WEDNESDAY'S SCORES
Valparaiso 72,
@Eastern Kentucky 66
UT Martin 71, @Northern Kentucky 56
@Tennessee Tech 84, Lipscomb 79
@Eastern Illinois 61, Ball State 54
@Jacksonville State 79, Winthrop 76 (OT)
@Murray State 102, Bethel (Tenn.) 66
Southern Illinois 79,
@SIUE 67
VALPARAISO 72, EASTERN KENTUCKY 66
RICHMOND, Ky. - Eastern Kentucky had a two-point lead midway through the second half but visiting Valparaiso used a 22-4 run in the latter stages of the contest to pull away for a 72-66 victory Wednesday night in McBrayer Arena.
Senior Timmy Knipp led the Colonels (4-2) with a season-high 16 points and five rebounds. Fellow senior Corey Walden added 13 tallies and five boards.
Alec Peters paced Valpo (8-1) with 21 points, thanks to making a career-high seven three-pointers and shooting 87.5 percent (7-of-8) from behind the arc.
Eastern Kentucky held a 45-43 lead with 12:37 remaining following Knipp’s fourth three-pointer. However, the Colonels went cold after that shot and only made one field goal in the ensuing nine-plus minutes.
Valparaiso took the lead for good when a Vashil Fernandez tip-in made the score 47-45 with 10:28 left. Peters hit two of his seven trifectas during that stretch as the Crusaders began to pull away. A Tevonn Walker jumper gave Valpo its largest lead of the game with 3:20 remaining, 65-49.
Valparaiso began the game on fire, hitting six of its first seven three-point attempts, to build a 23-11 cushion. The Colonels slowly battled back and took the lead, 28-27, on a Jaylen Babb-Harrison transition lay-up. The Crusaders scored the final five points of the first half to take a 32-30 lead into intermission.
There were two ties and 10 lead changes early in the second half before the Crusaders put together the pivotal 22-4 run.
Valparaiso shot 60 percent (15-of-25) from the floor in the final 20 minutes, including 62.5 percent (5-of-8) from three-point range.
UT MARTIN 71, NORTHERN KENTUCKY 56
HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. - Redshirt senior guard Marshun Newell accumulated his third career double-double to propel the University of Tennessee at Martin men’s basketball team to a resounding 71-56 victory at Northern Kentucky this evening.
Newell tallied game-highs of 15 points, 11 rebounds, five assists and two steals in 39 minutes of action for the Skyhawks. It marked the third time this season that the Memphis, Tenn. native had scored 15 points while the 11 rebounds equaled a career-high set against Belmont on Jan. 11, 2014. It also was UT Martin’s first double-double of the season by any player.
Alex Anderson added 15 points on 6-of-9 shooting for UT Martin while Deville Smith (14 points) and Twymond Howard (10 points) also cracked double-figures for the Skyhawks tonight. Myles Taylor (eight points, 4-for-4 from the floor) helped UT Martin shoot 61.9 percent (13-for-21) in the second half while winning the battle on the glass by a 37-22 margin.
Northern Kentucky (3-4) was led by Tayler Persons’ 15 points while Tyler White and Chad Jackson contributed 12 and 10 points, respectively.
UT Martin head coach Heath Schroyer was proud of his team’s determination on the road, as the Skyhawks matched their road win total from last season (three) on their way to improving to 4-2 overall.
UT Martin held an early lead thanks to the play of Newell, who scored the first five and nine of the Skyhawks’ first 14 points. His swooping up-and-under layup at the 13 minute mark of the first half provided UT Martin with a 14-9 advantage.
Northern Kentucky answered with a 7-0 run to briefly reclaim the lead before five straight points by Smith over a 31-second span ignited an 18-0 run where the Skyhawks held the Norse without a point for a stretch of 8:27. Six different UT Martin players scored in the extended run, as Anderson concluded the spurt with five straight points.
