By Ryne Rickman, UT Martin Sports Information Director
MARTIN, Tenn. – The 71st season of University of Tennessee at Martin men’s basketball begins with a big early season test as the Skyhawks travel to No. 17 ranked Tennessee on Tuesday, Nov. 9. Tipoff from Knoxville is set for 6 p.m. CST on the SEC Network.
This marks just the fifth all-time meeting between UT Martin and the Volunteers as these two squads were set to square off last season but the game was cancelled just five days before the Dec. 9 contest. The last time the Skyhawks visited Thompson-Boling Arena on Dec. 29, 2010, UT Martin held a 36-32 halftime advantage but could not hang on as Tennessee won by a slim 68-62 margin.
The 2021-22 season opener will be the UT Martin debut of head coach Ryan Ridder and all 14 student-athletes as the Skyhawks the only NCAA Division I program to not return a single player from last season. Six UT Martin newcomers have combined for 245 games played at the Division I level while three more transfers account for 211 games of experience at the Division II or junior college ranks. The outing against Tennessee will also be the first official game for Ridder in 615 days as the former Bethune-Cookman bench leader did not coach in 2020-21 after the school opted out of all sports.
The new-look Skyhawks came away with an 87-58 exhibition victory against in-state NAIA foe Bethel on Thursday. Mikel Henderson (16), David Didenko (14), KJ Simon (13), KK Curry (12), Koby Jeffries (10) and Darius Simmons (10) all scored in double figures to lead a balanced UT Martin offense.
Head coach Rick Barnes and the Volunteers return seven players (including three starters) from last year’s 18-9 squad and also welcomes in the nation’s No. 2 recruiting class according to 247Sports.com. Tennessee knocked down 17 treys and earned a 103-62 exhibition victory over Lenoir-Rhyne on Oct. 30. Freshman point guard Kennedy Chandler, who was named to the 40-man Lute Olson National Player of the Year Preseason Watch List, poured in a game-high 21 points.
In addition to the SEC Network, fans can watch the game online here: https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/id/356004ee-18f9-4004-94ee-ed0ea9c02668#bucketId=1. Live stats for the contest can be found at this link: https://utsports.com/sidearmstats/mbball/summary.
Graphic Courtesy of UT Martin Sports Information