Jan. 20, 2010
Final Stats
SAVANNAH, GA. (NCCUEaglePride.com)- The Eagles of North Carolina Central University saw an 11 point lead second half lead and an unbelievable first half defensive effort all fall by the wayside, as the Tigers of Savannah State University scratched and clawed its way back to send the game into overtime, where the Eagles fell in its 36 consecutive road contest 46-44 on Wednesday at Tiger Arena in Savannah, Ga.
In the first half, NCCU held SSU to 6.3 percent shooting as the Tigers went a dismal 1-for-16 from the field. In fact, NCCU's first half defense was so gripping that, Savannah State's only field goal came with 13:56 left in the opening half of play. Conversely, NCCU wasn't much better going five-for-30 including a three-pointer to take a 13-5 lead at the half.
To illustrate the difficulties both teams had offensively, following SSU's only field goal with 13:56 left gave the Tigers a 5-4 lead. The score stayed that way until the 7:25 mark of the first half following a Michael Glasker (Newport News, Va.) jumper.
Both teams picked up offensively in the second half with NCCU grabbing a hold to an 11 point lead at 22-11 with 13:02 remaining. From that point forward, SSU chipped away at the deficit finally tying the ballgame at 31 with 2:57 to go.
One day after his21st birthday, Glasker hit a cltuch three-pointer putting the Eagles up by three with 2:42 to go, and that's when SSU's Patrick Hardy returned the favor with a deep three to knot the game at 34 just 19 seconds later.
NCCU took its final lead 36-34 in regulation following a huge Nick Chasten (Raleigh, N.C.) layup with 1:46 to go. After a missed Hardy three and two missed free throws by Marius Chawa, NCCU's Joshua Worthy missed the front end of a one-and-one that could have put the ballgame away with 16 seconds left.
Following the miss, Savannah State found its leading scorer on the night, Rashad Hassan, underneath the basket as he tied the ballgame up on the layup that was blocked by Worthy but called basket interference tying the game up at 36 with 8.2 seconds left.
Glasker took the ball the length of the floor as time wound down and missed the potential game-winning layup.
In the overtime frame, SSU took control thanks to big shots from its leading scorer Hassan and a huge three pointer by Tracy Rankins with 2:09 left. The Tigers led the entire extra session and unfortunately for the Eagles, unforced turnovers and missed opportunities spelled doom for the maroon and gray in the 46-44 loss.
Glasker led all scorers with 17 points and four assists, while Hassan led the Tigers with 14 points in the win.
Throughout the contest, NCCU shot just 27.1 percent going 16-for-59 from the field, but hit 6-of-18 three pointers as Glasker hit 3-of-7 and junior Dwayne Sims (Dayton, Ohio) went 2-for-7 on the night.
NCCU (4-17) has a week off before its next contest, as it travels to its ninth and final state in the 2009-10 season to take on the Penguins of Youngstown State on Wednesday, Jan. 27. Tipoff is set for 7:00 p.m.
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