SATURDAY'S SCORES
@Eastern Illinois 71, Morehead State 65
@SIUE 83, Eastern Kentucky 75
Tennessee Tech 62, @Southeast Missouri 60
Jacksonville State 75, @UT Martin 61
@Belmont 71, Austin Peay 63
Murray State 73, @Tennessee State 65
EASTERN ILLINOIS 71, MOREHEAD STATE 65
CHARLESTON, Ill. - Eastern Illinois men’s basketball bounced back from its first home loss of the season as the Panthers jumped out early and never trailed during a 71-65 win over Morehead State on Saturday afternoon.
EIU moved back to .500 for the season at 12-12 overall, 5-7 in the OVC. Morehead State fell to 12-13 overall, 6-6 in the conference.
Josiah Wallace had the hot hand early for the Panthers as EIU raced out to an 11-2 lead with Wallace scoring five of the 11 points. Wallace had back-to-back 3-pointers that pushed EIU’s lead to 19-4 with 14:14 left in the half as he scored 16 of his 25 in the opening 20 minutes.
Morehead State chipped into the early EIU lead driving to the hoop for four free throws before trimming the margin to single digits on a Tyzhaun Claude dunk with 13:06 left in the half.
EIU would push the lead back out to double figures and hold a 40-30 lead at the break. Mack Smith’s 3-pointer at the 5:37 mark gave EIU its biggest lead of the half at 34-18. The 3-pointer moved Smith into a tie with Wally Lancaster of Virginia Tech for second place on the NCAA Division I all-time list for consecutive games with a 3-pointer made at 73.
The Panthers were able to keep a multiple possession lead for most of the second half. James Baker cut the lead to two possessions with 9:22 left in the game on a lay-up. Wallace immediately answered for EIU.
Ta’lon Cooper would twice get the Eagles to within five in the final six minutes, first on a jumper at the 5:52 mark and then with a 3-pointer with 4:22 left. Smith and George Dixon responded for EIU on both Cooper buckets.
EIU held on in the final minute with defense as they made only one of four free throw attempts. Morehead State would miss its final four shots in the final minute after cutting the lead to five a final time with 53 seconds left in the game on a four-point play by Cooper.
Claude led the Eagles with 14 points while Djimon Henson scored ten off the bench. Morehead State pulled down 17 offensive rebounds to offset a 35 percent shooting night from the floor.
SIUE 83, EASTERN KENTUCKY 75
EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - Shamar Wright triggered a second-half surge to guide the SIUE men's basketball team past Eastern Kentucky 83-75 on Saturday at the First Community Arena at the Vadalbene Center.
Wright, a 6-foot, 7-inch freshman, scored a season-best 20 points to help the Cougars snap a four-game skid and improve to 6-19 overall, including a 3-9 mark in the Ohio Valley Conference. Eastern Kentucky slipped to 12-13 and 9-3 and saw its six-game winning streak come to an end.
Wright's season-best 20 points ignited the Cougars and teammate Anselm Uzuegbunem registered his first double-double of his SIUE career with 12 points and 10 rebounds. Brandon Jackson also pitched in 14 points on 7-for-10 shooting and grabbed seven rebounds. Teammate Tyresse Williford added eight points, six rebounds and five assists.
Wright scored six consecutive points early in the second half when the Cougars turned a 42-41 deficit into a 47-42 lead. Wright scored 17 of 20 poonits in the second half. Uzuegbunem sank a pair of free throws with 1:17 remaining to stretch SIUE's advantage to 76-67 and ensure the victory.
So was Wright, who made 6 of 10 shots, including 2 of 3 from three-point land. He also converted six of seven free throws, grabbed five rebounds and had four assists. Wright's previous best was 18 points against UT Martin on Jan. 25
The Cougars, who trailed 30-28 at half, come out quickly after that and stretched their lead to 51-39 through the second half. The Colonels made a couple of runs at them, but the Cougars refused to relinquish the lead.
