2012 SWAC Tournament: Miss. Valley State Defeats Texas Southern 71-69

Mississippi Valley State led by as many as 20 points in the second half but had to hold on at the end winning the SWAC Tournament championship 71-69 over Texas Southern.

The Delta Devils led 55-35 with 8:13 remaining in the game. Texas Southern then went to work closing the gap to just 67-64 with just under a minute remaining. Cor-J Cox made one of two free throws to extend the lead to 71-66 before Omar Strong's three at the buzzer made the score 71-69.

Kevin Burwell scored 19 points to lead the Delta Devils. Brent Arrington added 12 points and William Pugh chipped in 10 points off the bench.

Omar Strong led Texas Southern with a game-high 30 points on 8-18 shooting. Strong was 8-15 from three-point range in the game. Dexter Ellington added 10 points off the bench for the Tigers.

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SWAC Tournament 2012 Finals Texas Southern Vs. Mississippi Valley State Game Time, TV Schedule And More

Texas Southern is looking at making the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2003, as the Tigers will take on the top-seeded Mississippi Valley State Delta Devils in the 2012 SWAC Tournaments Finals in Garland.

It will be a tall-order for the Tigers, but not impossible, as they lost a 77-69 overtime decision to MVSU at home in January, and then dropped a three-point decison on the road in Itta Bena last month. The Tigers are looking to do to MVSU, what was done to them by Alabama State last season.

After Texas Southern won the 2011 SWAC regular season title, Alabama State upset the Tigers in the semi-finals and then advanced to the NCAA Tournament with a 65-48 victory over Grambling.

Keys for the Tigers will include boxing out and better rebounding on the boards, as the Delta Devils out rebounded the Tigers in both prior games. MVSU guard Terrance Joyner is a a combined 9-of-11 from behind the three-point-line the previous two matchups as well, so the Tigers will need to extend the defense in addition to boxing out.

Omar Strong, the 5'9" junior guard, will again be the featured player on offense for Texas Southern as he has scored in double figures in seven of the last eight games, including a 32 point outburst against Arkansas-Pine Bluff back on February 18.

Date / Time: Saturday, March 10, 7 p.m. CST

Location: The Special Events Center, Garland, Texas

TV: ESPNU

Streaming: ESPN3

SWAC Basketball Tournament 2012, Texas Southern vs. Alcorn St: Tigers Advance To Championship Game After 60-55 Win

The Texas Southern Tigers will advance to the Southwestern Athletic Conference tournament on Friday afternoon after defeating the Alcorn State Braves by a score of 60-55 in Garland, Texas. The Tigers will play the winner of tonight's other semifinals game between Mississippi Valley State and Arkansas-Pine Bluff.

The Tigers were led by Omar Strong, who scored 18 points on Friday against the Braves. Madarious Gibbs added 12, D'Angelo Scott scored 10 and Daniel King came off the bench to chip in eight points. The Braves were led by Kendrick McDonald and Anthony Nieves, who both scored 11 points, and Martrevious Sanders came off the bench to add 10.

The Tigers are 2-2 against the two possible teams that they would play in the conference championship game.

View the official SWAC conference bracket, and make sure to follow all the NCAA action on SB Nation's NCAA Basketball page.

SWAC Basketball Tournament 2012: Semifinals Bracket, Schedule And More

The 2012 SWAC tournament continues on Friday with a doubleheader of semifinal games at the Garland Special Events Center in Garland, Texas. Friday's games will decide which teams will play in the championship game on Saturday and get the conference's lone invitation to the 2012 NCAA Tournament.

No. 2 Texas Southern takes on No. 6 Alcorn State in the first game of the day, scheduled for 2:30 p.m. TSU is coming off a 75-62 win over Alabama A&M on Wednesday. They will be hoping that Alcorn State is not carrying over any momentum from a 103-79 outburst against Prairie View A&M on Thursday.

In the second game of the semifinals, top-seeded Mississippi Valley State takes on No. 5 Arkansas-Pine Bluff. That game starts at 8:00 p.m. Mississippi Valley squeaked by eighth-seeded Jackson State, 63-60, in the opening round. Pine Bluff beat Alabama State by a score of 60-56 on Thursday.

All games will be broadcast on SWAC TV. View the complete SWAC tournament bracket here.

2012 SWAC Conference Tournament, Prairie View Vs. Alcorn State Final Score: Panthers Lose, 103-79

The Prairie View A&M Panthers headed into the 2012 SWAC Tournament as the No. 4 seed. One short game later, they were headed home.