Facing a double-digit deficit and down five players to injury, the Arkansas State men’s basketball team did not back down for 40 minutes in a tough 89-65 loss to Alabama inside Coleman Coliseum Monday night.
A-State (2-7) trailed by 21 at the half, but caused trouble for the Crimson Tide (6-2) in the final 20 minutes while outscoring the hosts in the paint and owning a 15-12 advantage on the offensive glass. In the second half, the Scarlet and Black forced eight turnovers while only committing three.
Taryn Todd scored a game-high 15 points to lead five players in double figures and ran point for the Red Wolves for over 37 minutes. Derrian Ford and Dyondre Dominguez added 12 points each, while Freddy Hicks and Izaiyah Nelson chipped in 10. Nelson also grabbed a game-high seven rebounds to go along with three blocked shots and a steal.
Ford’s output marked his third consecutive outing with 10 or more points scored.
Alabama shot 43.8 percent (28-64) from the floor, while hitting 13 of 31 (41.9 percent) from 3-point range. The Red Wolves shot 33.8 percent (22-65) from the field and went 15-for-21 (71.4 percent) from the free-throw stripe.
After an early stop led to a Todd layup for the game’s first score, the Crimson Tide scored 12 unanswered to own a double-digit lead. Ford and Dominguez then led a charge to pull A-State within 5, but Alabama ended the half on a 30-17 run over the final 13 minutes to hold a 49-28 lead at the break.
The Crimson Tide expanded their lead out to 30 with an 8-0 run within the first five minutes of the second half, but A-State battled back with a 14-6 stretch capped by a Hicks layup. Dominguez knocked down a trey with 2:21 to play, with Hicks knocking down a free throw with 1:03 left to cap the night’s scoring.
NEXT UP
Arkansas State returns home to take on another foe from the Yellowhammer State, hosting UAB (4-4) at 2:30 p.m. Saturday inside First National Bank Arena.
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