Southern men set for Monday showdown at Alabama State

MONTGOMERY, Alabama -- The hottest men’s basketball teams in the Southwestern Athletic Conference meet at 7:30 p.m. Monday when Alabama State hosts Southern in Montgomery, Alabama.

The Hornets (10-5 overall) lead the SWAC after winning their first six conference games. The Jaguars (9-12) are 6-1 in the conference after winning their past five to move into a tie with Texas Southern (5-1) in the loss column.

TSU has a leg up on Southern in the tiebreaker because of a 59-58 victory against the Jaguars on Jan. 5 in the F.G. Clark Activity Center. But the race tightened Saturday when the Tigers suffered their first conference loss (66-62 at Arkansas-Pine Bluff) as Southern was winning 65-58 at Alabama A&M.

“Your intensity has to pick up,” Jaguars guard Christopher Hyder said of the conference race. “Your focus has to pick up. We’re tuned in.”

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