Cornelius Hester scored 18 points and Casey Cantey had 17 as Alabama A&M defeated Grambling State 81-60 on Saturday night.
The Bulldogs (11-15, 8-10 Southwestern Athletic Conference) earned the sixth seed in the conference tournament, which starts March 10 in Shreveport, La.
The Tigers (6-20, 4-14), despite losing, already had clinched the eighth and final berth earlier in the day when Southern lost to Texas Southern.
After Grambling led 23-21 with 6:43 left in the first half, Alabama A&M closed it with a 20-4 run for a 41-27 lead. Cantey scored 15 of his points in the first half.
The Bulldogs shot 45.5 percent (25-for-55) to Grambling's 33.3 percent (20-for-60), and were 6-for-13 on 3-pointers to the Tigers' 4-for-20. The Bulldogs also held a 44-35 rebounding edge.
Kevin Loyd, with 10 points, was the only Grambling scorer in double figures.
