By Alex Boggis, UT Martin Assistant Sports Information Director
MARTIN, Tenn. – Much like in the first matchup two weeks ago, the University of Tennessee at Martin women’s basketball team used a strong second half performance to surge past Ohio Valley Conference foe Southern Indiana for a 68-56 home victory.
Despite facing a 14-point deficit in the third quarter, the Skyhawks (8-12, 5-5 OVC) outscored the Screaming Eagles by 19 in the second half to pull away with a double-digit victory. After a sluggish start which saw the home team shoot lower than 30 percent from the field, the Skyhawks rebounded in the second half with a 44.8 percent clip from the field while knocking down 50 percent (7-of-14) three-point attempts down the stretch.
Leading the way for the Skyhawks was graduate guard Seygan Robins who ranks as the team’s top scorer for the second straight contest while scoring a career-high 30 points in the victory. Robins knocked down seven three-pointers in the game – including a stretch which saw her go 6-for-6 from beyond the arc in the second half. Her performance marked the third 30-point outburst by a Skyhawk this season, joining the freshmen tandem of Kenley McCarn (31 points vs. Troy) and Sharnecce Currie-Jelks (30 points vs. Southeast Missouri).
While the Skyhawks were limited to just seven players once again, the squad still produced a valiant effort after forcing 28 turnovers while tallying 20 steals in the contest. The team’s full court pressure caused problems for the Screaming Eagles, leading to 27 points off turnovers.
Along with a strong afternoon by Robins, the tandem of Currie-Jelks and Lexi Rubel joined the veteran in double figures. Currie-Jelks marked her 12th game in double-digits with 14 points while tallying six rebounds. Rubel added 10 points in the win for her second game in double figures and first since Nov. 23 against Purdue Fort Wayne.
“I honestly thought we ran out of gas in the first half,” UT Martin head coach Kevin McMillan said. “Today, kids don’t like playing when things are uncomfortable and Southern Indiana made things really uncomfortable for us in the first half and our kids didn’t respond. We are lucky that we had another half and our kids decided to respond.”
“That could have easily gone the other way because they were just pounding on us early in the game,” McMillan said. “I’ve got to give our kids credit though because they are being coachable and trying. We are not a very good basketball team right now, but what they are, are a bunch of kids that have every excuse to hang their head but aren’t. It’s incredibly refreshing to have kids that are willing to gut it out.”
Southern Indiana (9-12, 3-7 OVC) led for over 23 minutes of the contest while placing three players in double figures. Meredith Raley led the team with 16 points while Hannah Haithcock tallied 15 points and seven rebounds. Tara Robbe rounded out the USI trio in double figures with 12 points while Vanessa Shafford cleaned up the boards with a game-high 14 rebounds.
The Screaming Eagles jumped out to an early lead and didn’t look back until the second half. USI held a seven-point advantage after the first quarter while taking a nine-point lead into halftime with a 32-23 margin after commanding the paint and the rebounding margin. The visitors ultimately pushed their advantage out to as high as four points early in the third quarter before the Skyhawks began their comeback attempt.
Facing a 37-23 deficit, UT Martin responded with a 20-2 run over the next six minutes of action. The Skyhawks took their first lead of the contest with 4:44 to play in the third quarter and never looked back. With a strong third quarter which saw UT Martin outscore Southern Indiana by 14, the Skyhawks kept their foot on the gas in the fourth quarter as the team’s lead progressively grew before ultimately coming away with a 68-56 home victory.
UT Martin will look to build upon the team’s strong second half with a morning matchup at SIUE on Thursday, Feb. 2. Tipoff from First Community Arena is scheduled for 11 a.m.
Graphic courtesy of UT Martin Sports Information