Image via Kollin Washington

By: Rece Allen, Sports Producer

The Clark Atlanta Panthers escaped Forbes Arena with a win against the Morehouse Maroon Tigers that came down to a last second shot, in classic rivalry fashion. The Maroon Tigers led early in the second and had momentum from the home crowd, but were unable to close out the game with a win.

With under one minute left, the Maroon Tigers were down by five and needed to find a way to win. Jaden Gray, starting guard, forced a turnover and hit a corner three to bring the lead down to two points with 40 seconds left.

After fouling the Panthers and the team missing one of their free throw attempts, The Maroon Tigers now find themselves down three with six seconds left on the clock. Omar Rowe gets an attempt for the game tying three and misses as the time expired, and the Maroon Tigers lose 68-65. 

“We were trying to put everybody in the right place”, said Coach Whittler in the post-game interview with the Maroon Tiger about the last play. “We got what we wanted, an open look to tie the game, and we just weren’t able to knock the shot down.” 

The Maroon Tigers had seemed to catch fire in the second half as they led by 11 points. The team took advantage of being at home by getting the crowd into the game, with big time threes and dunks from Demetrius Calip (DC) causing Forbes Arena to erupt with cheers. He finished with a game high of 18 points and three steals coming off the bench.

Although the Maroon Tigers had a big lead, the Panthers were able to rally back into the game through defense and toughness. Kharye Cayne, starting center, totaled 10 blocks in the game along with 10 rebounds in his double-double performance. Panthers starting forward, Shemani Fuller, also recorded a double-double in the game with 16 points and 10 rebounds.

“We weren’t tough in key situations, fumbling the ball underneath the basket, not finishing layups, and we didn’t make the shots we needed when we were open.” 

Even in the loss, Whittler is proud of his team.

“I give my guys a lot of respect for continuing to fight”, he said. “In these types of situations, we have to figure out a way to win the game.” 

Whittler continues the season’s theme of focus and progressing everyday as they look to close the regular season out with two more games on the road against Benedict College and Allen University. 

 Copy Edited by: Auzzy Byrdsell, Editor-in-Chief