Golden Eagles Men’s Basketball Falls to UT Martin
Tennessee Tech men’s basketball falls 86-62 to UT Martin to split the opening weekend of conference play 1-1 Saturday at Eblen Center.
| Final | 1 | 2 | T |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
32 | 54 | 86 |
|
|
31 | 31 | 62 |
Team Stats
UT Martin
| Game Statistics | UT Martin | Tennessee Tech |
|---|---|---|
| Field Goals | (31-58) | (22-52) |
| Field Goal % | 53.4% | 42.3% |
| Rebounds | 32 | 29 |
| Assists | 19 | 13 |
| Turnovers | 7 | 15 |
| Pts off Turnovers | 23 | 3 |
| 2nd Chance Pts | 7 | 7 |
| Pts in the Paint | 32 | 20 |
| Fastbreak Pts | 6 | 5 |
| Bench Pts | 24 | 19 |
By/Photo: Jeff Bowe, TTU Athletics Media Relations
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – Tennessee Tech men's basketball falls 86-62 to UT Martin to split the opening weekend of conference play 1-1 Saturday at Eblen Center.
Tennessee Tech drops to 6-7 overall and 1-1 in the OVC after an 11-point win over SEMO on Thursday and a tough loss to UT Martin on Saturday at home. Mekhi Cameron posted his second straight game in double-figures with a team-high 19 points on 7-of-9 shooting, including 3-of-5 from three, in the loss. The defeat snaps the Golden Eagles' season-best three-game winning streak.
Cameron has now scored in double-digits in nine of 13 games played this season, sitting second on the team in scoring with 12.2 points per game while averaging 25 minutes per contest.
The Golden Eagles trailed by eight with 6:02 left in the first half, but a 14-5 run closed it to within one point entering half, trailing 32-31.
Cameron scored 14 of his 19 points in the opening 20 minutes, shooting 5-of-6 from the field, including 2-of -3 from three and from the free-throw line.
In the second half, UT Martin caught fire, shooting 72.0 percent (18-25) from the field, including 75 percent from three (9-12), and a perfect 9-9 from the free throw line to pull away, 86-62.
Andrija Bukumirovic paced the SkyHawks with 28 points on 12-of-15 shooting, including 3-of-6 from three.
The Golden Eagles couldn't quite get the secondary scoring going as the rest of the team remained in single digits for the final 20 minutes. Dani Pounds faced double-teams from UTM for most of the night and finished with five points and five fouls, which limited his minutes to just 17.
Ty Owens tried to provide a spark, hitting a couple of threes, and finished with eight points for the second leading scorer on the night. Brandon Muntu made a couple of aggressive moves to the basket, resulting in points, and finished with six points.
Nine different TTU players scored at least two points, but with Pounds facing foul trouble, the Golden Eagles came up short on this night to open OVC play 1-1.
UTM's largest lead was 24 with 0:32 left in the game, TTU's largest lead was three points with 16:23 left in the first half. UTM went on an 11-0 run for its best scoring run, and Tech's 6-0 run in the first with 1:19 left helped cut the deficit to one point at that time.
There were five lead changes, and the game was tied five times. UTM held the lead for 34:05 of the game and Tech grasped the scoring advantage for 3:05.
NEXT UP
The Golden Eagles will have a nine-day break for the holidays and will host Tennessee State at the Eblen Center on Tuesday, Dec. 30. Opening tip is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. CT.
PURCHASE TICKETS
Tickets for Tennessee Tech Men's Basketball are on sale now – call (931) 372-3940, visit the Hooper Eblen Center ticket office, or order online at TTUsports.com.
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