Siddharth Gaulee/ULM Photo Services

Box Score

108

TEXAS SOUTHERN TSU 24-13

102

ULM ULM 19-16

TEXAS SOUTHERN TSU

24-13

108

Final

Mar. 28, 2019

102

ULM ULM

19-16

Score By Periods
Team	1	2	OT 1	OT 2	OT 3	F
TEXAS SOUTHERN TSU	34	40	14	7	13	108
ULM ULM	40	34	14	7	7	102

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | Mar 29

ULM Loses Heartbreaker to Texas Southern in Triple OT, 108-102

By Paul Letlow, ULMWarhawks.com Online Columnist

MONROE, La. – Five ULM players in double figures scoring, bonus basketball, booming music and a season-high crowd of 6,004 made it an unforgettable night at Fant-Ewing Coliseum.

In the end though, Texas Southern simply outlasted the Warhawks,108-102, Thursday night in a wild triple-overtime thriller in the quarterfinals of the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament.

"We went down in a blaze of fire didn't we?" ULM coach Keith Richard said. "What a game in terms of the action, lot of big plays and shots by both teams. It's a shame somebody had to lose in that game."

The Warhawks ended their season at 19-16 while Texas Southern (24-13) moves on to the CIT semifinals with their third postseason win and 13th road victory of the season. The triple-OT game was the first for ULM since losing to Canisius, 108-96, in Las Vegas in 2015.

Michael Ertel scored 24 points to lead ULM and hit a game-tying 3-pointer to force the second overtime. Travis Munnings scored 22 points in his final game with 17 points from Daishon Smith and Tyree White, and 13 from Brandon Newman.

"It's tough," Munnings said. "But these are the games you live for and you just have to embrace the moment. You have to dig in and fight to the end."

Tyrik Armstrong's 32 led TSU. Jeremy Combs scored 27 with 11 rebounds, Eden Ewing scored 23 with 11 boards and Devocio Butler added 12 points and also had 11 rebounds. TSU outscored ULM, 64-43, in the paint.

"The atmosphere in this gym was the greatest I've been a part of in this arena," TSU coach Johnny Jones said. "We've played in a lot of arenas this year and I'd have to say this atmosphere compares to a lot of places we've been with a lot of folks in the stands."

The game was tied 74-74 at the end of regulation. TSU scored the first four in overtime before Munnings dropped a 3-pointer from the corner.

TSU built its lead to seven but Smith stroked a 3-pointer to spur a six-point trip down the floor. Fouled on the play, Smith missed his free throw but ULM rebounded and Ertel converted a 3-point play for an 86-85 score.

ULM's turnover with 7.0 seconds and two free throws by Armstrong had the Tigers back up 88-85. Coming out of a timeout with 4.6 to play, Ertel dribbled up the court and hit a wild, spinning 3-pointer at the buzzer to tie the game again at 88-88 and force a second overtime.

"It was a battle, super physical," Ertel said. "We just couldn't make enough plays or make enough stops."

The Tigers would pounce ahead 93-89 in the second OT but ULM came back to tie it at 93-93 on a Newman jumper in the paint with 1:26 on the clock. The score was 95-95 and TSU had the final shot to win it but a 3-point attempt by John Jones rimmed out, forcing a third extra period.

Eden Ewing's layup and 3-pointer pushed TSU ahead 100-95 in the first two minutes of the third overtime. Ertel's 3-pointer from the corner with 2:21 showing drew ULM within a basket at 102-100.

A ULM turnover and turnaround by Ewing put the Tigers ahead 104-100 at the 1:12 mark. Smith hit two free throws, for a 104-102 but TSU closed it out with the final four points.

"They've gone on the road and won some big time games this year," Ertel said. "It was a battle. It just kills me that we lost."

Shooting woes had ULM in a hole early.

ULM trailed 14-6 to open the game thanks to 2-of-12 shooting from the field and a scoring drought that lasted more than three minutes. The Warhawks also missed their first six 3-point shots.

Ertel's 3-pointer at the 11:41 mark put ULM back on track at 14-11. An alley-oop dunk to JD Williams to make the score 14-13 further energized the crowd.

ULM claimed its first lead at 22-21 with 6:43 left in the half on a pair of White free throws. White also delivered a thunderous two-hand dunk during the run that put ULM ahead.

A 14-2 run helped ULM surge to a 38-28 advantage with 2:20 to go. Newman hit a pair of 3-pointers and White scored five on another dunk and a 3-pointer during the flurry.

ULM led 40-34 at halftime even without much from big guns Smith and Munnings, who were a combined 2-of-10 from the field for a combined eight points. White's 11 points led a ULM bench that outscored TSU, 21-6, over the first 20 minutes.

Armstrong's 13 points and three 3-pointers led TSU at the break. Combs was relatively quiet with seven points and two boards.

The second half saw Munnings and Smith get back into the flow quickly as both drained 3-pointers during a 10-4 burst in the opening minutes. ULM led by as many as 14 before the Tigers made another push.

An 11-1 TSU run brought the Tigers back at 57-53 with 11:24 left in the contest. The Tigers kept lurking and two Ewing free throws had TSU within two with 6:34 to go.

A soaring White dunk with 5:32 remaining and a fast-break flush from Munnings had ULM fans on their feet as the lead was back to 70-64.

TSU wouldn't fade easily. Combs converted a 3-point play to narrow the margin to 70-69 at the 3:42 mark.

White fouled out with 2:14 remaining battling Combs, whose layup and free throw on the play tied the game at 72-72. White and Newman led a ULM bench that outscored TSU, 30-14.

With 44.7 seconds, Munnings hit two free throws to give ULM a 74-72 lead. Combs would tie it on a layup with 23 seconds showing.

ULM's last possession in regulation ended with a desperation heave by Andre Washington with .2 on the clock.

"We needed to outscore them to win," Richard said. "We just didn't have enough out there to do it."

Tail feathers: Richard and Texas Southern head coach Johnny Jones were teammates on an AAU basketball team in 1977. The Lafayette-based team advanced to the national finals in Huntington, West Virginia. … The game was the second meeting between ULM and TSU and first since a 76-73 win by the Tigers in 1995. … Tyree White reached double figures for the fourth time. … ULM's JD Williams left the game after suffering a lower leg injury in the second half and didn't return.

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