Photo Courtesy: Instagram/Famu_mbb
In their last battle on the road, the Florida A&M University (FAMU) men’s basketball (6-22, 4-13) faced off against the Southern Jaguars (17-12, 11-5), but despite a commendable defensive performance, they fell short with a final score of 58-44.
Despite the loss, there were several positive takeaways for Florida A&M, particularly on the defensive end. Throughout the game, they exhibited a relentless defensive effort, forcing Southern into committing 17 turnovers. Additionally, the Rattlers displayed their shot-blocking prowess, tallying five blocks as a team. Chase Barrs notably stood out with three rejections, anchoring the defensive presence in the paint.
Jalen Speer and Keith Lamar combined for a total of 28 points, accounting for a huge portion of Florida A&M’s offense. Speer led the team with 14 points, demonstrating his scoring consistency throughout the game. Meanwhile, Lamar contributed 14 points along with an impressive stat line of seven rebounds and two steals, highlighting his versatility on both ends of the floor.
The first half saw Florida A&M keeping pace with the Jaguars, entering halftime trailing by only three points with a score of 26-23. However, despite their best efforts, they were unable to close the gap in the second half, succumbing to a 14-point deficit by the final buzzer.
Jordan Chatman, Florida A&M University men’s basketball guard shared his thoughts on their game against the Jaguars and preparation moving forward into the next game.
“I feel like we fought hard with the number of people we had out due to injuries, but fatigue began to sit in throughout the course of the game,” Chatman said.
Chatman also shared, “it has been the same game preparation honestly, now it is just focusing on us and making sure we do as best as a team.”
One of the highlights of the game was the Rattlers’ ability to capitalize on fast-break opportunities, scoring seven points in transition during the second half.
In a post-game live stream, Robert McCullum, Florida A&M Men’s Basketball coach, spoke about some of the adjustments the team made going into the second half of the game.
McCullum said, “It was a very close game. All things considered; I was pleased with how we played. We had a rough stretch to end the first half, but we came out after halftime and regrouped and came up to 3-5 points on multiple occasions.”
The Rattlers will take on the Bethune Cookman Wildcats on March 9th at 4 PM.
This matchup carries substantial weight for the Florida A&M University (FAMU) Rattlers basketball team as it offers a pivotal chance to improve their standings within the conference. Despite falling short against the Southern Jaguars, the Rattlers are determined to harness this momentum for the upcoming tournament, aiming to assert themselves and fortify their spot in the SWAC (Southwestern Athletic Conference) rankings.
The upcoming 2024 Starry SWAC Men’s and Women’s Basketball Tournaments are scheduled to take place at the Bartow Arena in Downtown Birmingham from Wednesday, March 13, to Saturday, March 16.
Fans have the option to tune in to a live stream post-game session featuring Coach Gordon and Coach McCullum on FAMU Athletics Facebook, or they can listen live via the Florida A&M Rattlers athletic app.
For more information and game updates, please connect with the Rattlers on social media. You can follow them on Twitter at @FAMUAthletics, on Facebook at FAMUAth, and Instagram at @famuathletics.