CLEVELAND, Tenn. – The West Alabama men’s basketball team overcame a 16-point deficit in Saturday’s matchup, but it was not enough to keep its winning streak alive. The Tigers fell 66-63 to Lee University inside Paul Dana Walker Arena in Cleveland, Tenn.

This week’s Gulf South Conference Player of the Week, Kortrijk Miles, led UWA in the effort with a 27-point, 10-rebound game for his fifth double-double of the season. The Dallas, Texas native hit 7 of 17 from the floor and 12 of 12 at the free-throw line for the game-high.

Two other Tigers scored in the double-figures, with Shardarrion Allen and Justin Allison picking up 10 points each. Other contributors include Robert Davis and Te Smith, with 9 and 7 points, respectively.

As a squad, West Alabama hit 19 of 59 (32.2%) from the floor, including 5 of 19 (26.3%) in three-point range. The Tigers made 95.2 % of their shots at the line, missing only one on 21 attempts.

The Flames were more accurate than UWA from the floor. Lee hit 23 of 46 shots (50.0%) from the field, with 8 of 17 (47.1%) from beyond the arc. The Flames had a little less success at the line, hitting 12 of 14 at 85.7%.

Lee dominated the first half, serving West Alabama its second-lowest scoring period of the season and outscoring the Tigers by 13 points.

The first couple of minutes of the competition started with a scoring back and forth, until the Flames went on a 7-0 run for a 13-8 lead with 14:27 left in the half.

After a three-minute scoring drought, Miles added points for UWA on a driving layup, cutting Lee’s lead to 13-10.

Despite several attempts to get back in the game, the Tigers closed the first half trailing the Flames, 37-24.

Coming back from the break, UWA struck first and kept the energy up to stage a slow comeback. With 7:24 left, the Tigers trailed Lee by three (50-47).

West Alabama received its first lead of the competition since the opening minutes. A jumper by Allen and back-to-back free throws by Miles gave UWA a 51-50 advantage with under five minutes remaining.

In the period, the Tigers outscored Lee 39-29. The Flames did not give up and outpaced UWA in the final minutes for the 66-63 victory.

UWA will look to rebound from Saturday’s loss as it travels to Montgomery, Ala., on Wednesday, Jan. 12. The Tigers face Auburn Montgomery at 7 p.m. inside the AUM Athletics Complex.

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LIVINGSTON – West Alabama women’s basketball player Tazsa Garrett-Hammett has been named Gulf South Conference Player of the Week based on her performance against West Florida on December 31 and against Valdosta State on January 2.

Garrett-Hammett leads the Tigers offense, averaging 15.6 points per game and 6.3 rebounds per game.

The LaGrange, Georgia native saw a season-high game, leading the Tigers with 31 points, seven rebounds, and three steals in the 70-57 victory over West Florida on December 31.

The senior forward also scored eight points, brought down six boards, and dished out four assists against Valdosta State on January 2.

Garrett-Hammett and the rest of the Tigers will be back in action Saturday, Jan. 8. The Tigers battle Lee University in Cleveland, Tennessee. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m.

To stay connected with the UWA women’s basketball team, follow @UWAwbb on Instagram and @UWA_WBB on Twitter. General athletic news, along with game recaps and box scores, can be found at uwaathletics.com. Additional updates and information are available @UWAAthletics on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.

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HATTIESBURG, Miss. – A nine day layoff did not slow the Tigers down. No. 23 Stillman College raced out to a 10-point lead in the first five minutes and never trailed en route to an 86-71 win at William Carey University on Feb. 5. The victory extended Stillman’s lead in the Southern States Athletic Conference West Division standings to 2.5 games over Loyola University.

Stillman shot 58.3% in the game, led in scoring by Trey Petty’s 27 points and 26 by Devin Merriweather.

After the initial double-digit lead, William Carey got no closer than seven points, 17-10, seven minutes into the game. Stillman stretched its lead to 21 points at halftime, 44-23. The largest lead was 24 points early in the second half.

Petty made 6-of-13 3-pointers and was 3-of-6 inside the arc.

