TSU gets back to winning ways
Texas Southern didn’t let its first loss in a month linger long.
The Tigers bounced back from a loss at Prairie View A&M on Feb. 6 with a 7660 win over Jackson State on Saturday and 79-72 win over Grambling State on Monday.
It was against Grambling State where head coach Mike Davis saw a true step forward.
“We’re trying to improve our effort,” Davis said. “I thought we had the best half we’ve ever played since I’ve been here against Grambling. Unfortunately we couldn’t sustain it, but it was definitely there. We have to make sure that we can understand what we did in that first half.
“If you don’t understand what you did, it’s hard to repeat it.”
Davis wasn’t lying about that first half. The Tigers (12-12, 11-1 in SWAC play) outscored Grambling State 46-16 heading into halftime, shooting 60 percent from the field.
It seems like everything is back on track offensively for first-place TSU. Five players were in double figures against Grambling State, led by guard David Blanks’ 20 points.
Chris Thomas dropped a season-high 26 points on 11-of-12 shooting against Jackson State. The senior nabbed a SWAC Player of the Week honor.
“Chris I thought had a great game on Saturday (against Jackson State),” Davis said. “Struggled a little bit in the first half against Grambling. But when we needed him, he really stepped up in the game.”
Trips to Mississippi Valley State and Arkansas-Pine Bluff are on tap.
With six games remaining in the regular season, many teams around the country are checking for bracket projections.
TSU’s path to March is clear. Winning the SWAC Tournament is a must. Most projections have the Tigers in the First Four as a No. 16 seed if that indeed happens.
ESPN’s projections have TSU against Norfolk State for the right to face No. 1 seed Kansas in the South Region. CBS Sports’ projection are the same, except it pits TSU against Wagner.
Davis will let the chips fall where they may.
“We didn’t win some of the nonconference games that we needed to win to position ourselves to even have anything to say about where the committee places us,” Davis said. “But if we’re fortunate enough to get in then we’ll be excited about that.”