The Norse would close out the first half with six unanswered points to result in a 32-22 Skyhawk lead at the halftime break.
Newell posted a game-high 11 points in the first half for UT Martin, who held a 22-12 rebounding advantage in the game’s first 20 minutes. Persons’ six first-half points led Northern Kentucky, who shot 36 percent overall and 18.2 percent (2-for-11) from three-point range in the first half.
Howard then keyed the Skyhawks in the early stages of the second half, as he accounted for six of UT Martin’s first 10 points. A Taylor layup capped off a 9-3 run that gave the Skyhawks their biggest lead of the night – 56-34 – with a little over eight minutes remaining.
From that point forward, UT Martin kept its lead around 20 points until a late 9-3 Norse run got Northern Kentucky within 14 points with less than two minutes remaining. However, the Skyhawks combined to hit five free throws down the stretch to seal the victory.
TENNESSEE TECH 84, LIPSCOMB 79
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. - Tennessee Tech senior Dwan Caldwell has been oh-so-close to posting a double-double five times in his career, missing by a single point or a single rebound each time.
Not so Wednesday night.
Caldwell poured in a career-high 31 points and snatched 10 rebounds, including one of the biggest baskets of the night followed by one of the most critical boards as the Golden Eagles (4-3) claimed an 84-79 non-conference victory over Lipscomb (2-5).
The five-point victory kept the Golden Eagles unbeaten at home in four tries, and pushed Tech's al-time record in Cookeville against Lipscomb to 22-2.
In a contest which saw each team hold double-digit leads and put together 16-2 runs, a 3-pointer by Caldwell with 1:31 to play halted a late Lipscomb rally and put Tech ahead, 80-75 after the Bisons had closed to within two.
With half-a-minute to play, and still up five, Caldwell went up to nab a defensive rebound, drew a foul and stuck both free throws for an 82-75 lead. Tech's lead went to nine on a dunk by Javon McKay, which was enough to withstand two tip-in baskets by Lipscomb in the final 11 seconds.
Caldwell was 11-for-18 from the floor and 8-for-10 from the line, and also had three assists, two steals and a blocked shot in 34 minutes of action. It was the first 30-point game by a Golden Eagle since Jud Dillard netted 34 on Jan. 10, 2013 at Eastern Illinois.
Charles Jackson was the only other Golden Eagle to score in double figures, finishing with 10 points and four rebounds while being limited to 17 minutes on the floor. He took two quick fouls and sat out nearly the entire first half. The night put a halt to his streak of six consecutive double-doubles.
McKay finished with eight points and a team-best five assists while Shirmane Thomas added six points and four assists. Jordan Johnson also scored six, going 2-for-3 from outside the arc.
Lipscomb shot 50 percent (29-for-58) for the game including 41.7 percent (10-for-24) from long range. The Bisons had four players in double figures, led by Josh Williams with a double-double of 22 points and 10 rebounds. Brett Wishon added 14, while Malcolm Smith and Talbott Denny had 10 each. Chad Lang scored nine and Nathan Moran chipped in five points and a team-best five assists.
Tech, which owned a hefty rebound edge for the season entering the game, saw Lipscomb build a 41-30 advantage on the glass. Tech forced 21 turnovers and had just eight turnovers.
The Bisons went on their 16-2 run in the first seven minutes to build a double-digit lead at 18-8. After getting up 6-2 out of the gate, Tech missed six of its first seven 3-pointers, and Lipscomb's long-range game came alive. The visitors hit four consecutive from the perimeter in building the 10-point advantage.
From there, Tech played from behind and kept plugging away. The Golden Eagles got within four a couple of times, only to see the Bisons answer with layups to maintain their cushion.
Finally, freshman Aleksa Jugovic hit a pair of free throws to make it a three-point difference at 34-31, then knocked down a 3-pointer to tie the contest at 34-all with 1:18 to play in the half.
The Bisons led 36-34 at the break.
