HUNTSVILLE, Ala. - Despite a career-high 27 points from Jayrn Johnson, Prairie View A&M's three-game winning streak over Alabama A&M came to a halt as the Bulldogs claimed an 83-69 win Saturday evening inside Elmore Gymnasium.
Playing their first game under interim head coach Byron Smith, the Panthers attacked the Bulldogs with intensity in the opening minutes. Tied at 10 with 13:53 remaining, the Bulldogs extended their lead via a 7-0 run as the Panthers missed their next three shots. A layup by Karim York would end the run and a trey by Malik Amos closed the gap to 18-15 at the 9:01 mark.
Chris Thomas would provide some excitement for AAMU as he scored four consecutive points with the latter coming via a dunk. The Panthers would continue to take AAMU's best shot however as back-to-back layups by Johnson and Tevin Bellinger narrowed the deficit to 22-19. However, the shots would not fall from that point for PVAMU as AAMU's size in the paint constantly altered PVAMU's shot selections.
The Panthers regained their offensive touch with 6:09 left as Zachary Hamilton and Johnson nailed consecutive treys to draw within 34-27 but the Bulldogs would attack the interior and up their lead to 39-27 with 2:33 remaining. Admassu Williams answered with a quick layup on the ensuing possession and Johnson recorded a layup at the 1:24 mark for an eight-point gap but a late turnover coupled with four late points by AAMU sent the Panthers into the half down 12 at 43-31.
Alabama A&M opened the second stanza with a three-point play and another trey from Ladarius Tabb to spark an 8-0 run and a 20-point lead (51-31) less than three minutes in. Despite several possessions which featured solid defensive play, the Panthers could never get over the hump after the early surge outside of an 8-0 run during the six-minute mark which cut the deficit to 15.
Johnson shot 11-of-21 from the field en route to his 27-point performance. Admassu Williams also finished with double figures as he scored 16 points. Bellinger dished out seven assists and 10 points while Hamilton grabbed a team-high five rebounds.
The Panthers are back in action on Monday night as they'll battle Alabama State in Montgomery at 7:30 p.m.
