COLUMBIA, S.C. — Allen University men’s basketball’s historic season continued Tuesday as the Yellow Jackets advanced to the Quarterfinal round of the SIAC Tournament following a victory over Lane College, 57-41.
A low-scoring affair throughout, Allen took their first lead with 11:53 left in the first half, 10-8, and never looked back. From there, the Yellow Jackets went on a 6-0 run to extend their lead to eight points, 16-8, capped off by a three-pointer from G’Shan Aldridge. Later in the first half, a three-point shot from Malik Lacewell and a jumper from Aldridge gave Allen a 27-19 advantage at the break.
The second half began in a defensive battle as both teams were held scoreless for the first three minutes until Tyriq McAdoo connected on a transition layup. Another minute of play would go by before Lane scored their first points in the second half with 15:31 to play and Allen leading, 33-21. Then, with five minutes remaining, Austin James sank a jump shot to extend the Yellow Jackets’ lead to 14 points. After taking their first lead, 10-8, earlier in the game, Allen never trailed again on the way to their first SIAC Tournament win in program history.
Aldridge led Allen University with 14 points to pair with five assists. Joining Aldridge in double-figures was James who posted 10 points in 15 minutes of action, and Lacewell with 10 points of his own. As a team, Allen found great success at the free-throw line shooting 76.7% on the night (23-30), including 17 makes in the second half.
The Yellow Jackets advance to the Quarterfinal Round Thursday March 7 at 7:30 p.m. to face-off against the SIAC Regular Season Western Division Champion, Miles College. The game will be held at Savannah State University at Tiger Arena in Savannah, Georgia and be streamed on ESPN+.