Lipscomb held a five-point lead early in the second half, before Tech weaved together its own 16-2 stretch, capped by Caldwell with his sixth points of the run. Tech's lead bobbed between six and 10 points, until Wishon's 3-pointer with 1:49 remaining cut it to 77-75.
EASTERN ILLINOIS 61, BALL STATE 54
CHARLESTON, Ill. - LeTrell Viser drained a 3-pointer during a key 14-2 second half run as Eastern Illinois rallied for a 61-54 win over Ball State on Wednesday night in Lantz Arena.
EIU improved to 3-5 on the season winning its second straight. It was the first win over Ball State since January 18, 1966. Ball State fell to 2-3 on the season. EIU returns to action next Tuesday with a game at UC Davis, a 9 pm Central start.
Both teams were cold from the field to start the game with Ball State shooting 28 percent and EIU shooting 25. The Cardinals raced out to a 13-2 lead as EIU’s first basket of the game was a Trae Anderson jumper with 14:47 to play in the first. Anderson would post the Panthers first double-double of the season finishing with 13 points, 11 rebounds.
BSU pushed the lead to 23-13 with 3:09 to play in the first on a lay-up by Jeremie Tyler. Keenen Anderson and Trae Anderson scored for EIU down the stretch to cut the lead to 24-18 at the half.
After both teams scored to open the second half EIU went on a 12-0 run with Viser giving EIU its first lead of the game at 14:56. He followed that with another three to put the Panthers up by six points.
Tyler finally stopped the Panthers run with a 3-pointer at the 11:43 mark. Tyler finished with 10 points.
Zavier Turner would spark a short 5-0 run to put Ball State back in front 38-34 with 8:31 to play. Dylan Chatman hit a 3-pointer followed by a Trae Anderson jumper that put EIU back in front for good with 7:12 to play.
Back-to-back 3-pointers by Chatman and Viser and a jumper by Trae Anderson gave the Panthers a 51-40 lead with 3:44 left as they closed out the contest.
Viser had nine points hitting 3-of-5 from 3-point range. Chris Olivier came off the bench to score 16 points with seven rebounds and four blocks. Cornell Johnston finished with nine points and seven assists.
Turner led all players with 20 points for Ball State as the Cardinals finished the game shooting 30 percent from the floor. EIU shot 61 percent in the second half to finish at 43 percent for the game.
JACKSONVILLE STATE 79, WINTHROP 76 (OT)
JACKSONVILLE, Ala. - JaQuail Townser's 3-pointer with 1.4 seconds left in overtime lifted the Jacksonville State men's basketball team to a thrilling 79-76 win over Winthrop at Pete Mathews Coliseum.
Townser, who finished the game with a career-high 24 points, got the ball from senior Avery Moore on the right wing and then ran around a screen by senior Jamal Hunter to set up his game winner from the left side of the key. The shot lifted the Gamecocks (5-3) to their fifth win in a row and dropped the Eagles (3-3) back to .500 on the season.
The junior point guard from Alton, Ill., went 9-for-15 from the floor, dished three assists and swiped a pair of steals on a night where he led five JSU players with at least nine points.
Hunter used 11 points and 16 rebounds to record his second double-double of the season and the third of his career. Junior Jeremy Watson was two boards shy of a double-double with 10 points and eight rebounds, his fifth-straight game with at least eight rebounds.
Senior Darion Rackley scored 16 points, 14 in the second half and overtime, while senior D.J. Felder added nine points. Both Rackley and Felder's minutes were limited due to early foul trouble.
The Eagles got 22 points from Keon Johnson, who went 12-for-13 from the free throw line with a costly miss. After making his first 12 charity shots, his final one rimmed out with 11 seconds left in overtime to give JSU the final possession with the score tied 76-76.
JSU won the battle on the boards, 39-33, thanks in large part to Hunter and Watson, who combined for 24 of them. Tevin Prescott notched a double-double for the Eagles with 15 points and a team-high 11 boards.