All nine Tigers scored in the game. Virgil Field and Ladarius Carter dished out five and four assists, respectively. Roger Davis led all players with eight rebounds. Marcus Bates blocked three shots and Davis had two blocks.

William Carey was led by Sayveon Bumpers’ 15 points, six rebounds and three assists. Zarkeichious Martin and William Gaines each scored a dozen points, while Jvari Thigpen added 10 points.

Stillman (9-1, 8-1 SSAC West) will meet William Carey (11-8, 4-5 SSAC West) once again Saturday, Feb. 6 at 5 p.m. for the final of four meetings this season against the Crusaders.

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LIVINGSTON, Ala. – A pair of jump shots by Justin Debuck down the stretch lifted Union to a 59-55 Gulf South Conference men’s basketball victory over West Alabama Friday at Pruitt Hall Gym.

Union improved to 7-4 with its second win over UWA in three outings. West Alabama is 3-2. The Tigers and the Bulldogs play again Saturday at 2 p.m.

“Holding that team to 59 points is a nice job by us, but it’s awful hard to beat anybody in this league when you score just 55,” Woodruff said. “Give them credit. They held us to 37 percent shooting from the floor just like they did in the loss up there.”

UWA went on a 14-2 run midway through the first half to give the Tigers a 23-14 lead with just over seven minutes to play before the break. Union then rallied to make five of their last six field goals to cut the Tiger lead to 28-24 with 3:29 left in the half and managed to shave the Tiger lead to 32-30 by intermission.

In a game where the lead changed hands eight times and was tied six times, Union took a 51-49 lead on a three-pointer from Tylandrius Parks with 7:13 left in the game and never trailed again. The Bulldogs also limited UWA to just 2-of-11 shooting from the floor to end the game.

After a layup from Tiger guard Justin Allison tied the game at 55-55 with 1:21 left, Debuck hit jumpers at 1:02 and 14.1 seconds to ice the win for Union. Debuck’s last bucket came as time expired on the shot clock.

Parks scored 20 points to lead all scorers. Hunter Vick chipped in 12 for the Bulldogs, who shot 51 percent from the floor (24-of-47). The Bulldogs also converted 5-of-11 three-point attempts while West Alabama was 7-of-23 from long range. JC Hawkins had eight rebounds.

Shardarrion Allen played 40 minutes and scored 15 points to pace West Alabama. Roger Davis chipped in 10. Allison led Tiger rebounders with seven.

“It’s really hard to win,” Woodruff said. “In a game like this a couple of possessions are the difference in the game, the difference between winning and losing.

“There aren’t a lot of secrets anymore because at this point there isn’t much that is going to change with either team,” UWA head coach Nick Woodruff said. “We just have to show up and see who wants it more.”

Saturday’s meeting will be the fourth in 16 days between West Alabama and Union after the Tigers had not played for 13 days prior to Friday’s outing due to pandemic precautions.

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Stillman College men’s basketball enters the NAIA Men’s Basketball Coaches’ Top 25 Poll this week at No. 23, the national office announced Wednesday.

Stillman (8-1, 7-1 SSAC West) is the third among Southern States Athletic Conference teams behind No. 7 Faulkner University and No. 12 Loyola University (La.). Faulkner (16-1, 7-0) leads the SSAC East by three games. Stillman leads Loyola (10-2, 5-2) in the SSAC West standings by 1.5 games.

“We’re happy to be back in the Top 25. Anytime you can get recognized it is good for the team,” said John Teasley, Stillman head coach. “It’s been one of the craziest years. We’ve been fortunate to stay healthy so far, with us sitting out in the fall.  We knew we had to do a lot of work in a little bit of time. The guys are playing well together. The season is still early though, and we still have a lot of work to do.”

Due to COVID-19 precautions, Stillman did not practice until Dec. 28 and opened the 2020-21 season Jan. 5 with a road win at Rust College. The Tigers went on to sweep William Carey University and record a road win at the University of Mobile and a road sweep of Blue Mountain College before splitting at then-No. 5 Loyola in New Orleans, Jan. 22-23. Stillman moved to 8-1, 7-1 in the SSAC West on Jan. 26 with a home victory over Mobile. The Tigers will be off this weekend, Jan. 29-30, and will return to action Feb. 2 at Mobile.

