SATURDAY'S SCORES
Austin Peay 72, @UT Martin 70
@Jacksonville State 90, SIUE 54
Murray State 85, @Southeast Missouri 67
@Belmont 109, Eastern Kentucky 93
Morehead State 74, @Tennessee State 61
Eastern Illinois 67, @Tennessee Tech 60
AUSTIN PEAY 72, UT MARTIN 70
MARTIN, Tenn. - Austin Peay State University men's basketball team weathered a power outage, several UT Martin onslaughts and a last-gasp shot at the buzzer to prevail in a 72-70 slugfest at the Elam Center, Saturday.
The hard-fought win keeps Austin Peay (12-5, 4-0 OVC) unbeaten in Ohio Valley Conference play, while UT Martin (5-10, 0-4) once more emerged as a hard-luck loser after surrendering late leads against both Southeast Missouri and Eastern Illinois last weekend.
Once more, Jarrett Givens provided an early spark for Austin Peay, sinking four early three-pointers as the Govs raced out to a 16-11 lead, expanding it to 24-16 with less than 11 minutes to play in the half. Early returns had the Govs handling this contest as well as they had in their previous three league outings.
With 8:01 remaining in the half, at 3:59 p.m., a bank of lights went out in the Elam Center. Shades of last season's home finale against Murray State ensued as coaches, officials and administrators worked to restore power and debated the best way to move forward. Twenty-four minutes later, the ball was in play once more.
Play might have resumed, but it was clear the Govs were off-put by the delay. However, Jabari McGhee took over late in the half, scoring eight of Austin Peay's final 13 points to send the Govs into the break with a 41-38 lead.
The second half was a war for the Governors, who never trailed but also never led by more than five points. Every time the Skyhawks got within a possession, another Gov would step up with a bucket. Often it was sophomore Terry Taylor, who scored 12 of his game-high 20 points in the second half; five of his six second-half buckets came in answer to a UT Martin field goal to make it a one- or two-point game.
After a Quintin Dove dunk at the five-minute mark once again drew the Skyhawks to within two, senior Chris Porter-Bunton willed his way into the paint and sank a jumper. With 55 seconds to go another senior, Zach Glotta, sank a three to take a one-point game to a four-point game and then Porter-Bunton sank two crucial free-throws with 16 seconds to play—the last of his 13 points on the day, with nine coming in the second half.
Following Porter-Bunton's freebies, Kevin Little drove the length of the floor unabated and dished to Dove for a lay-up to make it a two-point game again; the Govs then missed two free throws to give the Skyhawks a glimmer of hope, but Taylor met Little at the rim this time and blocked his shot to secure the Austin Peay victory.
JACKSONVILLE STATE 90, SIUE 54
JACKSONVILLE, Ala. - The Jacksonville State men's basketball team claimed its fourth Ohio Valley Conference win in a row Saturday night with a historic 90-54 victory over Southern Illinois University Edwardsville at Pete Mathews Coliseum.
Jacksonville State's 36-point win over the Cougars is the largest margin of victory over an OVC opponent in program history, and it marks the first time JSU has begun an OVC season with an undefeated 4-0 start. It is the best start to league play in the Gamecocks' Division I history since going 6-0 to begin Atlantic Sun play in 1999-00.
JSU's smothering defense held SIUE nearly 22 points below its 75.4-points-per-game average and kept the Cougars shooting average to 30.4 percent for the contest. SIUE had just 17 buckets on 56 attempts.
Cross' 15 points sets a new career-high for the forward, surpassing his previous high of 14 scored his freshman year at Tennessee Tech.
Jacksonville State owned the glass, totaling 47 boards. JSU's rebounding performance is the best against a D1 program this season, while SIUE's 24 rebounds are the least allowed to an opponent all year.
The Gamecock defense limited SIUE to just two points through the game's first eight minutes. The Cougars shot 10 percent, 1-for-10, until a basket at 12:10 gave them their third and fourth points. By that time, Jacksonville State had amassed a 10-point lead.
The Cougar's 24 first-half points was the second-lowest point total for a JSU opponent in the first period this season.
Senior Marlon Hunter scored a half-best 10 points to pace the Gamecocks in the first. The senior was 5-for-8 from the floor with all 10 points coming on 2-point field goals, ensuring his 12th double-digit scoring effort of the season.
