Golden Rams slip past Morehouse in SIAC Tournament

Eric Martin scored nine points and grabbed nine rebounds against Morehouse.

Box Score BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA- Senior forward Eric Martin came off the bench to score nine points and pull down nine rebounds to lead the Albany State Golden Rams to a 55-54 victory over the Morehouse Maroon Tigers in the first round of the 2014 SIAC Men's Basketball Tournament. With the victory, ASU, the No. 2 seed from the East Division, improves to 15-12 overall and advances to the quarterfinal round where it will face the Kentucky State Thorobreds. Morehouse, who entered the tournament as the East, seventh-seed, ends its season at 7-20.

The Golden Rams, were able to use their defense to build an early advantage in the first half. Despite some foul trouble, ASU led by as many as eight points on four occasions. Albany State led 32-25 at intermission and seemed to be in control of the game.

In the second half, Morehouse started to take advantage of their size and grabbed multiple rebounds. The Maroon Tigers took their first lead, 41-39, at the 12:59 mark. ASU trailed by six points, 51-45, with 8:46 left in regulation and seemed to be heading to an early exit for the tournament.

From that moment, the Golden Rams mounted their comeback. Doug Storey made his second three-pointer of the game and Martin added a free throw to bring the team within two, 51-49, with 4:55 left to play. After a Tiger basket pushed the lead to 53-49, Martin scored a tip-in to make the score 53-51.

After a defensive stop, Jamorris Gaines was fouled and his two free throws to tie the game at 53 all. Martin then stole a Morehouse pass and called timeout to help the team set up their next basket. That basket would eventually come from Larry Bullock. Bullock's jump shot at the 1:08 mark gave ASU a 55-53 lead.

Morehouse's Darrius Williams was fouled and made the first of two free throws, but his teammates secured the offensive rebound with the score standing at 55-54 and 18 seconds remaining. With Gaines guarding him on the final possession, Williams could not get off a shot, and ASU emerged victorious.

Joe Wiliams and Larry Bullock each added eight points for Golden Rams. Justin Udi and Gaines had seven points apiece. Williams added six rebounds.

Albany State shot 20-46 (43.5%) from the field, 6-13 (46.2%) from three-point range and 9-11 (81.8%) from the free throw line.

The Golden Rams will face Kentucky State on Thursday, March 6^th at 7:45 p.m. The Golden Rams won the initial meeting 67-63 during the regular season. The game will be played at Bill Harris Arena.

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