MACOMB, Ill. – The third time was the charm for the University of Tennessee at Martin men’s basketball team this evening as the Skyhawks outlasted Western Illinois, 85-83 in an Ohio Valley Conference overtime thriller.
Previously coming up just short in its first two overtime decisions of the 2024-25 campaign, UT Martin made all the right plays down the stretch tonight – going on an 11-2 run in overtime to seal the victory.
Tarence Guinyard tied a career-high with 31 points this evening, knocking down six 3-pointers while adding three assists and a career-best four steals. Vladimer Salaridze tallied his fifth double-double of the season (fourth in the past seven games) with a career-high 17 points, 10 rebounds, career-best four steals and three assists. Matija Žužić scored 10 of his 16 points after halftime – swishing five treys in seven attempts for the Skyhawks (7-9, 3-2 OVC), who received a career-high four steals out of AJ Hopkins and game-best four assists from Carlos Cortijo.
The Fighting Leathernecks (8-8, 2-3 OVC) placed four scorers in double digits, led by Ryan Myers’ 19 points. Sean Smith added 17 points while Marko Maletic and Julius Rollins scored 16 and 14 points, respectively.
“We like to make things interesting,” UT Martin head coach Jeremy Shulman said. “We have learned so much as a team and I thought we found out a lot about ourselves tonight – we turned a page and are learning the process. I’m so proud of our team for buying in – they’re a special group of high-character guys who are tough as nails.”
Guinyard set the tone early, pumping in the Skyhawks’ first 14 points of the game over a span of 3:27. A Cortijo free throw pushed UT Martin’s lead out to 27-20 with eight minutes to go in the opening half.
Western Illinois battled back to take a brief 36-34 advantage with 3:25 left before the halftime break but the Skyhawks took a 45-42 edge into the locker room thanks to a Žužić trey just before the intermission.
Guinyard (20 points) and Salaridze (10) both scored in double figures in the first 20 minutes as UT Martin shot 55.2 percent (16-for-29). Rollins and Smith each collected 11 points apiece for the Fighting Leathernecks.
Triples from Cortijo, Žužić and Guinyard in a 2:18 span opened up an early eight-point second-half advantage for the Skyhawks. A Stefano Faloppa layup with 11:44 to go gave UT Martin its biggest lead of the night at 64-51.
The Skyhawks did not relinquish a lead until Myers hit a deep three-pointer from the left wing to knot the score at 74-all with 24 seconds left in regulation, resulting in UT Martin’s third overtime in the last month (at Alabama State on Dec. 11, at Morehead State on Dec. 19).
Western Illinois scored the first four points of the extra period before a pair of free throws from Filip Radaković got the Skyhawks on the scoreboard at the 3:23 mark. Žužić (three-pointer), Guinyard (layup and an old-fashioned three-point play) and Andrija Bukumirović (free throw) flipped the momentum into an 85-80 lead to give UT Martin the win.
The Skyhawks will travel to Lindenwood on Saturday, Jan. 11 for another OVC road matchup. Tipoff from St. Charles, Mo. is scheduled for 3:30 p.m.