Indiana Wesleyan (21-1) leads the national rankings with 14 first-place votes. LSU Shreveport is second with seven first-place votes. William Penn and Lewis-Clark State hold their spots at No. 3 and No. 4, while No. 5 Arizona Christian and No. 6 Shawnee State University each climbed one spot in the last two weeks. Following No. 7 Faulkner is No. 8 Science & Arts (Okla.), No. 9 Morningside (Iowa) and No. 10 Providence (Mont.), who each jumped multiple spots.

Stillman is one of three HBCUs in the Top 25. Talladega sits at No. 14 and Dillard is No. 24.

This is Stillman’s first national ranking since being ranked No. 17 on Dec. 11, 2019. The Tigers were ranked in the Top 20 for 10-straight polls from Dec. 4, 2018 until Dec. 11, 2019. The Tigers closed the 2019-2020 season receiving votes in the poll to earn an at-large bid to the NAIA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship prior to its cancelation. While it did not receive a vote in the 2020-2021 preseason, Stillman had three points in the Jan. 13, 2021 rankings.

Statistically, Stillman ranks Top 20 in five categories: assist/turnover ratio (2nd, 1.59), 3-point defense (11th, .277), offensive rebounds per game (13th, 14.0), assists per game (15th, 17.667) and 3-point field goal percentage (19th, .390).

The next NAIA Coaches’ Top 25 poll is scheduled for Feb. 10 with the final regular season poll scheduled Feb. 24.

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TUSCALOOSA –   It took only 10 seconds for Trey Petty to put Stillman College on the scoreboard, and the Tigers did not look back en route to a 76-65 win over the University of Mobile in Birthright Alumni Hall. The win maintains Stillman’s lead in the Southern States Athletic Conference West Division by 1.5 games over Loyola University.

Stillman spread the ball around with eight players scoring, including four in double figures. Roger Davis ended up leading Stillman with 15 points off the bench, including 13 in the second half. Devin Merriweather finished with 13 points, Trey Petty had 12 and Ladarius Carter scored 11.

The Tigers out-rebounded Mobile, 52-38, led by Virgil Fields’ 12 boards and nine by Petty. Stillman continued its trend of protecting the basketball with an even 11 assists and 11 turnovers.

Stillman led by nine at the half, 39-30, before opening the second half on a 20-9 run to go up by 20 points, 59-39, in the first eight minutes. Petty grabbed an offensive rebound and put back for the first 20-point margin. Moments later, Tomias Brand slammed down a fastbreak dunk off a Petty steal to make it 20 once more, and then a Roger Davis basket later pushed it to 21 points, 65-44.

Mobile led only once, 10-8, after an Alan Lang basket eight minutes into the game.

RJ Kelly led Mobile with 15 points, 11 rebounds and two blocked shots while playing in foul trouble. Lang finished with 12 and Maurice Anderson scored 10. Logan Foutz, Darvin JOnes and Trenton Short each scored eight.

Both teams were held around 20% from 3-point range, playing the night inside the arch.

Stillman is scheduled to have the weekend off before returning to the University of Mobile next Tuesday, Feb. 2 for game three of a four-game series. Mobile (8-8, 3-4 SSAC) will play a two-game set at Loyola in New Orleans over the weekend first.

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JACKSON, Tenn. – The University of West Alabama Men’s basketball made 17 free throws and needed every one as the Tigers collected their first road win of the season in a 73-67 win over the Union University Bulldogs Saturday in the Fred DeLay Gymnasium in Gulf South Conference action.

UWA (3-1) finished the game 94.4 percent (17-of-18) from the free throw line. West Alabama also shot a season best from the floor going 59.1 percent (26-of-44) from the floor.

