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NORFOLK, Va. – Junior Zaynah Robinson led six players in double figures for the Norfolk State men's basketball team as the Spartans secured an 80-76 win over Savannah State on Wednesday night in NSU's MEAC home opener at Joseph Echols Hall.
 
The Spartans erased a seven-point deficit with four minutes remaining, as the teams traded runs throughout the second half. The Tigers missed their last eight shots in the game and had two turnovers after their last bucket with 4:22 to go. That layup by Troyce Manassa gave SSU a 74-67 lead and capped an 8-0 run that lasted almost exactly one minute.
 
NSU got back into the game by scoring the next 10 points in the contest. Robinson hit a 3-pointer with less than four minutes remaining to start the run, while junior Stavian Allen hit two free throws and a jumper just inside the 3-point line to tie the score at 74-74 with 2:38 left.
 
After the Tigers missed three straight 3-pointers on one possession, senior Kerwin Okoro drained a trey from the left corner to put the Spartans up by three, 77-74. Neither team could get anything going for the next minute-plus until NSU got called for a technical foul with 32.5 seconds left on a loose ball under the Savannah State basket.
 
Manassa made both free throws, while NSU missed on its two shots from the charity stripe after the Tigers had been called for a personal foul on the same play moments earlier. The Tigers maintained possession down by one, but Dexter McClanahan had his shot blocked on a drive to the hoop. Robinson made 1-of-2 from the foul line on the opposite side to make it 78-76, and SSU turned the ball over on its last possession on another drive to the basket.
 
With just seconds remaining, junior Jordan Butler made two free throws to ice the win. The victory improved NSU's record to 4-12 overall and 1-1 in MEAC play. The Tigers fell to the same 4-12 record as well as 1-2 in the league.
 
Robinson tallied 21 points on 7-of-15 shooting, including 4-of-8 from 3-point range, with six assists, four rebounds and two steals. Senior Jonathan Wade added 11 points with five boards and four assists, and Okoro reached double figures for the first time in his career, tallying 11 with three 3-pointers.
 
Manassa carried Savannah State to the tune of 29 points on 10-of-16 shooting with six rebounds. McClanahan was the only other Tiger in double figures with 12 on just 5-of-19 shooting. He also led the team with nine rebounds.
 
Usually a great long-range shooting team, the Tigers made just 8-of-44 from 3-point land, less than 20 percent. NSU, on the other hand, made 10-of-31.
 
The Spartans scored the first six points of the game and led 12-7 in the early going after Robinson's layup four and a half minutes into the contest. NSU held the Tigers at bay until McClanahan's three-point play put SSU up 23-21 halfway through the first period.
 
Junior Alex Brown hit a 3-pointer barely 15 seconds later to put the Spartans ahead, a lead they did not relinquish for the rest of the half. Robinson drained a 3-pointer and hit two from the free throw line for a 38-32 lead with 4:21 left, tied for the largest lead for either team before the break. Manassa and Casey Wells each converted 3-pointers late in the half as Savannah State cut the NSU advantage to 45-42 going into the locker room.
 
The Tigers came out in the second half and immediately went on a three-minute, 11-1 run to take a 53-46 lead. Wade and Butler answered with layups for the Spartans, and Wade later hit a trey to get to within five. After Wells answered with a 3-pointer on the other end for a 63-55 Tiger advantage, NSU scored nine straight to go back up by one, 64-63, with a little less than eight minutes left.
 
NSU coughed the lead up with 5:55 left on Joshua Floyd's layup, and a short time later Manassa began the 8-0 run that led into the final moments of the game.
 
Butler (10 points, 13 rebounds) and sophomore Alex Long (10 points, 15 boards) each tallied double-doubles, with Long tying his career high in rebounds. The duo combined for seven of the team's 10 blocks on the night, and they helped the Spartans finish with a 53-47 edge on the glass as well.
 
Allen posted 10 points off the bench for the Spartans to give them six players in double figures.
 
Norfolk State made 28-of-68 overall from the floor (41.2 percent), while Savannah State shot just 28-of-86 (32.6 percent).
 
NSU will stay in town to host North Carolina Central on Saturday at 6:30 p.m.