SAVANNAH, Ga.- Russell Powell hit two free throws with 15 seconds left to break a tie and Ben Smith added two free throws with six seconds remaining to give Jacksonville a 72-68 victory over Savannah State in Tiger Arena before 1,355 fans.

Patrick Hardy hit a 3-pointer for the Tigers with nine seconds left but it hit the shot clock which the referees waived off and it did not count.

The loss ended a SSU three-game winning streak and dropped the Tigers to 8-13. JU improved to 11-8 overall.

Savannah State fought back from a 14-point deficit in the second period and a layup by Tracy Rankins tied the game at 68 with 17 seconds left.

The Dolphins started the second half with a 12-2 run to grab a 40-26 lead with 16:09 on the clock.

The visitors maintained a double-digit advantage until SSU's Glen Izevbigie made a pair of free throws with 11:42 left to cut JU's lead to 47-39.

Louis Arnold's layup with 6:10 left got SSU with four but a 3-pointer and free throw from Smith and two free throws from Lehmon Colbert gave Jacksonville a 62-52 edge with just over five minutes remaining.

SSU answered with a 16-6 run to tie the game at 68 with 17 seconds remaining.

Rashad Hassan led SSU with 19 points and six rebounds. Arnold chipped in 15 points, six rebounds and four blocks while Rankins added 12 points. Preston Blackmon chipped in six points and seven assists.

The first half featured eight ties and two lead changes.

SSU broke a 13-all tie with back to back layups from Hassan.

With the Tigers leading 23-21 with 3:52 on the clock, Jacksonville finished the half with a 7-1 run to take a 28-24 lead into the intermission.

Smith scored 21 of his game-high 31 points in the second half for JU.

Savannah State shot 56.7 percent from the floor in the second half and 48.3 for the game. JU shot 54.2 from the field in the second period and 45.3 for the game.

Jacksonville out-rebounded SSU 36-31.