By Ryne Rickman, UT Martin Sports Information Director
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Five different University of Tennessee at Martin men’s basketball players scored in double figures as the Skyhawks improved to 2-0 in Ohio Valley Conference play with a 94-78 victory at Tennessee State.
UT Martin (6-8) begins an OVC season with a 2-0 mark for just the third time in school history, also accomplishing that feat during the 2002-03 and 1997-98 campaigns. Tonight’s result is also the first time in the school’s NCAA Division I Era (since 1992) that the Skyhawks won their first two conference road games.
Bernie Andre led UT Martin in scoring for the first time this season, pumping in a season-best 24 points on 7-of-10 shooting. That included a 4-for-5 effort from beyond the three-point arc and a 6-for-7 effort from the charity stripe.
KJ Simon was next in line for the Skyhawks in the scoring column, piling up 21 points to go along with a career-best five blocks, three rebounds, two assists and two steals. Mikel Henderson contributed 13 points, a team-high four assists and career-best three steals while the frontcourt duo of Chris Nix (12 points) and Josh Endicott (12 points, team-high six rebounds) gave UT Martin five double-digit scorers for the first time this season.
Overall, the Skyhawks’ 94 points were 15 points higher than their previous season-high against a Division I opponent and most in an OVC game since a 96-90 home win over Tennessee Tech on Jan. 13, 2016. UT Martin established season-highs in free throws made (20) and shot a blistering 54.5 percent (12-for-22) from three-point range, committing only five turnovers and leading for 38:41 of clock time.
The Tigers (5-8, 0-1 OVC) were led by 25 points out of Carlos Marshall, Jr. The trio of Jalen Dupree (15 points), Kassim Nicholson (12) and Marcus Fitzgerald (12) also scored in double figures.
“We’re a tough group and we’re finding out more and more about our team every day,” Skyhawk head coach Ryan Ridder said. “Our guys are starting to feel more comfortable with their roles. We absorbed their pressure and did a great job taking care of the ball and any time you do that – especially on the road – you give yourself a chance to win.”
UT Martin started the contest on a 7-0 run as a pull-up trey from Andre and a turnaround hook from Andre were sandwiched around a pair of Nix free throws. Simon buried a triple from the right wing at the 14:11 mark to extend the Skyhawk advantage out to 12-4.
Tennessee State took its only lead of the game with 9:13 left to play in the opening half but it was short-lived. Josh Endicott swished a turnaround jumper 19 seconds later to spark a 10-0 UT Martin run, which included three-pointers from Henderson and Andre.
A Simon free throw with 4:15 remaining in the first half provided the Skyhawks with their first double-digit lead of the night (37-27). UT Martin followed with a 12-3 run over a 3:10 span, which concluded with a deep left-wing three-pointer from Henderson off a fast break. That spurt helped buoy the Skyhawk advantage to 49-34 at the intermission.
Andre had already reached his previous season-high in scoring (14 points) in the first 20 minutes. Marshall’s 15 points topped the Tigers.
Tennessee State converted a three-pointer for the opening bucket of the second half but UT Martin charged back for seven unanswered points – the last five coming from Andre. An open layup from Nix at the 17:53 mark provided the Skyhawks with their biggest lead of the night at 58-38.
UT Martin held on to a double-digit lead until a 7-0 Tiger run trimmed the Skyhawk advantage to 71-62 with 10:24 remaining. Simon came right back with an 18-foot jumper and a three-pointer from the left wing to push UT Martin’s advantage back out to 76-62.
After Tennessee State once again closed the gap to nine points with 5:38 to go, Henderson tallied back-to-back buckets. The 6-1 sophomore canned a straightaway trifecta and then scored on a strong take to the hoop to make the score 87-73.
The Skyhawks officially put the game away with a 7-0 run inside the final three-plus minutes. Endicott knocked down a pair of free throws while Simon splashed a trifecta and pull-up floater in the paint to pad UT Martin’s lead to 18 points with just 1:42 to go.
The Skyhawks hold their OVC home opener on Saturday, Jan. 8 when they host Belmont at the Kathleen and Tom Elam Center. The game – which will serve as the backend of a doubleheader with the women’s squad – is set to tip off at 3:30 p.m.
Graphic Courtesy of UT Martin Sports Information