SIUE made 26 of 55 shots (47 percent), including 6 of 14 from three-point range. The Cougars helped themselves by sinking 25 of 32 free throws and outrebound the Colonels 48-34. Eastern Kentucky's erratic three-point shooting – 7 of 37 – hounded the visitors. Jomaru Brown's 21 points led the Colonels.
It played out as a see-saw first half and the Cougars had control of it for much of the time, even though they trailed at the break. They scored the first nine points and led 16-2 five minutes into the game. However, the Colonels responded with a spree of their own and went ahead for the first time at 23-21 with five minutes to play in the half.
TENNESSEE TECH 62, SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 60
CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. - Victory on the hardwood typically comes down to execution when it matters most. That was indeed the case for the Tennessee Tech men's basketball team Saturday afternoon, as the Golden Eagles (6-19, 3-9) eked out a 62-60 victory at Southeast Missouri (5-20, 1-11) behind two clutch free throws and huge defensive stop.
With under 10 seconds to play and the score knotted at 60, Jr. Clay drove into the paint looking for an opening to give his team the lead. The sophomore smartly acknowledged the lack of room to produce what he wanted and kicked the ball out to an open Dane Quest in the corner.
Quest made his way to the middle of the paint, gathered his balance and went up for a shot, drawing a foul with 5.7 seconds on the clock. The freshman proceeded to knock down a pair of freebies like a seasoned veteran, giving the Golden Eagles back the lead they had held virtually all day.
Tech then held its own on the defensive end of the court, never allowing the Redhawks to get off a shot.
While Quest saved his heroics for the final seconds, it was forward Garrett Golday that shouldered the load for the Golden Eagles on the day. The sophomore scored a career-high and team-high 13 points in just 14 minutes off the bench, finishing the game 6-for-9 from the floor. Five of the buckets came inside the paint, where the youngster dominated in short spurts.
Tech did kick off the game with a torrid start, scoring 17 points prior to the first media timeout while making seven of its first eight shots from the field. The paced slowed from the point on, but by the break, the Golden Eagles held a 37-26 advantage while shooting over 48 percent from the floor.
Turnovers and fouls plagued the purple and gold in the second half, allowing the Redhawks to creep their way back into the contest. Tech never panicked, however, always seeming to find just enough of an answer to keep the home squad from ever taking a lead. That, and winnings the rebound battle 34-29, paid dividends as the Golden Eagles earned their second road win in OVC play and first victory in Cape Girardeau since 2011.
Clay, who battled foul trouble the majority of the night and was limited to 24 minutes, scored 11 points to make it 18-straight games in double figures for the Chattanooga native. Senior Darius Allen and freshman Keishawn Davidson each contributed eight points as well while sophomore Amadou Sylla controlled the glass with a team-high seven boards.
JACKSONVILLE STATE 75, UT MARTIN 61
MARTIN, Tenn. - Twenty-point performances from De'Torrion Ware and Kayne Henry helped the Jacksonville State men's basketball team to a 75-61 win over UT Martin at the Elam Center on Saturday.
Ware tallied a team-best 22 points on eight of 11 shooting with five treys, and Henry was 10-for-15 for 20 points with nine rebounds.
The Skyhawks (7-16, 3-9 OVC) claimed a 3-2 lead on a Parker Stewart 3-pointer in the opening minutes of the contest, but the Gamecocks (10-15, 5-7 OVC) reclaimed the advantage for good just 17 seconds later on a Henry jumpshot.
Jax State's defense shot down UTM shooters in the first half, allowing the Skyhawks to hit just eight of 29 shots in the opening frame. Twelve of Martin's 20 first-half points came on 3-pointers, while an aggressive JSU forced 10 turnovers.
UT Martin kept the lead within striking distance until the 13:08 mark when Jacksonville State jumped on a 10-0 run to go up 18-8. Ware accounted for six points and UTM coughed up the ball three times during the stretch.
Henry paced the Gamecocks with 12 points through the first half, hitting six of 10 shots, while grabbing six rebounds. The forward played all but 1:11 of the first 20 minutes.
Trailing 32-20 at the break, the Skyhawks tripled their point total with 41 second-half points, but it wasn't enough to overcome a Jacksonville State offense that kept pace with 43 points of its own.
