SUNDAY'S SCORES
@Bowling Green 94,
UT Martin 80
@Eastern Illinois 81, North Alabama 70
@SIUE 79, Missouri S&T 66
BOWLING GREEN 94, UT MARTIN 80
BOWLING GREEN, Ohio - Down three key players because of injuries, the University of Tennessee at Martin men’s basketball team could not outlast the Bowling Green Falcons in a 94-80 setback at the Stroh Center this afternoon.
Missing leading scorer Derek Hawthorne, Jr., Preseason All-Ohio Valley Conference honoree Fatodd Lewis and returning starter Jailen Gill, the Skyhawks (5-6) played well for a majority of the first half before Bowling Green caught fire, making eight of its 14 three-pointers in the first 20 minutes.
Quintin Dove accounted for a team-high 20 points, five rebounds, three steals and two blocks in 19 minutes to pace UT Martin. Preston Parks collected 15 points, six rebounds and five assists while Parrish Hewitt delivered a season-best 15 points in 24 minutes off the bench. Delfincko Bogan (10 points, five assists) and Kevin Little (nine points, team-high six assists) also helped guide a Skyhawk offensive attack that generated 20 assists on 26 made baskets.
Bowling Green (8-5) was led by Demajeo Wiggins’ 20 points and 13 rebounds while Caleb Fields tossed in a game-high 24 points. Antwon Lillard and Justin Turner scored 14 and 12 points, respectively, in a game that featured eight lead changes and six ties.
The duo of Dove and Bogan combined to tally UT Martin’s first 10 points of the game before a Charles Henderson, Jr. trifecta evened the score at 13-all seven minutes in. A layup by Jeremy Joyner at the 7:17 mark nudged the Skyhawks ahead at 24-22 but the Falcons responded with the next nine points as part of a 23-4 run. Bowling Green took a 49-33 lead into the locker room behind Fields’ 13 points while Bogan was responsible for a team-high eight points for UT Martin.
Parks dialed up the Skyhawks’ first five points of the second half and moments later, Hewitt knocked down a pair of treys in a 56 seconds. However, the Falcons sank four 3-pointers during a 20-8 run and UT Martin could not catch up. The Skyhawks did reel off 10 unanswered points late in the game but ultimately would not get any closer than the final scoring margin of 14 points.
EASTERN ILLINOIS 81, NORTH ALABAMA 70
CHARLESTON, Ill. - Freshman Cam Burrell had a double-double off the bench as Eastern Illinois won its final non-conference game of the season, 81-70, on Sunday afternoon over North Alabama at Lantz Arena.
EIU improved to 7-6 and opens Ohio Valley Conference play on Thursday night hosting UT Martin. UNA fell to 3-12 on the season.
The two teams played a balanced first half with six ties and eight lead changes before EIU went to the locker room with a 38-35 lead on a Shareef Smith 3-pointer. Smith scored in double figures for the third straight game finishing with 20 points and six assists.
EIU shot 50 percent from the field in the first half while going 1-of-2 from the free throw line. In the second half the Panthers were able to live at the line going 23-of-30 including scoring their final seven points from the charity stripe.
Mack Smith was 9-of-10 at the free throw line finishing with a game high 21 points. Smith was 4-of-6 on 3-pointers including one at the 8:40 mark that put EIU up 58-48.
Both teams traded baskets after the Smith 3-pointer before a dunk by Burrell pushed the lead back to ten with 6:47 left to play. Burrell had 11 points and ten rebounds.
The Lions would trim the lead to seven points with just over four minutes remaining on a three point play by Tavon King. EIU would push the lead to 14 points with 1:56 to play before back-to-back 3-pointers by Jamari Blackmon and Kendarius Smith. UNA finished 10-of-30 from 3-point range in the game.
EIU closed out the win at the foul line making seven of their final eight attempts. Ben Harvey was the fourth EIU player in double figures finishing with 13 points.
Blackmon was the Lions top scorer with 19 points. Christian Agnew added 16.
SIUE 79, MISSOURI S&T 66
EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - A torrid first-half surge carried the SIUE men's basketball team to a 79-66 win over Missouri S&T on Sunday at the Vadalabene Center.
The Cougars outscored the Miners 22-0 during an eight-minute stretch in the first half to build a 17-point lead and never look back. SIUE led 41-27 at half in improving to 4-8 and winning its second successive game. The Cougars are 3-3 at home. Missouri S&T, a member of the NCAA Division II Great Lakes Valley Conference, is 2-7.
The Cougars had a smooth enough transition game to extend their lead to as many as 22 points in the second half. They maintained a double-digit lead the rest of the way.
Missouri S&T sliced SIUE's advantage to 54-44 with 12:20 remaining, but Daniel Kinchen of the Cougars hit a 3-point shot and following a Miners' basket, he tacked on a 3-point play to make it 60-46.
Freshman Cameron Williams led a balanced attack with 16 points. The 6-foot, 2-inch freshman from St. Louis scored half of his points during that 22-0 flurry.
Williams, who scored a season-high 22 points against Valparaiso on Nov. 22, added: "It was one of my better games. I was attacking the rim on offense. And our defense was getting a lot of stops."
Teammates Brandon Jackson and Tyresse Williford pitched in 13 points apiece and had six rebounds each. Williford also accumulated six assists. Christian Ellis collected 11 points and five rebounds. Ellis logged seven points during that first-half SIUE blitz.
Harris had no quarrel with the Cougars' shooting. They made 30 of 56 shots, or 54 percent. SIUE hit on 5 of 14 shots from 3-point land and sank 14 of 19 free throws. SIUE outrebounded Missouri S&T 37-34 and accounted for 16 assists.
Dulan Scott and Yahmir Muhammad both scored 14 points for the Miners, who made 25 of 67 shots. They hit on 6 of 20 treys and were 10 of 12 from the foul line.