Photo via: @ming.pix

By: Auzzy Byrdsell, Editor-in-Chief 

The Maroon Tigers secured their first win of the season over the Fayetteville State University Broncos 55-75 in their first game in the HBCU All-Stars Challenge in Forbes Arena last night. This snaps a four-game losing streak and brings a new energy with this season’s new team.

The Maroon Tigers’ intense half-court defense in the first half set the tone early in the game, and the Broncos could not recover. Morehouse led by double digits for nearly the entire game. 

Forcing 15 turnovers, Morehouse scored all but 18 of their points in the paint– mostly from transition baskets. Their aggression attacking the basket also helped Morehouse lead the free-throw attempt differential 10-1 in the first half. Morehouse shot 15/18 from the foul line for the game.

Senior guard and transfer from Talladega College, Keyshawn Pegues was the heart of the team on both ends for Morehouse. Pegues finished the game with a team-high 20 points on 61% from the field along with six rebounds. He was a huge factor for the defense with three steals, all in the first half. 

“For me, it started on the defensive end; I’m a defensive guy so I just try to bring energy,” Pegues said. “I realized I had a mismatch so I was taking advantage of that and that opened up the floor for the team.”

His pressure at the rim all game helped keep the game out of reach for Fayetteville. Down the stretch, the Maroon Tigers also found open three-pointers from attracting defense on drives.  

Fayetteville State struggled to find open shots throughout the game, only shooting 34.4 % from the field and 24 % from behind the arc. The Maroon Tigers’ perimeter defense kept Fayetteville out of the paint as the Broncos took 25 three-pointers out of 61 field goal attempts. 

With this win, Morehouse has a stronger outlook on the rest of the season and is excited to get several players back from injury. 

“I feel like us missing a lot of players made less time for error and that really gave us that pump. Since we can build on top of this, at the end of the day, it’s all about winning,” Pegues said. 

The Maroon Tigers are now preparing to take on Livingston College in Forbes Arena at 5 p.m. on Nov. 18th to wrap up the HBCU All-Stars Challenge. 

Copy edited by: Kobe Scales, Sports Editor