SAVANNAH, Ga.- Savannah State needed an extra five minutes as the Tigers defeated Coppin State 72-63 in overtime in a game played at Tiger Arena.
 
The teams ended play in regulation tied at 57 before SSU outscored the Eagles 15-6 in the extra period.
 
A turning point in the contest came with 18:55 left in the second half when SSU head coach Horace Broadnax was issued two technical and ejected from the game.
 
Longtime assistant Clyde Wormley took over the team from that point in the game.
 
Broadnax's ejection lit a fire under the Tigers.
 
After Coppin State's Christian Kessee made four free throws to give the visitors a 22-21 lead, Savannah State responded with nine unanswered points to grab a 30-22 edge with 15:14 remaining.
 
The crowd of 1,211 saw SSU lead by seven at the 12:29 mark but layups by Brian Pearson and Chris Martin extended the Tigers lead to 40-29 with just under ten minutes left.
 
Coppin State (5-18, 3-7 MEAC) strung together a 21-9 run to take a 50-49 lead with 3:26 remaining.
 
SSU led by three with 18 seconds left in regulation but a three-point play by Trevon Seymore tied the game at 57 with 13 seconds on the clock.
 
Six different players scored for the Tigers in overtime.
 
The Tigers scored the first five points in the extra period. Coppin  closed their deficit to 63-61 with 1:23 left but SSU finished the game with a 9-2 run to seal the victory.
 
Troyce Manassa and Kamil Williams each scored 13 points for the Tigers (9-13, 5-6 MEAC). Manassa also grabbed 9 rebounds. Pearson added 11 points and 10 rebounds while Kilo Lenjo chipped in 9 points and 9 assists.
 
SSU out-rebounded Coppin State 49 to 40, in a game that had 10 lead changes and 9 ties .
 
In the first half, Savannah State jumped out to a 8-2 lead but the Hawks rallied to take a 12-11 lead with 5:17 left.
 
CSU led 18-15 with just under three minutes remaining but the Tigers finished the period with a 3-pointer by Williams and a three-point play by Dexter McClanahan to go into intermission with a 21-18 lead.
 
Coppin State, who shot 26.6 percent from the field, was led by James Sylvester who scored a game-high 25 points.
 
Tip ins:
SSU has never lost to Coppin State and is now 5-0 in the series...Manassa's 9 rebounds tied a career-high....The Tigers improved to 9-2 at home
CSU falls to 2-13 on the road this season...Sylvester's 25 points is a career-high.....CSU remains winless in the month of February.
 
Up next:
SSU will travel to South Carolina State on Feb. 13
CSU will play Howard on Feb. 13