Tigers race past Southern 82-69, enter SWAC tourney as No. 1 seed.

HOUSTON – Four Texas Southern players scored in double figures Saturday as the Tigers concluded the regular season with an 82-69 win at home over Southern.
 
Jalan McCloud scored a game-high 23 points and Demontrae Jefferson added 22 and five assists as the Tigers (20-11) closed out Southwestern Athletic Conference play with a conference-best 16-2 league record.
 
Kevin Scott turned in 12 points and four assists, while Zach Lofton chipped in 10 points for the Tigers. Teammate Marvin Jones scored seven points and tallied game-highs of 10 rebounds and five blocked shots.
 
Southern's Chris Thomas led five Jaguars in double-figures, scoring 13 points. The Jaguars (14-7) fell to 10-8 in SWAC play.
 
Southern couldn't slow down TSU's offense, which shot 56 percent (29 of 52) from the floor and knocked down 55 percent (11 out of 20) of its 3-point tries.
 
The Tigers asserted their collective will early in the second half after finishing the first 20 minutes down 39-37. TSU opened with 13 of the second half's first 17 points and led 50-43 with 14 minutes left in regulation. The Tigers would also outscore Southern 21-11 over the last eight minutes.
 
The win improved TSU's record to 9-0 in home games this season. The Tigers will have one more game on campus, when they open the Toyota SWAC Basketball Tournament with a quarterfinal matchup against No. 8 seed Alabama State at the Health and Physical Education Arena.

Tipoff for Tuesday's playoff game is tentatively scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Tuesday. It will start a half-hour after the conclusion of the women's basketball team's quarterfinal matchup against Prairie View A&M.