JACKSON, Miss. | For the second consecutive season, Jackson State and Southern battled into overtime in a Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) contest, with the Tigers battling back from a double-digit second half deficit before falling 96-91 at the Lee E. Williams Athletics & Assembly Center on Monday night.

Jackson State (6-16, 5-4 SWAC) trailed by as many as 21 with 9:49 to play in regulation (75-54) before they went on a 13-1 run to pull to within 14 at 76-62 on a Jayme Mitchell Jr. three-pointer with 8:11 to play. They continued to chip away at the lead, getting it to single digits on a Daeshun Ruffin three-pointer with 5:13 to play (79-72). After Southern was able to push the lead back to nine (83-74), Jackson State scored the next six points and pulled to within three on a steal by Delyle Williams and a three-pointer from Tamarion Hoover with under 50 seconds remaining. 

The two teams exchanged free throws and Jackson State pulled to within two before Ruffin weaved his way through the defense to tie the game with a lay-up in the final second and send the game into overtime. In the overtime period, Southern was able to outscore Jackson State 12-7 for the win.

Ruffin, the nation's sixth-leading scorer entering the game, finished the night with a team-high 35 points and eight rebounds. He has now scored in double figures in 13 consecutive game (15 of the last 16). He has scored 30-plus points six times, and scored in double figures 19 times this season. He has also recorded five or more assists 13 times this season. Mitchells scored 20-plus points for the second consecutive game, pouring in 22 points and grabbing eight rebounds. Meanwhile, Devin Ree came off the bench to score 17 points for the Tigers.

Jackson State finished the night shooting 41.5 (27-of-65) percent from the floor and 41.9 (13-of-31) percent from beyond the arc. They also shot 77.4 (24-of-31) percent from the free throw line, while Southern shot 46.5 (33-of-71) percent from the floor and 38.1 (8-of-21) percent from beyond the arc. They also shot 64.7 (22-of-34) percent from the free throw line.

Fazi Oshodi led five Southern (9-13, 5-4 SWAC) players in double figures with 26 points, while DaMariee Jones added 20 points and 10 rebounds.

Inside the Numbers
The Tigers finished the first half shooting 48.1 (13-of-27) percent from the floor and 46.2 (6-of-13) percent from beyond the arc. They also finished the first half shooting 83.3 (5-of-6) percent from the free throw line. Meanwhile, Southern shot 48.6 (17-of-35) percent from the floor and 50.0 (6-of-12) percent from beyond the arc in the opening half. They also shot 57.1 (8-of-14) percent from the free throw line.

Jackson State trailed by as many as 21 in the first half before roaring back in the second half, shooting 38.7 (12-of-31) percent from the floor and 46.7 (7-of-15) percent from beyond the arc. They also finished the second half shooting 80.0 (16-of-20) percent from the free throw line, while Southern shot 40.0 (12-of-30) percent from the floor and just 14.3 (1-of-7) percent from beyond the arc. They also finished the second half shooting 73.3 (11-of-15) percent from the free throw line.

In the overtime period, Southern shot 66.7 (4-of-6) percent from the floor and 50.0 (1-of-2) percent from beyond the arc. They also shot 60.0 (3-of-5) percent from the free throw line, while Jackson State shot 28.6 (2-of-7) percent from the floor and missed all three of its three-pointers in the extra period. The Tigers also shot 60.0 (3-of-5) from the free throw line.

Up Next
Jackson State hits the road for a pair of games beginning Saturday against Mississippi Valley State, followed by a game against Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Monday night.

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