“I told the guys, “don’t worry about getting on the bus if they weren’t ready for a fight.” They were all on the bus, so I figured they were ready,” said Head coach Nick Woodruff. “We had a really tough film session this morning and our guys bounced back in a great way. They responded to the coaching, didn’t pout and got our team a very important win on the road.”

Robert Davis led the Tigers in scoring with 16 points the effort from the line as he went 8-for-8 in free throws including four down the stretch to ice the game away. Davis also finished 2-for-4 from three and added and team leading three steals and three rebounds.

“It was a team effort. We made an effort to get the ball inside and felt we had an advantage there. That in turn led to open shots and driving lanes for our guards. Rob made some key free throws down the stretch,” said Woodruff.

Shardarrion Allen and Kortrijk Miles both scored 14 points each. Allen added a team leading four assists and two rebounds. Miles also provided four rebounds, two assists and two steals.

“Kortrijk and Phat (Allen) are finding their spots and opportunities within the offense,” said Woodruff. “This time of year, our Defense is ahead of our offense and we are okay with that. The offense will continue to get better as we play together and get more experience.

Justin Allison rounded out the double-digit scorers with 12 points along with five rebounds and two assists. CJ Melton led on the boards with six rebounds.

The Bulldogs (5-3) took an early lead going up 12-7 at the 14:37 mark in the first half before the true back and forth started. The lead changed five of the six times it did all game between that point and with 1:21 remaining where Allison hit a free throw to go up 30-29. UWA stretched the lead to 32-29 at the half.

With 14:55 left in the game, Union tied the contest off a three-pointer by Hunter Vick at 43-43. However, the Tigers outscored the hosting Bulldogs 40-24 the rest of the way on the way to the 73-67 victory.

Tylandrius Parks led all scorers with 20 points while Vick scored 19 as the two were the only Bulldogs in double figures.

As a unit, Union shot 52.9 percent (27-of-51) from the floor, 39.1 percent (9-of-23) from behind the arc and 80 percent (4-of-5) from the charity stripe.

The Tigers won the battle of the boards 25-19 and scored 24 points on turnovers compared to 17 for Union. Meanwhile, the Bulldogs committed 15 turnovers and UWA had 16.

“We still have a long way to go and it doesn’t get any easier this week at Huntsville,” said Woodruff.

After the four games in five days marathon, West Alabama will have a few days off just in time to get ready for another road trip as the Tigers will face the University of Alabama in Huntsville Chargers on Jan. 22 and Jan. 23.

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BLUE MOUNTAIN, Miss. – Stillman College improved to 2-2 on the road Saturday with a 53-47 win at Blue Mountain College. With the win, Stillman improves to 2-4 in Southern States Athletic Conference West action.

De’Asia Marsh picked up where she left off Friday, coming up with a steal and basket in the first minute to give Stillman the first points of Saturday’s game. Stillman opened the game with a 6-0 run. Blue Mountain managed to tie the game at the end of the quarter, 12-12.

Blue Mountain took a brief lead with 4:30 left in the first half, but Marsh scored four points in the final 75 seconds to tie the game, 23-23 at halftime. Marsh finished with 14 points on 6-of-12 shooting to lead Stillman for the second-straight night.

Zikira Williams, who scored 11 points, gave Stillman a 25-23 lead to open the third quarter and the Tigers maintained its lead the rest of the way. Stillman held Blue Mountain to 26.9% shooting in the second half and 29% in the game.

The Toppers’ closest margin in the second half was, 28-27, following a Kandice Ricks free throw. Zaria Jenkins helped stretch Stillman’s lead to seven points, 39-32, at the end of the third quarter. Stillman’s largest lead of the game, 41-32, came on a Devyn Lockhart basket to open the fourth quarter.

Jenkins was third in scoring for Stillman with seven points, while Brittany Washington and Imani Wimbish-Gay each scored six. Jenkins led the Tigers with six rebounds.

Ricks finished with 17 points and eight rebounds to lead BMC, followed by Jada Taylor’s eight points and seven by Mallory Russell.

Stillman (2-4, 2-3 SSAC West) is next scheduled to travel to New Orleans, Jan. 22-23, for a two-game set against No. 25 Loyola University.

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