With players locked in, coaches fired up and fans on their feet, the heated AUC rivalry between the Morehouse College and Clark Atlanta University men’s basketball teams continues to be a thriller each year. The series between these two have been fair over the years with neither team winning two in a row since 2017.
The Panthers went into Saturday’s match-up 7-2 in SIAC play ranking second in the conference’s eastern division with Morehouse hot on their trail ranking third place at 5-5.
The first half started fast as Michael Olmert drove in and finished with a tough lay-up on multiple CAU defenders. The Panthers’ Romaine Thomas answered right back with a three to bring the game within 1.
The Maroon Tigers then jumped out early going on an 8-0 scoring run gaining momentum after Julian Alexander hit a three-point shot to extend the lead 18-9.
The Panthers senior guard Tyler Singleton then quieted the gym hitting a three-pointer, bringing the score to 18-12. The Panthers began to find their niche tying the game up 31-31 going into halftime after having a rocky first half.
However, both teams wasted no time coming back from the half, scoring consecutive buckets on each other. Morehouse’s Robert Andrews came out the gate knocking down a three as fans in Forbes Arena erupted but CAU answered right back with three straight threes to extend their lead 54-47.
Morehouse then began to close the Panther lead as Xavier Brewer hits a heavily contested three as fans are screaming and fired up in their seats.
With 3:10 remaining in the game, the Maroon Tigers went on an 11-5 scoring run to take the lead, 61-59. A few plays later, the Panthers’ Ian Roach hit a clutch three-pointer to pull the game within three with 40 seconds remaining. With no more time outs, Clark Atlanta was forced to put Morehouse on the free-throw line.
The Maroon Tigers’ Kairo Whitfield hit both free throws to put the game out of reach, ending the game, 67-62, as Morehouse takes the win at home against CAU for the sixth straight year.
