TUSKEGEE, Ala. - The Columbus State University men's basketball team had a cold shooting night falling to Tuskegee 70-50 Wednesday. The nonconference game took place inside Chappie James Arena in Tuskegee, Ala.

The Cougars shot a season-low 25.8 percent (17-for-66) from the field. It's the worst shooting percentage by CSU in a game since Feb. 2, 2013 (29.8 percent vs. Georgia College). The Cougars were 5-for-27 from beyond the arc.

"This was a team loss tonight," commented head coach Robert Moore. "Nothing went right and we needed some of our guys to step up."

"We can't let this hang over our heads. Our conference schedule begins next week and we have to be playing at a high-level to be successful in the tough Peach Belt Conference."

Landrius Horton was the only Cougar to score in double figures with 19 points. He fell one rebound short of a double-double. 

Columbus State will open up PBC play on Wednesday, Dec. 18 taking on USC Aiken at 7:30 p.m in Aiken, S.C.
 

Play-by-Play

First Half

It was the worst offensive half of the season for the Cougars as they shot just 23.3 percent (7-for-30) from the floor, including hitting two of their first 13 3-point attempts. Cam Paulding put CSU on the board two minutes in, but it would be nearly four minutes until the next Cougar field goal. During that time, Tuskegee opened up an 11-5 lead. Columbus State was able to cut the deficit to just seven, 16-9 at the midway mark, but another cold stretch allowed Tuskegee to open up a 27-13 advantage. The Golden Tigers held a double-digit lead for the remainder of the half and went inside the locker room up 35-21.

Second Half

Things didn't improve in the second half as the Cougars couldn't find a groove. Trying to get back into the game, Columbus State used five quick points from Jalen Thomas to make it 39-28 with 15 minutes showing on the clock. However, Tuskegee responded with a dominating run. The Golden Tigers scored 14 of the next 16 points to grab a 53-30 lead at the midway point of the half to put the game away.

 

Inside the Numbers

• The loss snaps Columbus State's (5-3) three-game winning streak. Tuskegee is now 4-5 on the season. • It's the first time that the Golden Tigers have defeated CSU since the 1994-95 season. The Cougars had won 10 straight in the series. • The 50 points for Columbus State is the lowest scoring output since Augusta held the Cougars to 52 last season.  • Tuskegee never trailed in the game. • Columbus State committed 15 turnovers. In the Nov. 23 meeting in Columbus, the Cougars only turned the ball over 10 times. • It was the first time this season that the Cougars didn't collected 10 or more steals.