Box Score SAVANNAH, Ga.- Josh Montgomery scored 10 points and had nine rebounds to help Savannah State down cross-town foe Armstrong Atlantic State 73-61 in Tiger Arena.
 
Montgomery, who was red-shirted last year, joined fellow seniors Devin Williams and Jyles Smith in the starting lineup along with newcomers Terel Hall and Jeremiah Hill.
 
The Tigers came out of the gates hot with a dunk from Smith followed by a 3-pointer from Williams and a layup by Montgomery for a 7-0 lead.
 
SSU led 12-3 before the Pirates rallied back to close their deficit to 15-12 with 12:05 on the clock.
 
Down by six, AASU strung together a 8-1 run to take a 21-20 lead with 5:53 left before the half.
 
With the visitors holding a 28-26 advantage with 2:42 on the clock, the Tigers answered with back-to-back 3-pointers from Williams and Montgomery to grab a 32-28 lead with 1:14 left.
 
SSU led 34-30 at the half.
 
The Tigers led by as many as seven for most of the first eight minutes of the second period but a layup by BenayadCherif Hichem pulled AASU with five (49-44) at the 11:58 mark.
 
Savannah State answered with a 9-1 that gave them their largest lead of the game (58-45) with 8:58 left.
 
A jumper by Hichem made the score 63-56 with 3:39 remaining but that would be as close as the Pirates would get.
 
The crowd of 3,945 saw SSU shot 49.1 percent from the floor including 60.9 percent in the second half. AASU finished the game shooting 42.9 percent.
 
AASU made 20 turnovers and out-rebounded the Tigers 35 to 32.
 
Hill and Keierre Richards each added nine points for SSU while Hall dished out five assists.
 
Hichem had a game-high 17 points for Armstrong.