What started as a double-digit lead turned into a difficult 79-78 loss for the Bisons against the TSU Tigers on Tuesday night.
After an almost-comeback for the Bisons led by KJ Johnson, the Tigers took off with a quick drive to win the game.
During the first half, Lipscomb led by as many as 11 points, a quick and promising lead on the Tigers.
The team struggled without Ahsan Asadullah on the court. The Bisons ran the offense through senior Michael Buckland. Buckland scored a season-high of 14 points. However, the struggles didn’t show much until the second half.
Tennessee State opened the second half with a 15-6 run and a three, putting them ahead 55-50.
As the half continued, the Tigers flipped the game and held a lead, putting the Bisons 12 points behind with three minutes left on the clock.
That’s when freshman KJ Johnson took the game back over, at least temporarily. Johnson drove a shot in from the left-wing, banking a shot off the window with seven seconds remaining on the clock.
Johnson’s shot to put the Bisons back on top 78-77. TSU’s Michael Littlejohn then drove the ball the length of the floor, putting the Tigers back in the lead, 79-78 with 0.1 seconds remaining.
In the first road game of the season, the Bisons shot 50 percent from the floor, 27 of 54 attempts, and hit 17 for 12 in free throws, a 71 percent clip.
Fleming led the Bisons in assists for the third consecutive game,
Hazen went 5 of 7 from the field with 4 rebounds. Hazen also made his career start since Asadullah was out.
Buckland and Johnson were joined in double figures by Andrew Fleming and Parker Hazen.
The Bisons play again on November 15 at Duquesne in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. You can watch the game live on ESPN+.