SAVANNAH, Ga.- Norfolk State rallied from a 10-point deficit and went on to defeat Savannah State 82-76 in a game played at Tiger Arena before a crowd of 3,500.

Savannah State led 51-41 with 13:41 left but the Spartans scored ten unanswered points to tie the game at 51 at the 11:45 mark.

Down by three with 4:25 left, the Spartans strung together a 12-3 run that put them ahead 78-72 with 48 seconds remaining.

The setback drops SSU to 4-14 overall and 1-3 in Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference play.

Junior guard Zach Sellers led the Tigers with 20 points. Sellers made five 3-pointers while dishing out six assists and getting two steals.

Romani Hansen and Collins Joseph both added 19 points for Savannah State. Hansen also had seven rebounds.

SSU used a jumper by Sellers, a layup by Hansen and a 3-pointer from Jaquan Dotson to jump out to a 7-2 lead.

With the scored knotted at 22 with just under five minutes left in the first period, the Tigers finished the half with a 15-6 run to take a 37-28 lead into intermission.

In the first half the SSU bench players outscored the Norfolk State reserves 19-9.

The Spartans started the second half with seven straight points to slice their deficit to 37-35. 


Fueled by a trio of 3-pointers by Sellers, Savannah State used a 14-6 spurt to stretch their lead to 51-41.

SSU maintained their lead until the 4:06 mark when Norfolk State's Derrick Jamerson hit a 3-pointer to break a 69-69 tie.

From that point on, the Spartans never trailed.

The Tigers shot 40.6 percent from the filed and made 35 percent of their 3-point shots. SSU, who did not attempt a free throw in the opening half, hit 10 of 14 free throw attempts in the second period.

Norfolk State (10-10, 5-0 MEAC) was led by Nic Thomas who had 21 points.

NSU shot 46.7 percent from the floor, 34.6 percent from beyond the arc and 70.8 percent from the free throw line. The Spartans also out rebounded SSU 46 to 30.



TIP INS:
  
*  Zach Sellers extended his streak of scoring at least two points in a game to 49 games
 
* The Tigers made 14 of their 3-point shots. It was the first time they scored more than ten 3-pointers in a game since making 11 on December 13 against Wisconsin.


* SSU played their first home game since November 16, 2018.
 
* Jaquan Dotson's nine game streak of scoring in double figures came to an end against Norfolk State. Dotson was held to just seven points.


* Newcomers Andrew Okorodudu and Joseph Boykin joined the team after the Christmas break