• OVC Men’s Basketball Report – January 27 (PDF)
This Week’s Schedule
Monday, January 27
*Eastern Illinois 56, Little Rock 54 (St. Charles, Mo.)
Tuesday, January 28
*Southern Indiana at Morehead State, 6:30 p.m. (ESPN+)
Thursday, January 30
*Tennessee Tech at Morehead State, 6:30 p.m. (ESPN+)
*Tennessee State at Little Rock, 7:00 p.m. (ESPN+)
*Eastern Illinois at Western Illinois, 7:30 p.m. (ESPN+)
*SIUE at Lindenwood, 7:30 p.m. (ESPN+)
*UT Martin at Southeast Missouri, 7:30 p.m. (ESPN+)
Saturday, February 1
*Eastern Illinois at Lindenwood, 3:30 p.m. (ESPN+)
*SIUE at Western Illinois, 3:30 p.m. (ESPN+)
*Tennessee Tech at Southern Indiana, 3:30 p.m. (ESPN+)
*Tennessee State at Southeast Missouri, 3:45 p.m. (ESPN+)
*UT Martin at Little Rock, 5:00 p.m. (ESPNU)
OVC Players of the Week
PLAYER
Ray’Sean Taylor, G • 6-1, 180, Grad. • Collinsville, Ill. • SIUE
Taylor led SIUE to a pair of wins (the team has now won seven of its last eight) in averaging 23.0 points, 3.5 rebounds, 2.0 steals and 1.0 assists/game while hitting 17-of-20 (85.0%) free throw attempts. The graduate had 24 points, four rebounds, three steals and two assists on Thursday against Southern Indiana. Sixteen of his points came in the second half of the six-point victory. On Saturday he guided the Cougars to a win over first-place Morehead State as he scored 22 points, hitting 12-of-13 free throws. Taylor added three rebounds and a steal in that win. He has scored 20 or more points in five-straight games, leads the OVC and ranks 35th nationally in scoring (18.9 points/game). This marks his third Player of the Week award of the season; making him the only repeat winner (no other school has won more than one total award).
Others Nominated: Nakyel Shelton, Eastern Illinois; Jordan Wildy, Lindenwood; Johnathan Lawson, Little Rock; George Marshall, Morehead State; Stephen Olowoniyi, Southern Indiana; Brandon Weston, Tennessee State; Jaylon Johnson, Tennessee Tech; Vladimer Salaridze, UT Martin.
NEWCOMER
Brandon Weston, G • 6-5, 200, Jr. • Brooklyn, N.Y. • Tennessee State
Weston, a transfer from Rhode Island, averaged 20.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 2.0 steals/game while hitting 44.4 percent from the field (12-of-27), 62.5 percent (5-of-8) from 3-point range and 92.3 percent (12-of-13) from the free throw line in a pair of victories. In an overtime victory over UT Martin, Weston had 20 points on 6-of-11 shooting (3-of-5 3-pointers). In 36 minutes he added five rebounds, four steals and three assists. Two days later the junior had 21 points, five rebounds and an assist against Tennessee Tech. Weston has made 127 free throws this season, a mark that ranks fourth nationally.
Others Nominated: Anias Futrell, Lindenwood; Johnathan Lawson, Little Rock; Brendan Terry, Southeast Missouri; Ring Malith, SIUE; Sam Kodi, Southern Indiana; Jaylon Johnson, Tennessee Tech; Vladimer Salaridze, UT Martin.
FRESHMAN
Jadis Jones, G/F • 6-5, 200, Fr. • New Madrid, Mo. • Lindenwood
Jones averaged 11.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, 2.0 steals and 1.5 assists/game while shooting 47.4 percent (9-of-19) from the field and 5-of-6 (83.3%) from the free throw line. In a victory over Southeast Missouri, he had 15 points on 5-of-9 shooting in 37 minutes of action. In that game Jones added six rebounds, two assists and a steal. Two days later against Little Rock, the guard added eight points, four rebounds, three steals and an assist. This marks the seventh time Jones has been named OVC Freshman of the Week this season while a Lindenwood player has earned the award 10 of the 11 weeks in 2024-25.
Others Nominated: none
Other Notable Performers
Below are other notable performances from the past week.
