Texas Southern suffers 84-61 loss to Fairleigh Dickinson in first four matchup

Texas Southern fell short of a bout with No. 1-seeded Purdue after suffering an 84-61 loss to Fairleigh Dickinson in the final 16 vs. 16 First Four game.

The Tigers trailed for the majority of the game, and it got out of hand quickly. Despite making a push in the second half, Texas Southern could not keep up with the Knights with the shots not falling.

The story of the game was the difference in shooting, as Texas Southern failed to hit their first 3-point shot until the final 4:52 of regulation. The Tigers finished the night shooting just 1-of-17 from behind the 3-point line. Shooting from beyond the arc has been a struggle for them all season, hitting just 28.4% of their long-distance shots over the course of the year.

With that said, the Tigers dominated inside on the offensive side of the ball, scoring 40 points from inside the paint and winning the battle of offensive rebounds.

John Walker led all Tigers in scoring with 22 points on 9-of-17 from the field.

Fairleigh Dickinson found success from beyond the arc, shooting 40% on 3-pointers. The entire Knights starting lineup scored in double-digits, with Ansley Almonor leading the way with 23 points. Joe Munden contributed 17.

Fairleigh Dickinson will face off against Purdue on Friday.