GRAMBLING, La. (Interstat) — The Grambling Tigers used a balanced offensive effort to defeat the Texas Southern Tigers 84-67 in a men’s NCAA Division I basketball game Monday night at Fredrick Hobdy Assembly Center. Grambling, which improved to 8-7 overall, led 40-34 at halftime and expanded its advantage after the break. Texas Southern fell to 2-11 with the loss. Roderick Coffee led a group of key contributors for the home team. An announced crowd of 1,756 watched the conference game. The outcome was expected, as statistical models heavily favored Grambling. The combined score fell below the projected total.

GRAMBLING, La. (Interstat) — The Grambling Tigers used a balanced offensive attack and a decisive second-half surge to pull away from the Texas Southern Tigers for an 84-67 victory in a Southwestern Athletic Conference men’s basketball game Monday night at Fredrick Hobdy Assembly Center. A crowd of 1,756 saw Grambling improve to 8-7 overall and 2-0 in the SWAC, while Texas Southern fell to 2-11 and 0-2. The game’s pivotal sequence arrived early in the second half, transforming what had been a competitive contest into a commanding Grambling lead. After taking a 40-34 advantage into halftime, Grambling opened the second period with a 13-4 run over the first four and a half minutes. The burst was fueled by interior play and defensive stops. Devyn Franklin, a 6-foot-8 forward from Terrell, Texas, scored six points during the stretch, including a putback layup, while the Grambling defense forced Texas Southern into rushed shots and turnovers. That run extended Grambling’s lead to 53-38, and Texas Southern never recovered, unable to cut the deficit to single digits for the remainder of the game. The home team’s lead ballooned to as many as 22 points in the closing minutes. Grambling was led by a standout performance from guard Roderick Coffee. The 6-foot-4 junior from Painesville, Ohio, scored a game-high 21 points in just 28 minutes, knocking down three 3-pointers and adding two assists. He was complemented effectively by forward Derrius Ward, a 6-foot-6 Philadelphia native who added 20 points and three assists, showcasing an efficient all-around game. Texas Southern’s offense relied heavily on the scoring of guard Zaire Hayes. The Houston product played 33 minutes and led all scorers with 25 points, connecting on four shots from beyond the arc. Beyond Hayes, however, the visiting Tigers struggled to find consistent scoring, with only Jaylen Wysinger (7 points) reaching even half of Hayes’ output. Grambling’s depth proved to be a significant factor. Franklin finished with 10 points and seven rebounds, while forward Mekhi Fitts contributed eight points and several key plays during the second-half separation. Rickey Ballard, despite scoring only eight points, filled the stat sheet with multiple assists, steals, and rebounds to facilitate the Grambling game plan. For Texas Southern, the loss extends a difficult start to conference play, following a road defeat at Southern on Saturday. The team has now lost nine of its last ten games, with the lone victory in that stretch coming against non-Division I Huston-Tillotson. Grambling, meanwhile, has won three of its last four, building momentum early in the SWAC schedule. The game’s tempo was dictated early by Grambling’s defensive pressure, which generated 12 Texas Southern turnovers. Grambling also held a notable advantage in second-chance points, capitalizing on offensive rebounds to maintain possession and extend leads during critical moments. Statistically, the outcome aligned with pregame projections from National Statistical’s ELO system, which gave Grambling a 67.5 percent probability to win. The combined point total of 151 also fell under the betting over/under line of 148. Texas Southern will look to rebound at home against Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Saturday. Grambling continues its conference slate on the road Saturday at Bethune-Cookman. The two teams are scheduled to meet again in Houston on Feb. 14.

GRAMBLING, La. (Interstat) — A pair of Tigers will clash Monday night when Grambling hosts Texas Southern in a SWAC men’s basketball matchup at the Fredrick Hobdy Assembly Center. The game pits two teams heading in opposite directions as conference play intensifies. Grambling (7-7) enters at .500 overall and is coming off a 76-72 league victory over Prairie View on Saturday. Texas Southern (2-9) snapped a four-game skid with an 80-56 win over non-Division I Huston-Tillotson on Dec. 30, but has struggled against a rigorous non-conference schedule. Grambling has shown resilience, winning three of its last five games. Forward Devyn Franklin is a key contributor, coming off an 11-point, 11-rebound double-double in the win over Centenary on Dec. 30. His activity on the glass will be central against a Texas Southern team allowing an average of 84.5 points per game. Texas Southern will lean heavily on forward Troy Hupstead, who is in the midst of a strong individual season. Hupstead exploded for 30 points in the team’s most recent outing and has scored in double figures in nine of 11 games this season. Support from Oumar Koureissi (17 points vs. Huston-Tillotson) and Bryce Roberts will be needed to complement Hupstead’s scoring. Grambling’s defense, which has held opponents to 68 points or fewer in three of its seven wins, will aim to contain Hupstead and force other players to beat them. Texas Southern, meanwhile, must find a way to slow a more balanced Grambling attack and improve on its road performance, where it is 0-5 this season with losses by an average of 28.4 points. Monday’s contest is the first of two regular-season meetings between the programs, with the rematch set for Feb. 14 in Houston. Tipoff is scheduled for 8:30 p.m. EST.