SWAC Tournament Game Preview: Tigers Look to Stay Hot as Bulldogs Seek Revenge

HOUSTON — The SWAC Basketball Tournament doesn't forgive sentiment. It doesn't reward history. It only rewards who shows up ready to fight — and right now, the Texas Southern Tigers believe that's them.

Fourth-seeded Texas Southern (TSU) faces fifth-seeded Alabama A&M Thursday in a SWAC Tournament quarterfinal that is equal parts grudge match and proving ground. When these two programs collided in the regular season, the Tigers authored one of the most dramatic comebacks of the SWAC calendar — erasing a 16-point deficit to pull away 89-74.

Now, in single-elimination play, both sides know that scoreboard means nothing.

"Every game is separate," TSU head coach Johnny Jones said. "Especially when you get to the postseason."

A Homecoming for Hughley

If there's an undercurrent running beneath this matchup, it's the story of Otis Hughley Jr.

The longtime TSU assistant coach spent years building his résumé before landing the head coaching job at Alabama A&M — the very program standing between him and a deep tournament run with his current squad. Jones said he respects what his assistant brings to the table precisely because of that experience.

"I know that was an emotional setting for him," Jones said following the regular-season win. "It's not something that we talked about during the week, but we're excited for him."

The game itself reflected that tension. Both teams played with an edge. Technical fouls were assessed. The kind of basketball that reminds you these are proud programs with legacies worth defending.

"The game did get tense with some tough plays," Jones said. "You've got two good teams, and when they play like that, it happens."

Depth Depleted, But Not Defeated

What made the Tigers' January victory possible, in addition to their resilience, was production off the bench. TSU's reserves contributed 41 points in that win, a luxury the program may no longer have heading into Birmingham.

Veteran contributors have been dealing with injuries. More critically, forward Troy Hupstead — the team's leading scorer and rebounder and a second-team All-SWAC honoree has also been sidelined.

"Our depth is shorter now than it was before," Jones acknowledged after Monday's practice. "We don't have as deep of a bench, but we've been fighting through it."

That's the HBCU tournament experience in its rawest form — programs making do, finding answers, demanding more from their rosters when reserves run thin.

Davis Is the Variable

Alabama A&M presents its own challenge in Koron Davis, the Bulldogs' leading scorer at 14.0 points per game on the season. He has been considerably more dangerous of late, averaging 23 points over his last four outings.

TSU's defensive assignment Thursday is clear: contain Davis, disrupt Alabama A&M's rhythm, and protect against a team with genuine motivation to settle a score.

Beating an opponent twice in the same season, especially in the postseason, is one of basketball's most difficult tasks. Jones is acutely aware of that reality. Last year, the Tigers defeated Alabama State in the regular season, only to fall to the Hornets in the tournament. Alabama State went on to claim the SWAC championship.

Chasing No. 12

TSU is not here simply to participate. The Tigers are chasing their 12th program title — a milestone that would add another chapter to one of Black college basketball's great stories.

This quarterfinal is where that journey either continues or ends. No mulligans. No second chances.

*Article written by David Hill, HBCU Legends intern from Texas Southern University.