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Vladimer Salaridze (F, R-Sr.), UT Martin. Averaged 23 points, 11.5 rebounds, 2.0 steals and 1.5 assists/game while hitting 53.3 percent from the field in two close games. Had career-high 29 points against Tennessee Tech.
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Nakyel Shelton (G, Sr.), Eastern Illinois. Scored 38 points, the most by an OVC player this season, against Morehead State. For the week averaged 25.0 points and hit 53.8 percent (7-of-13) from 3-point range.
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Johnathan Lawson (G, Sr.), Little Rock. Led Trojans to a pair of wins in averaging 15.5 points, 5.5 assists and 2.5 rebounds/game. Hit 8-of-13 3-pointers (61.5%) and had 25 points in win over WIU.
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George Marshall (G, Jr.), Morehead State. Averaged 21.0 points and 6.0 rebounds/game in two road contests. Had a career-high 24 points at Eastern Illinois.
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Brendan Terry (F, Jr.), Southeast Missouri. Terry averaged 16.5 points, 3.5 rebounds and 2.0 assists/game while hitting 65.0 percent (13-of-20) from the field. Had career-best 19 points against WIU.
Notes From Around the League
OVC Overview/This Week’s Highlights: Morehead State saw its five-game winning streak come to an end at SIUE on Saturday; the Eagles remain in first place one game ahead of SIUE (who has won five in a row) and Little Rock (who has won five of its last six) ... Little Rock saw its five-game winning streak end on Monday against Eastern Illinois at a neutral site (Lindenwood); that game was originally scheduled for December 21 but postponed following the tragic death of Little Rock student manager Josh Claxton in a car accident ... Morehead State is back at home for two games this week and is 8-0 at Johnson Arena in 2024-25 and have won 22 of its last 23 games; the Eagles are 60-6 at home since the beginning of the 2020-21 season ... EIU guard Nakyel Shelton became the eighth different OVC player to score 30 or more points in a game this season when he had 38 against Morehead State on January 23; the 38 points are the most by an OVC player in a game this season and most points by an EIU player since February 2004 ... UT Martin’s five OVC losses have come by a combined eight points (with four coming by one point); the Skyhawks have played five overtime contests in 2024-25 (four in OVC play), which is one away from tying the program’s all-time record (six in the 1998-99 season) ... Eastern Illinois’ Kooper Jacobi leads the OVC with eight double-doubles while UT Martin’s Vladimer Salaridze is second with seven; no other player in the league has more than three double-doubles ... There have been 11 Player of the Week selections this season and nine different teams have claimed an award (with only SIUE having more than one -- EIU and TSU have yet to claim one) ... On January 15 the NCAA Division I Council adopted a proposal that requires schools moving into Division I to meet objective measures that focus on the student-athlete experience and support a school’s successful transition to Division I and would change the timeline from four to three years; current reclassifying teams Lindenwood and Southern Indiana can use the new timeline
IF they meet all other criteria and could potentially be eligible for NCAA postseason play next year ... Nationally, Little Rock ranks sixth in field goal defense (37.2%) and 11th in blocks (5.6/game), Tennessee State is fifth in rebounds/game (42.3), 16th in offensive rebounds/game (14.05) and 19th in free throw attempts (24.1/game), UT Martin ranks ninth in rebounding (41.0/game), 17th in offensive rebounding (14.0/game) and 24th in bench points/game (30.14) and Southeast Missouri ranks fourth in 3-point defense (27.8%) ... Individually, SEMO’s Rob Martin is 19th in assist-to-turnover ratio (3.15), EIU’s Kooper Jacobi is 21st in rebounding (9.6/game) and double-doubles (8), TSU’s Brandon Weston is fourth in free throws made (127), Little Rock’s Johnathan Lawson is sixth in minutes played (37:11), SIUE’s Ray’Sean Taylor is 35th in scoring (18.9/game) and WIU’s Marko Maletic is fifth in 3-point percentage (45.5%)
3-Pointer in Every Game: As of January 27 only one OVC player has made at least one 3-pointer in every game this season: Tennessee Tech’s
Jaylon Johnson.
