Senators overcome first half deficit to grab win over Roane State

HARRIMAN, TN – Walters State trailed by 11 at halftime on Wednesday evening against Roane State but erased that deficit and held on in the final seconds for an 89-87 victory.

With the win, Walters State improved to 15-1 overall and 6-1 in TCCAA play.

Roane State had the ball with 14 seconds left trailing by two, but Micah Simpson knocked a ball away and Ramondo Battle recovered it, stayed inbounds and flipped it to JR Jacobs who ran out the clock for the win. 

Battle led the way for the Senators with 19 points, while Simpson and Jamar Livingston each added 15. Charvez Ambose rounded out the double-figure scorers with 13 points. 

Other scorers for Walters State included Jaylen Wharton with seven, Jair Horton with six, Jacobs with four, Greg Moore with three, Malachi Hale with three, Chi Shannon with two and Jaylon Taylor with two. 

It wasn't the strongest of starts to the game for Walters State as they fell behind and trailed 49-38 at the half. Simpson had nine points in the opening 20 minutes to lead Walters State, while Livingston had eight and Battle and Horton had six each. Ambrose also had five points.

The Senators continued to trail for the first half of the second half but continued to chip into the lead, as Battle found his way to the free throw line five times in the final 20 minutes. One of those was with 11:27 left and Roane State leading 69-59. Battle hit one of two free throws, and then got to the line on the next possession and hit two more to cut the lead to seven.

Roane State answered the mini run with two free throws, but Moore drilled a 3-pointer to cut it to six. Ambrose scored the next possession for Walters State, and it was 71-67 with 10 minutes to go. The run continued from there as Ambrose slammed home a putback to make it a 2-point game.

The run hit its peak with eight minutes remaining, as Simpson knocked in a 3-pointer that gave the Senators a 72-71 lead. Roane finally broke the run with a 3-pointer to retake the lead, but Wharton hit a free throw and Carter Metz found Livingston on the break for a 3-pointer and a 76-74 lead. 

From there, Walters State continued to hold the lead and made it 89-84 with 1:30 left. Roane State cut the lead to two and forced a turnover with 14 seconds remaining. However, Walters State got the stop and the late win. 

Battle finished the second half with 13 points, while Ambrose had eight and Livingston had seven. 

Up Next:

Walters State will be back in action on Saturday, hosting Jackson State. Tip is set for 4 p.m. 

Rob Harvey

Walters State Community College

Sports Information Director

Cell: (423) 779-8880

Email: sportsinfo@ws.edu

Website: www.ws.edu/athletics