SAVANNAH, GA—Junior forward Ozante Fields tossed in a team-high 16 points, but it wasn't enough as South Carolina State dropped a tough, 88-92, road loss to Savannah State Saturday (Jan.26^th ) at Tiger Arena.

Fields returned from injury converting 6-of-6 from the charity stripe and 5-of-8 from the field with 21 minutes of play. Junior guard Lavar Harewood (6 rebounds) and forward Damani Applewhite (9 rebounds) each added 14, while freshman guard Allen Hatchett, Jr.chipped in 13 and  Jahmari Etienne finished with 10 in the loss.

Despite a lofty 19 turnovers, South Carolina State led in several categories including rebounds (43-31), second chance points (23-9) and bench points (37-33).

Savannah State led 53-45 during intermission. The Tigers led by as many as 10 points during the game. SC State close the gap down the stretch pulling within two, 88-90, off a dunk by  Applewhite with 1:13 remaining left in regulation.

Key rebounds and a dunk by Smith sealed the victory for the Tigers.

SSU was led by Zach Sellers with a game-high 29 points and Zaquavian Smith added 20 points in the win. The Tigers improved to 2-3 in the MEAC, while the Bulldogs fall to 2-4 in the league.

South Carolina State hit the road for a two-game Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference swing, beginning with Maryland Eastern Shore on Saturday (Feb. 2^nd ) at 4 p.m., then a trip to Dover, DE to take on Delaware State Monday (Feb. 4^th) at 7:30 p.m.

For more information on South Carolina State Athletics visit www.scsuathletics.com or call the Office of Athletic Media Relations at (803) 536-7060.