MONTGOMERY, Ala. – The Martin Methodist Men's Basketball team turned in a valiant effort but suffered an 82-79 defeat to No. 1 seed Stillman (Ala.) Thursday afternoon at the 2019 SSAC Men's Basketball Championship at the Cramton Bowl.

The loss was a heartbreaking one for the RedHawks (12-18), who led by as many as nine points in the second half before the Tigers (28-4) made a surge down the stretch.

In their third meeting of the season, the two teams battled to their tightest contest of the year with the game featuring 10 lead changes – seven of which came in the second half.

The RedHawks got off to a fast start, leading by as many as seven points just over 12 minutes into the ballgame. The lead would dwindle, but only slightly, as the RedHawks held a 38-33 lead at halftime versus the tournament's top squad.

The second half saw the RedHawks push their lead to as many as nine points as they led 51-42 with 13:17 left in the ballgame. However, the Tigers used a 12-4 run in the next five minutes to not only erase the RedHawk deficit but also take their first lead since late in the first half.

The RedHawks continued to battle, retaking the lead on four occasions over the next few minutes as the teams traded buckets. Down three with 3:51 to play, the RedHawks were whistled for an intentional foul, which saw the Tigers convert both free throws and swish home a layup on the ensuing possession to balloon the lead to seven points.

A last-gasp 3-pointer pulled the RedHawks within three points with four seconds to play, but the Tigers connected on 1-of-2 free throws to pick up the four-point victory.

Javonte Cooper led the RedHawks with 19 points – 15 of which came in the second half. Dwayne Ward scored 14 of his 16 points in the first half and tracked down 10 rebounds for a double-double in his final appearance as a RedHawk.

Malcanee Mason and Adrian Smith added 16 and 15 points each, respectively.

As a team, the RedHawks committed 19 turnovers, while forcing just eight Stillman giveaways. Jordan Olison led the RedHawks with five assists as the team handed out 13 helpers.

Five Stillman players finished in double-figures, led by Ravion Henry's 24. Henry was only 6-of-15 from the floor, but finished the night 12-of-13 from the free throw line.

As a team, the Tigers connected on 29-of-35 attempts at the line, while the RedHawks finished just 11-of-16 at the charity stripe.