Tuskegee rallies in second half for Xavier Classic victory

NEW ORLEANS — Amelia Dorton, one of four Tuskegee double-digit scorers, had 16 points Friday to help the Tigerettes rally for a 76-62 women's basketball victory against Langston in the Xavier Classic.

Tuskegee (2-3) trailed by 11 points in the 11th minute and 34-33 at halftime but took the lead for good by outscoring Langston 12-2 in the first four minutes of the second half. An 11-3 run extended Tuskegee's lead to 56-45 with 11:23 remaining.

Alannah Vincent scored 13 points, Natasha Williams 11 and Kajuanna Rivers 10 for Tuskegee, an NCAA Division II member. Williams scored all her points in the final 12 minutes. Rayven Sellers had eight points, eight rebounds and six assists.

Amber Coleman had 18 points and eight rebounds for Langston (0-5), ranked 14th in NAIA Division I. Victoria Felix had 11 points, 11 rebounds and six assists, and Tayla Vaughn had 11 points, 10 rebounds, six blocks and three assists.

Langston led for all but 67 seconds of the first half and took its biggest lead, 23-12, on Coleman's 3-point play at 9:46.

Tuskegee outshot Langston 45.3 to 40.7 from the floor — 50 to 31.3 percent in the second half — committed 14 turnovers and gained 27. Langston had a 41-29 rebound advantage.

Tuskegee led by double digits for the final 8:19 and twice led by 16.

Langston, making its eighth consecutive Xavier Classic appearance, lost both its games in the event for the first time since 2004. Xavier defeated the Lionesses 46-38 Thursday. Tuskegee finished 1-1 after losing 88-62 to Wiley. Both Tuskegee and Langston were 2-0 in the 2011 Xavier Classic.

Box score

By Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
XULAATHLETICS
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA