Albany State men close regular season with a win

ALBANY — Adversity is often one of the best teachers. For the players on the Albany State men’s basketball team, they were able to learn from it and draw from previous experiences to get the 69-60 win over Tuskegee on Friday night.

The Rams took a 10-point lead in the first half and led by as much as 19 in the second before a few technical foul calls and some late baskets helped Tuskegee get back in the game.

The Rams were able to keep their heads up, get a few thunderous dunks from Randy McClure and kept their energy and poise late.

ASU head coach Michael Moore said in previous games his team would’ve let the lead slip away, but Friday marked how much they’ve grown.

“Playing those ranked quality teams this year and from last year, we lost a lot of close games,” he said. “And moving from freshman to sophomore, they’ve learned how to play out games until the final buzzer. Tuskegee made a good run, but unlike previous years, our experience showed up where we protected the ball and got quality shots down the stretch.”

The Rams got quality looks throughout as they started off hot, shooting 46.9 percent in the first half. They maintained that in the second and finished 47.3 percent for the game from the field and 40 percent from 3-point range in the contest.

Defensively, ASU held Tuskegee to 38.5 percent shooting from the field and 23.1 from deep and forced 19 turnovers. The Rams were also able to stop the Tigers from getting out and running as Tuskegee scored just two fast break points on the night.

The Rams have hit their stride offensively and had four different players finish in double figures. Jared Harrington led the way with 15 points, followed by McClure and Tylen Walker with 13 points each. Michael Green rounded out the top scorers list with 10.

The win capped off the regular season, with the Rams (7-20, 7-12 SIAC) winning six of their past nine games. Albany State will now set its sights on the SIAC Tournament in Birmingham, Alabama, where the team will take on Kentucky State in the first round. Tipoff for the game will be at 9:15 p.m. on Tuesday.

Albany State will be hosting a watch night party Tuesday night. Details of the event will be announced.