By Ryne Rickman, UT Martin Sports Information Director
BRENTWOOD, Tenn. – Tara Tansil-Gentry has been tabbed as an Ohio Valley Conference Basketball Legend as the former University of Tennessee at Martin women’s standout will be recognized next week at the league’s 2022 championship tournament.
Tansil-Gentry joins Austin Peay’s Terry Taylor, Belmont’s Darby Maggard, Eastern Illinois’ Barb Perkes, Morehead State’s Brett Roberts, Murray State’s Ja Morant, Southeast Missouri’s Tatiana Conceicao, SIUE’s Kris Davis, Tennessee State’s Monty Wilson and Tennessee Tech’s Janet Holt in the OVC Basketball Legends Class of 2022. This group will be recognized through video board recognition, PA announcements and a game program feature story during the 2022 OVC Basketball Championships, which takes place on March 2-5 at the Ford Center in Evansville, Ind.
A native of nearby Greenfield, Tenn., Tansil-Gentry was a part of the Skyhawk women’s basketball program for nearly two decades (four as a player, eight as an assistant coach, five as the head coach). She played at UT Martin under head coach Sharman Coley from 1991-95 and was a key contributor for a program that was transitioning from the NCAA Division II ranks to Division I as the then-Lady Pacers joined the OVC right before her sophomore season.
Tansil-Gentry started all 105 games of her collegiate playing career and was a three-time All-OVC performer (twice on the second team, once on the honorable mention squad). She graduated as the program’s second all-time leading scorer with 1,702 points and ranked atop 13 different statistical categories by the time she exhausted her eligibility. To this day, she is the only UT Martin women’s basketball player to accumulate at least 1,700 points, 650 rebounds, 400 assists and 250 steals.
In January of 1996, Tansil-Gentry had her No. 24 jersey retired in the rafters of the Kathleen and Tom Elam Center, becoming just the third player to accomplish that feat. She was honored again in 2000 when she was inducted into the UT Martin Athletics Hall of Fame.
The OVC began its tradition of recognizing men’s and women’s basketball legends from each of its member institutions in 2015. After the initiative was put on pause last year, Tansil-Gentry becomes the seventh Skyhawk representative to receive the honor – joining Mike Meschede (2020), Pat Head Summitt (2019), Jared Newson (2018), Jasmine Newsome (2017), Lester Hudson (2016) and Heather Butler (2015).
For more information on the OVC Basketball Legends program, visit this link: http://ovcsports.com/sports/2015/1/27/GEN_0127155533.aspx.
Graphic courtesy of UT Martin Sports Information