After scoring nine points in the first, Ware went off for 13 points in the closing period to bring his total to 22. It was the sophomore's second 20-point game of the season and put him above the 400-point mark for his career.
Ware and Henry became the first Gamecock duo to score 20 points in a single game since Ware and Jason Burnell accomplished the feat Feb. 28, 2019 at Eastern Illinois.
Freshman Juwan Perdue got his first career start, logging 25 minutes from the forward position. He scored six points at the Elam Center, marking his career-high for points scored in a single game against a Division I opponent.
Freshman guard Marek Welsch also got his first starting nod since the season opener at SMU.
BELMONT 71, AUSTIN PEAY 63
NASHVILLE - Belmont University men's basketball defeated Austin Peay, 71-63, Saturday from the Curb Event Center.
Belmont led the majority of the game - and the entire second half - but could not break free from the visiting Governors in a physical, intense game.
The Bruins led 32-30 at halftime despite early foul trouble for sophomore Adam Kunkel and graduate student Tyler Scanlon. Belmont twice stretched the lead to seven points before Terry Taylor trimmed the margin to 52-50 with 8:16 left.
Sophomore Grayson Murphy hit two baseline 3-pointers during a decisive 10-2 run that gave Belmont a 62-52 lead with 4:11 remaining. Belmont went 7-for-8 from the free throw line in the final 1:16 to secure the victory.
All told, Belmont (18-7, 9-3 OVC) shot 45 percent (22-for-49) from the field - including 9-for-26 from 3-point distance.
Kunkel led four Belmont players in double figures with 19 points. Sophomore Caleb Hollander added a season-high 14 points. Murphy had 12 points, six rebounds and five steals, while Scanlon added 10.
Taylor led Austin Peay (16-9, 10-2 OVC) with 26 points and a Curb Event Center record 23 rebounds. It marked the first 20/20 game in the OVC since 2017 and just the seventh in the past decade.
MURRAY STATE 73, TENNESSEE STATE 65
NASHVILLE - The Murray State Racers took over sole possession of first place in the Ohio Valley Conference Saturday night with a 73-65 victory over the Tennessee State Tigers at the Gentry Center in Nashville.
The win improved the Racers to 11-1 in OVC play, a game in front of Austin Peay (10-2), who lost Saturday at Belmont. The Racers (18-6) travel to Clarksville, Tenn., Thursday for the first of two games this OVC season with the Governors in an 8 p.m. tip on ESPNU.
Tevin Brown led the Racers in scoring for the 16th time this season with 28 points, while KJ Williams scored 13 with eight rebounds. Devin Gilmore had eight rebounds and four points.
Trailing early 11-3, the Racers took the lead for good on a pair of free throws from Jaiveon Eaves to make it 22-20 with 6:21 before half. MSU led 33-29 at the break on the strength of limiting the Tigers to 3-of-12 from the 3-point line.
The Racers started the second half by scoring on their first possession on an Eaves 3-pointer and a 36-29 lead. MSU had to juggle Robinson and Williams as each picked up their third personal foul with 17:39 left in the game. With 15:08 left, MSU went in front 44-34 on a jumper by Brown, which made it an 11-5 run to start the second half. TSU cut the lead to 59-58 with 2:48 remaining, but Brown's 3-pointer at 2:23 put MSU in front by four. With 2:07 remaining, Williams stepped in front of a TSU pass and the Racers took possession on a turnover. He had a rebound slam at 1:40 for a 64-58 MSU lead and when TSU missed again, Williams grabbed the rebound with 1:22 left. The three hustle plays marked a very busy 45 seconds for the sophomore. Brown and Williams combined to hit 5-of-6 from the free throw line to seal the win.
The Racers corrected on part of their game that went wrong Thursday in their only OVC loss at Belmont. In that game, MSU gave the ball up 22 times on turnovers, but tonight against TSU, the Racers cut that to a more manageable 16 and they forced the Tigers into 17 turnovers, which produced 17 points for the Racers.