MORROW, Ga.- There will be a new SIAC men's basketball tournament champion this year after Savannah State fell to Miles in the tournament quarterfinals on Thursday night, 48-47. The contest was played at the Clayton County Convocation Center.

The game was a rematch of the 2025 SIAC quarterfinals where SSU won 63-61.

A jumper by Jordan Mikell gave Savannah State a 47-42 lead with 2:44 remaining but the Golden Bears closed the game by scoring the final six points as SSU saw their season come to an end.

Despite being outscored in the final minutes, the Tigers still have a chance to pull out the win.

Following Mikell's basket, Miles answered with a 3-pointer to pull to within 47-45 and then made two free throws to  tie the game at 47 with 55 seconds left.

With 17 seconds left, Zyere Edwards committed his fifth foul of the game which sent Miles to the charity stripe. The Golden Bears missed their first free throw but hit the second for a one point margin.

Following a Savannah State timeout, Javontae Landy drove down the lane and attempted a layup but it missed and Miles grabbed the rebound and ran out the clock.

During the regular season, the Tigers defeated Miles twice.

Savannah State won 70-59 on December 19 in Tiger Arena and 86-75 in Fairfield, Alabama on February 21.

In the first half, the Tigers got off to a hot start, scoring the first nine points with four different players scoring.

Michael Swift made a jumper followed by a 3-pointer from Zion Davis, a jumper by Kelvin Cochran and a jumper by James Leach.

Miles responded the SSU's hot start with a 15-3 run that put them ahead.

The Golden Bears led 17-13 before a jumper by Edwards and a 3-pointer by Davis gave SSU a 18-17 advantage.

With 1:39 left, Savannah State trailed by three but a pair of free throws by Landy cut the Miles lead to 21-20. The Golden Bears scored a basket with 29 second showing on the clock and took a 23-20 lead into the half.

Miles extended their lead to five in the second period before the Tigers tied the game at 33 with 11:24 left.

Down by one with under ten minutes remaining, Savannah State used a 6-0 spurt, getting baskets from Edwards, Leach and Swift to build a 43-38 lead.

Each time Miles would cut into the Tigers lead, SSU would answer with a basket but during the final two and a half minutes, Savannah State came up empty and it resulted in a one point loss that would end their season.

Edwards was the lone Savannah State player in double figures with ten points.

Leach just missed a double-double with 12 rebounds, nine points and three blocks. Swift ended the game with eight points, five rebounds and two steals while Davis collected six points.

Landy and Cochran finished with four points each while Mikell, Brandon Johnson and Chancellor Wilson all chipped in two points each.

Savannah State ends the 2025-26 campaign with a 16-12 overall and a 15-9 conference record.
 

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