WIU’s Smith Records 25th and 26th Triple-Double in OVC History: Western Illinois senior guard
Sean Smith recorded the 25th triple-double in OVC history on December 4 against St. Ambrose. Smith had 24 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists in the victory. Two days later in a victory over East-West University, Smith had another triple-double, this time with 10 points, 16 rebounds and 10 assists. He is only the third player in OVC history to have multiple triple-doubles in the same season (UT Martin’s Lester Hudson and Murray State’s Ja Morant are the others) and the first to do it in back-to-back games. Nationally, there are six players to have a triple-double this season and Smith is the only one with two. There has been at least one triple-double by an OVC player in each of the past five seasons.
Guinyard Named National Player of the Week (December 17): UT Martin junior guard Tarence Guinyard was named one of five Oscar Robertson National Players of the Week award winners by the United States Basketball Writers Association (USBWA) on December 17. He averaged 31.0 points, 7.5 rebounds and 4.0 assists/game while hitting 65.6 percent (21-of-32) from the field, 71.4 percent (5-of-7) from 3-point range and 78.9 percent (15-of-19) at the free throw line in a pair of games. At Alabama State, he helped UT Martin overcome a 23-point deficit with 6:59 to go in regulation to force overtime, scoring 29 of the Skyhawks’ final 52 points over a stretch of 17:57. In that game he added seven rebounds, three assists and two steals off the bench. Four days later against Champion Christian, he delivered career-highs in points (31), rebounds (8) and assists (5) in just 22 minutes of playing time. In that game he hit 11-of-15 field goals (including 4-of-4 3-pointers) and was 5-of-5 at the free throw line.
Smith Named National Player of the Week (December 10): Western Illinois senior guard
Sean Smith was named one of five Oscar Robertson National Players of the Week award winners by the United States Basketball Writers Association (USBWA) on December 10. Smith recorded two triple-doubles during the week, with 24 points, 11 rebounds and 10 rebounds against St. Ambrose and 10 points, 16 rebounds and 10 assists in a win over East-West University. For the week he averaged 17.0 points, 13.5 rebounds and 10.0 assists/game while hitting 52 percent (13-of-25) from the field, 40 percent (4-of-10) from 3-point range and 100 percent (4-of-4) at the free throw line.
Recent Postseason Success: Following the 2023-24 season, OVC teams have won at least one national postseason game in 13 of the past 15 postseasons. Morehead State won a NCAA game in 2009, Murray State won in the NCAA Tournament in 2010, Morehead State won in the NCAA’s in 2011, Murray State won in the NCAA’s in 2012, Eastern Kentucky won in the CIT in 2013, Belmont (NIT) and Murray State (CIT) won games in 2014, Eastern Illinois (CIT), Eastern Kentucky (CIT), Murray State (NIT) and UT Martin (CIT) scored victories in 2015 (the four different teams to record a victory in the single postseason was an OVC record), Morehead State (CBI) and UT Martin (CIT) won in 2016, Belmont (NIT) and UT Martin (CIT) scored wins in 2017, Austin Peay (CIT) and Jacksonville State (CBI) won in 2018 and Belmont and Murray State in 2019 (NCAA) before no postseason was held in 2020. A streak of 11-straight years ended in 2021 (when only one team made the reduced postseason), and in 2022 Murray State won in the NCAA Tournament, followed by Morehead State winning in the NIT in 2023. No OVC team won a game in 2024.
OVC Basketball Championships Held at Ford Center in Evansville For Eighth Consecutive Year: The OVC Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championships presented by United Fidelity Bank will be held March 5-8 at the Ford Center in Evansville, Indiana. It marks the eighth-straight season the event will be held in the building. The Ford Center, which opened in 2011, is an 11,000-seat arena located in the core of Evansville’s downtown district. The 290,000-square foot facility serves as home of the University of Evansville’s men’s basketball team and the Evansville Thunderbolts of the Southern Professional Hockey League. The Ford Center also serves as host to numerous sporting events and concerts on an annual basis. It was announced in March 2023 the event was extended through 2026 with an option for 2027.
All Teams Eligible for OVC Tournament: Both reclassifying teams, Lindenwood and Southern Indiana, were eligible to compete and win the OVC Tournament Championship this season. Should a transitioning school win an OVC Tournament Championship, the AQ shall be awarded to the tournament runner-up. Should the tournament runner-up also be a transitioning school, the AQ representative shall be semifinalist that had the highest remaining seed going into the tournament.
