Malique Ross made a steal and hit a free throw with four seconds left as Salem University survived a late rally to extend its winning streak to four with a 79-78 victory over Bluefield State College in NCAA Division II men's basketball Saturday at Bluefield, W.Va. The Tigers led by as many as 14 points in the second half, but were limited to three free throws over the final four-plus minutes of the contest.
 
Salem (11-7) took the lead for good early in the second half as Ross and Jordan Forbes combined for all of the points during a go-ahead 12-0 run. Forbes and Ross each hit a three and Forbes's dunk with 14:22 remaining gave the Tigers their first double-digit lead at 52-42.
 
Three-pointers by Ross, Shawn Christian and Aleksa Dobrijevic helped give Salem its biggest advantage at 61-47 with 12:15 left to play. Bluefield State got as close as four, but Scott McGann nailed a pair of three-pointers and Forbes' layup with 4:25 remaining pushed the margin back to double digits at 76-66. That would be the Tigers' last field goal of the afternoon.
 
Bluefield State (9-9) cut the lead in half before Forbes hit 1-of-2 free throws with 47 seconds left to make the score 77-71. Zhahidi Robinson converted a three-point play on the Blues' next possession and drew a foul with 10 seconds left after pulling down a rebound off a blocked Tiger shot attempt. Robinson hit both free throws to pull Bluefield State within 77-76.
 
After a quick foul, Forbes again hit 1-of-2 from the line to make it a two-point game. Bluefield State got the rebound and had a chance to tie or take the lead, but Ross forced a turnover and drew a foul. Ross also hit 1-of-2 free throws to extend Salem's lead to 79-76.
 
The Tigers fouled on Bluefield State's next possession and Tony Hood hit both free throws to pull the Blues back within one. Salem was able to inbound the ball and run out the final two seconds to preserve the win.
 
Salem trailed for most of the first half until Forbes's layup with 3:36 left gave the Tigers their first lead at 31-29. Ross's layup with 1:03 remaining broke a 33-33 tie and Dobrijevic hit a three-pointer with 31 seconds left to send the Tigers into the locker room with a 38-33 halftime lead.
 
Bluefield State rallied to take a 42-40 lead less than two minutes into the second half before Forbes's three-pointer triggered the scoring run that put the Tigers ahead to stay.
 
Forbes led all scorers with 20 points to go with six rebounds, five assists and five steals. Ross finished with 16 points and four steals, while Christian added 13 points and Marko Tutunovic had 10 points. Ralph Diaz had a team-high seven rebounds for the Tigers.
 
Brandon Anyanwu led Bluefield State with 16 points, while Alex Nunnally recorded a double-double with 12 points and a game-high 15 rebounds.
 
Saturday's win was Salem's second by two points or less during its current winning streak. The streak began with a 77-75 victory over Central State University.
 
Salem continues its four-game road stretch Thursday as the Tigers travel to Vienna, W.Va., for a rematch with Ohio Valley University. The Tigers defeated the Fighting Scots 84-67 November 27 at T. Edward Davis Gymnasium.