Jacksonville State's 14-point lead at the half, 38-24, was the largest of the season against an OVC opponent.
The Gamecocks blasted SIUE 52-30 in the second period to record their highest-scoring half against a Division I opponent this year. Burnell led the offensive barrage in the closing stanza with 10 points, while redshirt sophomore Derek St. Hilaire pitched in nine off the bench.
Starting forward Jason Burnell played 29 minutes Saturday - the least minutes he's seen since playing just 25 minutes against Reinhardt - and recorded a game-best 17 points and nine rebounds.
In total, Jacksonville State led for nearly 39 minutes while the score was tied 2-2 for just more than one minute. JSU outscored SIUE by a whopping 48-18 and 21-13 off turnovers.
Senior guard David McFarland led the Cougars on offense with 10 points while last week's OVC Freshman of the Week Cameron Williams managed nine.
MURRAY STATE 85, SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 67
CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. - The Murray State Racers won for the fifth-straight time in an 85-67 victory over the Southeast Missouri State Redhawks at the Show Me Center in Cape Girardeau, Mo.
MSU (13-2, 4-0 OVC) has won 15 consecutive Ohio Valley Conference games overall and their last eight league road games.
The Racers had a balanced attack that netted 17 points and 14 assists from Ja Morant, while Shaq Buchanan added 13 points and Darnell Cowart 12 off the bench. Speaking of bench, the Racers had a solid game from a number of contributors including Mike Davis with eight points and Jaiveon Eaves and Brion Whitley each with seven points. The Racers ended the game with eight players scoring seven points or more.
It was a big second half that turned the game in MSU’s favor when they started with a 20-9 run to get the game completely under their control. Cowart hit a pair of shots in the run as Mike Davis and Brion Whitley each hit 3-point baskets. The Racers biggest of the game came with 2:49 left when it was 83-60.
The Racers shot 59 percent from the field on 33-of-63 and held the Redhawks to 44 percent on 24-of-55. On the boards, MSU beat SEMO 41-25 as KJ Williams led the way with 10 rebounds.
BELMONT 109, EASTERN KENTUCKY 93
NASHVILLE - Behind a career-high 28 points from senior Kevin McClain, Belmont University men's basketball defeated Eastern Kentucky, 109-93, Saturday.
It was a record-setting day for Belmont, as 109 points established a new single-game standard for points in a regulation game in the program's NCAA Division I era, while 64 points in the first half tied the Curb Event Center arena record.
McClain added six assists and five rebounds as he went 12-for-15 from the free throw line. Senior All-America candidate Dylan Windler had 23 points, 10 rebounds, four assists and two steals, with 20 points coming in an electrifying first half.
Belmont had 17 assists on 22 made field goals in the opening 20 minutes, leading 64-46 at halftime.
Eastern Kentucky rode the play of its own All-America candidate - Nick Mayo - closing within 70-60 with 16:28 left on a Jomaru Brown basket. But a 3-pointer from freshman Adam Kunkel capped an 8-0 Belmont response to push the Bruin lead back to 18.
Belmont outrebounded Eastern Kentucky, 47-28, and outscored the Colonels, 40-24, in points in the paint.
Grayson Murphy added 18 points, seven rebounds and five assists for Belmont. Mayo led Eastern Kentucky (7-10, 0-4 OVC) with 26 points.
MOREHEAD STATE 74, TENNESSEE STATE 61
NASHVILLE - Senior Lamontray Harris notched his seventh double-double of the year, tabbing 19 points and 13 rebounds, leading the Morehead State men's basketball Eagles to their first conference victory of the 2018-19 campaign, defeating Tennessee State 74-61 Saturday evening at the Gentry Center.
The Eagles improve to 5-12 on the year and 1-3 in OVC play. TSU regressed to 4-12 overall and 1-3 in conference action.
The Eagles logged four players with double-figure performances. In addition to Harris, junior Jordan Walker chimed in 16 points, followed by sophomore De'Von Cooper's 12 and senior A.J. Hicks' 10.
Morehead State outshot the Tigers, 44 to 41 percent, with the difference maker being the efforts from behind the arc. The Eagles connected on 8-of-16 (.500) from long range, while the hosts put up 4-for-22 (.182).
Both teams jostled for position in the first portion of the opening stanza, as the two squads traded baskets back and forth with no one seemingly able to maintain a lead for long. The teams remained tied for 4:28 of the opening 10 minutes. Neither team led by more than four during this time.