Division I Council Adopts New Reclassification Criteria: On January 15 the NCAA Division I Council adopted a proposal that requires schools moving into Division I to meet objective measures that focus on the student-athlete experience and support a school’s successful transition to Division I. The change reduces the reclassification period from four to three years for Division II schools and four years for Division III schools. Members currently in the reclassification process (Lindenwood and Southern Indiana) can use the new timeline
IF they meet all other criteria. Progression through the process is dependent upon meeting each year’s benchmarks. If the benchmarks are met, teams would be eligible for NCAA postseason events in the 2025-26 school year.
OVC Tournament Championship Format: Once again the OVC Tournament will include a merit-based format. The format, which began in 2011, has the top eight men’s and women’s teams qualifying for the tournament. The No. 1 and 2 seeds will receive two byes to the semifinals while the No. 3 and 4 seeds will receive one bye into the quarterfinals. The first round will include the No. 5 seed against the No. 8 seed and the No. 6 seed against the No. 7 seed. The women’s bracket also uses a merit-based bracket. This marks the 14th year the format has been used (it was not used in 2021), and teams with a double bye (e.g. No. 1 or 2 seed) have won the tournament seven times. The No. 1 seed has won five times, the No. 2 seed twice, the No. 3 seed three times, the No. 4 seed once, the No. 5 seed once and the No. 8 seed once (Austin Peay in 2016).
Foreign Connections: Every single OVC men’s basketball program has at least one player who lists their hometown in a foreign country. Overall there are 33 players on OVC men’s basketball rosters who list their hometown as not from the United States.
OVC Players in the NBA: Four former OVC men’s basketball players were on National Basketball Association (NBA) Opening Night rosters for 2024-25. In 2021, Cameron Payne helped Phoenix advance to the NBA Finals. In 2020 Ja Morant was named the NBA Rookie of the Year, making him one of three players from a non-Power 5 Conference to win the award since 1983-84 (joining Damian Lilliard of Weber State in 2012-13 and Larry Johnson of UNLV in 1991-92). Riley Minix, the 2023-24 Player of the Year and OVC Male Athlete of the Year, is a rookie with the Spurs this season.
• Riley Minix, San Antonio Spurs (Morehead State)
• Ja Morant, Memphis Grizzlies (Murray State)
• Cameron Payne, New York Knicks (Murray State)
• Ben Sheppard, Indiana Pacers (Belmont)
OVC to Produce 9-Game Linear Television Package and Use “Wild Card” Selections: The OVC will once again produce a national television package in 2024-25 that will include eight men’s basketball games and one women’s basketball contest that will air on the ESPN Family of Networks. The regular season games will all air on ESPNU, as will the OVC Tournament semifinals. The Men’s Championship game will air on ESPN2. Each of the regular season games will be “wild card selections” with the matchup picked approximately two weeks ahead of the game.
Little Rock Picked as OVC Preseason Favorites: In a vote of Ohio Valley Conference head men’s basketball coaches and communication directors, Little Rock was picked as the preseason favorites. The Trojans, who were one of three teams who shared last year’s regular season championship (along with Morehead State and UT Martin), picked up 20 of 22 first-place votes (teams could not vote for themselves) to receive 200 total points. Western Illinois was picked second (receiving 172 points) while SIUE picked up the other two first-place votes and 151 points in being picked third. Tennessee State was tabbed fourth (134 points) and followed by Morehead State (131), Eastern Illinois (87), Southeast Missouri (86), Southern Indiana (79), Lindenwood (67), UT Martin (52) and Tennessee Tech (51).
The 2024-25 Season: The 2024-25 season marks the 77th year of competition in the OVC. Over the previous 76 years, 14 different teams have claimed an OVC regular season championship.
ESPN+: The OVC has a media rights deal with ESPN to air games on ESPN+, the multi-sport, direct-to-consumer video service from The Walt Disney Company Direct-to-Consumer & International segment. This season over 200 men’s and women’s basketball regular season Conference games and non-conference games will be streamed on ESPN+. Fans can subscribe to ESPN+ for $11.99 a month (or $119.99 per year) or as part of a bundle with Disney+ and ad-supported Hulu ($16.99/month). ESPN+ is an integrated part of the ESPN App (on mobile and connected devices). More information can be found at
www.OVCSports.com/ESPN.