Head coach Donte Jackson. Raven LeDay/The Gramblinite
The Grambling State Tigers men’s basketball team finished tournament play at the Fort Myers Tip-Off Classic falling short 80-69, to IUPUI.
GSU came out from the tip-off aggressive on offense tying the game at 11 apiece before IUPUI went on a 9-2 run to take a 20-13 advantage with 10:57 left in the first half.
Grambling State fought back to cut the deficit to 25-22, but the Jaguars quickly responded after back-to-back buckets by Camron Justice.
The Tigers trimmed the margin to 34-30 after a Zavier Peart layup, however IUPUI would respond to take a 39-31 advantage into the break.
The Jaguars kept the momentum into the second half taking a 58-38 lead midway through the half.
GSU continued to trim away at the deficit as Lasani Johnson’s layup with 6:42 remaining cut the margin to 65-51.
However, Grambling State could not rally back in the final six minutes falling to the Jaguars.
Dallas Polk-Hilliard, who was named to the All-Tournament Team, led the Tigers with 11 points, five rebounds, and two steals.
The Tigers return to action Saturday, Dec. 1, against LSU in Baton Rouge, La.