By Ryne Rickman, UT Martin Sports Information Director
MARTIN, Tenn. – The University of Tennessee at Martin men’s basketball squad is set to play in front of a nationally televised audience as the Skyhawks square off against Ohio Valley Conference foe Tennessee State at the Kathleen and Tom Elam Center. Tipoff on Thursday, Feb. 23 is set for 8 p.m. on ESPNU.
This game serves as a “We Back Pat” contest as t-shirts will be available for a $5 donation while supplies last. It is also Greek Night as UT Martin sororities and fraternities will be in attendance. The Flight Crew will be handing out a free basketball jersey to the first 250 students.
It is also Senior Day for the Skyhawks as Rifen Miguel, Josh Endicott, KJ Simon and Parker Stewart will be recognized during a pregame ceremony. Those four have helped UT Martin to a 10-win overall improvement from last season as the Skyhawks’ 10 OVC victories are tied for the third-most in school history.
UT Martin is 14-1 while playing in front of its home crowd in 2022-23, which is tied for the most home wins in the school’s NCAA Division I Era (since 1992).
A season sweep over the Tigers is at stake as the Skyhawks defeated Tennessee State by a 77-66 margin back on Jan. 12 in Nashville. Jordan Sears led the way with 21 points for UT Martin, who also saw Desmond Williams (16), KK Curry (13) and Parker Stewart (11) score in double figures.
The Skyhawks (18-11, 10-6 OVC) are coming off a scintillating 100-91 road victory at Tennessee Tech last Saturday. Stewart (32 points) canned eight of his nine attempts from three-point land as UT Martin set a program single-game record for highest three-point field goal percentage (.667, 10th-best performance in NCAA Division I men’s basketball in 2022-23). KJ Simon (22 points, 10 rebounds, career-high six assists) and Chris Nix (20 points on 9-of-12 shooting) additionally guided the Skyhawks.
Stewart won OVC Player of the Week accolades for the second time on Monday. His six career 30-plus-point performances (in only 51 career games in a UT Martin uniform) rank second all-time in school history.
Tennessee State (17-12, 9-7 OVC) enters this game having won six of its last seven decisions, including a 100-85 triumph over SIUE last Saturday. OVC scoring leader Jr. Clay went off for a career-best 40 points to go along with a game-high eight rebounds while Marcus Fitzgerald, Jr. tacked on 18 points for the Tigers.
Robert Ford (play-by-play) and Richie Schueler (color) will call the game live on ESPNU at this link: https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/eventCalendarId/401470168?gameId=401470168. Chris Brinkley (play-by-play) and Eddie Suiter (color) will broadcast all of the action locally on WCMT Radio 1410 AM/100.5 FM and online here: https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/eventCalendarId/401470168?gameId=401470168. Live stats for the contest can be found here: https://stats.statbroadcast.com/statmonitr/?id=428467.
Graphic courtesy of UT Martin Sports Information