ROCK HILL, S.C. – The Benedict College men's basketball team ended their season on Wednesday night, falling to Albany State University 67-62 in the quarterfinals of the SIAC Tournament at the Rock Hill Sports & Event Center.
The fifth-seeded Tigers end their season with a 14-16 record. Albany State, the top seed in the Eastern Division, improves to 16-13 overall and advances to Friday's 7:45 p.m. semifinal. The Golden Rams will face the winner of Thursday's quarterfinal meeting between Morehouse and Paine.
Deon Joyner led the Tigers with 17 points and a season-high 12 rebounds.
Tajh Green also had a double-double with 14 points and 15 rebounds.
Mario Young led the Golden Rams with 21 points.
The Tigers jumped out to an early 10-7 lead, but the Golden Rams scored the next eight points. Benedict stayed within striking distance the rest of the game, but could never regain the lead. The Golden Rams built their lead to 18-11 with 10:37 remaining in the first half. The Tigers rallied to cut the lead to 20-19 after a layup by Joyner with 6:14 on the clock. Albany State pushed the lead back to six points, but
Anthony Gomes hit a 3-pointer with 17 seconds left. The Golden Rams answered with a 3-pointer at the buzzer for a 34-28 lead at the half.
Benedict used a 9-3 run in the second half to cut the lead back to one point, 44-43, on a tip-in by Joyner with 12:53 left in the game. The Golden Rams would eventually take their largest lead of the game, 60-52, on a dunk by Randy McClure with 4:09 remaining. Benedict rallied to cut the lead to 63-62 on a layup by Green with 1:34 on the clock. The Golden Rams answered with a basket to push the lead back to three points, and Benedict missed a pair of 3-pointers down the stretch. Albany State sealed the game with a pair of free throws.
Benedict outshot the Golden Rams, 45.6 percent (26-of-57) to 42.1 percent (24-of-57), and outrebounded them 40-29. Benedict committed 19 turnovers, which Albany State converted to 14 points. Benedict also struggled from long range, making just two of 12 (16.7 percent) of their 3-point attempts.
