By MATT DEARMAN

mwd004@latech.edu

 

Tech’s basketball team kicked off its home schedule this past Saturday  with a 61-52 victory over Southern University.

The Bulldogs improved to 3-3 on the season following the win, while the Jaguars fell to 0-5.

Southern took the lead early against the Bulldogs, going into the half with a 33-31 lead and out-rebounding Tech 19-17.

Tech came out and took control in the second half, however, where the Bulldogs, led by two-time defending NCAA rebounding champion Paul Millsap, outscored the Jaguars 30-19 to win the game.

Offensively, Tech was led by Millsap with 25 points, followed by Michael Wilds, Trey McDowell and Marcus Elliott with eight points each.

Millsap also led the team in rebounds with 15 to record the forty-sixth double double of his career.

On defense, Millsap and McDowell recorded two steals each, while Wilds and Daevon Haskins added one each. Harry Disy also contributed to the defensive effort with the only two blocks of the game for the Bulldogs.

Tech committed 10 turnovers in the contest, a large improvement over the 19.4 they averaged through the first five games of the season.

Before hosting Southern, The Bulldogs traveled to Tuscaloosa, Ala. Where they took on the No. 18 ranked University of Alabama in a 73-63 losing effort on Nov. 29.

Alabama (3-1) controlled the game in the first half, out-rebounding, out-blocking, and out-scoring the Bulldogs to go into halftime on top 40-32.

Tech came out strong in the second half, going on an 11-3 run in the opening minutes to tie the score at 43.

The Bulldogs and the Crimson Tide exchanged the lead for the majority of the second half.

But  Alabama’s full-court press overcame the Bulldogs and opened the door for a 14-5 run that gave the Tide a 10-point lead with less than three minutes to play.

The score would stay separated near the 10-point mark for the remainder of the contest, as the  Crimson Tide held on to win 73-63.

Millsap again led the Bulldogs with 21 points and 11 rebounds, followed by Corey Dean with 11 points and Jerome Richardson with 10.

Dean also led the Tech defense with four steals, while Wilds added two blocks to the effort.

Tech shot a low 40.3 percentage from the floor in the contest, but executed well from the free throw line where they went 8-9 for an 88.9 percentage.

Bulldog basketball returns to action on Saturday when they travel to Baton Rouge for a rematch with Southern.

 The Bulldogs will then return to Ruston to host the University of Louisiana-Lafayette in a double header on Tuesday beginning at 8 p.m. after a Lady Techster double header against Mississippi State.