Then, as the first half passed its halfway point, Morehead State found its rhythm on both ends of the floor, establishing an emphatic run.
Adding more credence to his role as a spark plug, freshman Ja'Cori Wilson got things started with a shot from downtown out of the left corner at the 9:16 mark. MSU forced one of its 13 first-half TSU turnovers before Harris found the cup on a breakaway layup. From there, it was Walker taking control with a triple from the top of the key and a couple of free throws to further extend the lead.
TSU junior Tripp Davis stopped the onslaught for a moment, nailing back-to-back jumpers of his own. However, between each made shot, he was answered by the Eagle offense in the form of a made trey, first from junior Djimon Henson, then from Cooper. As it reached the close of the first half, Harris tallied a couple of free throws before sinking a mid-range jumper.
TSU junior Michael Littlejohn found his way to the charity stripe to can two more tosses for the Tigers. But the Eagles answered the bell once again, as Cooper tabbed another long ball with 30 seconds remaining to bring Morehead State to the locker room with a 16-point halftime cushion, 35-19.
Tennessee State's 19 first half points were the lowest for an MSU opponent since Kentucky Christian registered 16 points in the first half of its game against the Eagles in the 2016-17 season. MSU's defense also forced three shot clock violations in the opening frame. The half ended on a run that saw a final count of 25-6 in favor of the Eagles over the final 9:16.
To start the second half, the conference foes traded shots back and forth, with MSU's lead shifting between 14 to 18 points up until the first media timeout of the period at the 15:37 stamp. As the teams came back to the floor, TSU utilized a full-court press defense that rushed the Eagle offense into four turnovers that materialized into six points for the Tigers to shrink the MSU advantage to 11, at 47-36, with 12 minutes to play.
Once again, though, the Eagles weren't going to be denied, as the offense fired back with made shots from Cooper and Henson, along with some free throws from Harris and Walker, to stretch MSU's lead to its widest at 19 with 10:22 left to play.
Tennessee State shrank its deficit to as few as 10 with 50 ticks remaining in the game. But, free throw shooting and defense down the stretch were enough for the Eagles to end their road trip with a victory.
EASTERN ILLINOIS 67, TENNESSEE TECH 60
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. - Eastern Illinois overcame a sluggish start to finish strong as the Panthers won on the road Saturday night with a 67-60 win at Tennessee Tech.
EIU improved to 10-7 overall, 3-1 in the OVC. TTU fell to 6-11 overall, 2-2 in the OVC.
After trailing by as many as 12 points in the first half, EIU tied the game on a Mack Smith 3-pointer in the opening minute of the second half. Josiah Wallace gave EIU its first lead of the game with a 3-pointer with 17:07 left in the game. Wallace finished with a team-high 15 points.
The Panthers once again received great production from their freshmen on the floor. Cam Burrell helped spark a 10-2 run midway through the second half that gave EIU a 44-38 lead. Burrell finished with nine points and two steals.
Shareef Smith would give EIU its biggest lead of the game with 2:15 left in the game as his 3-pointer made it 60-51. Mack Smith would help close out the game at the line making 5-of-6 at the stripe in the final 25 seconds. EIU was 14-of-18 from the free throw line for the game. Smith finished with 14 points.
Eastern Illinois closed the first half with a 10-0 run over the final 3:25 of the first half to trim a 12-point deficit down to two points at the half despite shooting just 33 percent over the first 20 minutes.
Tennessee Tech opened the game with an 8-0 run with EIU scoring its first basket 5:20 into the game on a lay-up by Shareef Smith. The Golden Eagles would push the lead to ten points on a 3-pointer by Hunter Vick. A lay-up by Jared Sherfield with 3:45 remaining in the first half gave TTU a 27-15 lead.
Ben Harvey scored six points in the Panthers run to end the first half. Harvey finished with 12. EIU's first half defense forced ten TTU turnovers resulting in ten points off turnovers. The Panthers forced 18 Golden Eagles turnovers on the night resulting in 22 points off turnovers.
Despite being undersized on the glass, EIU won the battle on the boards finishing with a 43-28 advantage. JaQualis Matlock pulled down seven rebounds with four on the offensive glass.
Vick finished 20 points to lead TTU with four points coming in the final 21 seconds as EIU was defending the three as they held a six point lead. Corey Tillery added 13 points.