A back-and-forth game, it saw 11 ties and 15 lead changes before the final one on Townser's shot. It was the first time a Gamecocks sank a game winner in their final possession since Ronnie Boggs's SportsCenter Top 10 tip in that downed UNC Asheville on Feb. 23, 2012.
MURRAY STATE 102, BETHEL 66
MURRAY, Ky. - The Murray State Racers came away with a 102-66 win over the Bethel Wildcats Wednesday at the CFSB Center in Murray, Kentucky.
The game was the Racers' first to score 100 points in a non-overtime game since Nov. 28, 2009 in a 108-49 win at home over Tennessee Wesleyan.
MS evened its record at 4-4 as Cameron Payne led six Racers in double-digit scoring with 22 points to go with seven assists and four steals. Justin Seymour added 14 points and Jeffery Moss scored 15. Jarvis Williams had12 points and grabbed seven rebounds, while Tyler Rambo tossed in 11 points.
The game was a tune-up for the Racers home game with Western Kentucky Saturday at the CFSB Center.
The Racers grabbed the lead 16-8 at the 12:57 mark when T.J. Sapp and Seymour hit MSU's first 3-point attempts. MSU again hit back-to-back threes when Moss hit from long range and Kedrick Flomo added another for a 31-22 lead at the 7:34 mark. The Racers took their first double-digit lead 4:24 before half on a pair of free throws from Moss.
The Racers went into the half in front of the Wildcats 50-34 after Seymour hit a 3-pointer with five seconds left.
In the second half, Moss hit a 3-pointer at the 16:47 mark and the Racers had a 57-40 lead. Another three from Payne made it a 62-42 MSU lead with 15:36 remaining.
MSU cruised to the final score of 102-66.
The Racers had a hot shooting game from 3-point range going 11-of-15 total and 6-of-8 in the second half.
SOUTHERN ILLINOIS 79, SIUE 67
EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - SIUE connected on 78.9 percent of its shots in the second half Wednesday, but it wasn't enough to overcome a slow start. The Cougars fell to Southern Illinois 79-67 in front of 3,508 in nonconference men's basketball at Vadalabene Center.
SIUE, which had nine days off prior to the game, has dropped four straight and fell to 1-4 for the season.
While the Cougars managed just 6 of 26 first half shots, the Salukis were 13-23 (56.5 percent) over the first 20 minutes. SIU Carbondale (4-3) used a 14-2 run over the final 4:04 of the first half to take a 45-22 lead at the break. Saluki guard Anthony Beane scored 20 of his game-high 28 points in the first half.
Beane finished 11 of 18 from the field, was 2 for 4 from three-point range, and 4 for 4 at the free throw line.
The Salukis had their largest lead of the night with 13:26 to play thanks to a three-point basket by Chaz Glotta. Glotta finished the game with 13 points and was 3 for 5 from long range.
The Cougars were 15 for 19 from the field in the second half, including knocking down 4 of 6 three-point attempts.
Kris Davis led SIUE's offensive rebound in the second half. Davis scored 10 of his team-best 18 points in the second half on 3-of-3 shooting. He drained his only three-point attempt of the half with 1:39 remaining in the game to cut the lead to 78-63.
Donivine Stewart finished with 17 points, including seven in the second half.
Keenan Simmons scored all eight of his points in the second period and was 3 for 3 from the field. C.J. Carr finished with six points, all in the second half. Carr drained a three-pointer with 13:07 for his only made field goal. He was 3 for 4 at the free throw line.
For the game, the Cougars outshot the Salukis. SIUE was 21-45 (46.7 percent) while SIU Carbondale was 24-52 (46.2 percent) for the night. SIUE finished with 10 blocks in the game, which is one shy of the single-game school record. It is the second time this season the Cougars have finished with 10 blocks. Keaton Jackson finished with four blocks. Michael Chandler had three blocks and Simmons had two.