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FAMU basketball coach Charlie Ward grateful for experience vs. UCF<\/p>\n
The UCF Knights beat the Florida A&M Rattlers 97-60 in a men’s basketball game on Nov. 11, but FAMU coach Charlie Ward felt the experience was good.<\/p>\n
The state of Texas wasn\u2019t nice to Florida A&M<\/a> men\u2019s basketball.<\/p>\n The Rattlers fell short in their two-game trip to the Lone Star State, with losses to Tarleton State on Friday, Dec. 19, and Texas Christian on Sunday, Dec. 21.<\/p>\n The Tarleton State Texans handled FAMU 78-54<\/a> at Stephensville\u2019s EECU Center. The TCU Horned Frogs came back from a halftime deficit to trounce the Rattlers 80-56<\/a> at Ed and Rae Schollmaier Arena in Fort Worth.<\/p>\n FAMU couldn\u2019t buy a basket versus Tarleton State, shooting 17-of-52 (33 percent) from the field and 5-of-22 from three (23 percent). Jordan Chatman led the Rattlers with 17 points, followed by Antonio Baker\u2019s 16.<\/p>\n At TCU, the Rattlers built a 28-24 halftime lead, but were outscored 56-28 in the second half on the way to being blown out. Jaquan Sanders had a team-high 16 points for FAMU, and Tyler Shirley chipped in 13 points.<\/p>\n Led by first-year head coach Charlie Ward<\/a>, the Rattlers are 3-7 heading into the Christmas holiday.<\/p>\n FAMU was previously on a three-game winning streak. It was the program\u2019s first time in over two decades to string together a trio of non-conference triumphs in over two decades, according to FAMU\u2019s sports information department.<\/p>\n The Rattlers return to the hardwood on Sunday, Dec. 28, when they visit Atlanta to face the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (8-4) at McCamish Pavilion at 2:30 p.m.<\/p>\n FAMU women’s basketball can’t get going vs West Georgia<\/p>\n FAMU women\u2019s basketball\u2019s struggles continued on Sunday, Dec. 21.<\/p>\n The Rattlers (0-10) hosted but lost to the West Georgia Wolves 72-57<\/a> in a non-conference game before 351 fans at the Al Lawson Jr. Multipurpose Center on FAMU\u2019s Tallahassee campus.<\/p>\n FAMU shot 36 percent from the floor and made just four out of 22 three-point attempts. West Georgia also outrebounded the Rattlers 41-29.<\/p>\n Guard Camille Jackson led FAMU with 17 points and seven rebounds. Tahnyjia Purifoy scored 16 points.<\/p>\n The Rattlers will be back on the court when the Southeastern Fire (12-2) comes to town on Monday, Dec. 29, at 1 p.m.<\/p>\n Gerald Thomas, III is a multi-time award-winning journalist for his coverage of the\u00a0Florida A&M Rattlers<\/a>\u00a0at the Tallahassee Democrat.<\/strong><\/p>\n Follow his award-winning coverage on\u00a0RattlerNews.com<\/a>\u00a0and contact him via email at\u00a0GDThomas@Tallahassee.com<\/a>\u00a0or on the app formerly known as Twitter\u00a0@3peatgee<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n