Monday night.
 

TSU shot 57.1 percent (32-56) from the field and 31.6 percent (6-19) from beyond the arc during the contest while limiting the Bulldogs to just a 29 percent line (18-62).

It was a big night for TSU's post players, especially seniors Robert Covington and Kellen Thornton.

Covington had a season-high 29 points and 14 points while Thornton chipped in with 22 points of his own. The duo combined to shoot 21-27 from the field and helped the Tigers edge the Bulldogs 45-28 on the glass.

Rashad Williams led Fisk with 15 points, but the forward was limited in the second half due to foul trouble.

The Tigers got the first possession of the game and then Covington went to work. He first tipped in a shot by Thornton and then dunked the ball off of a steal from the inbound pass. The sudden surge prompted a timeout from Fisk with only 30 seconds gone off of the clock.

After another Covington basket at the 19:04 mark, the Tigers ran down the court and found Covington wide open beyond the arc. He nailed that shot and another three to help TSU start the game on a 17-0 run.

With 15:11 left in the opening half, Chaed Wellian had his first points in a TSU uniform with a jumper. The shot made the score 19-2 with Big Blue on top.

The Tigers continued their charge later in the period and led 29-13 on another tip-in from Covington. Through the first 13 minutes of the game, Covington had 18 of TSU's 29 points and eight of the team's 14 boards.

TSU finished the half on a 10-2 run that spanned over six minutes and included baskets by five different Tigers. Jordan Cyphers canned his second three-pointer of the period to lead the TSU offense.

Tennessee State had 22 points in the paint during the opening frame and held a 27-16 advantage on the boards.

Thornton got the team started in the second half with a strong one-handed dunk within the first minute of action, and the Tigers never looked back on the way to an 11-2 opening run.

At the 16 minute mark, Thornton stole the ball around the top of the key and he ran the floor by himself for a highlight reel break-away slam. The rim rocker made the score 51-24 in favor of the home side.

The Tigers extended their lead to 41 with just under four minutes left to go in the game when Wellian canned his first career three-pointer.

Tennessee State got 29 points from its bench and won its most lopsided game since the first game of the 1998-99 season when the Tigers beat Fisk 97-52.

TSU will next travel to Alabama A&M on Saturday, Dec. 1 for a 7 p.m. tip-off.

COURTESY TENNESSEE STATE UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION