The Skyhawks men’s hoops squad (1-2 OVC) fell victim to conference-leading Belmont’s (4-0 OVC) excellent shooting on Jan. 2, losing 90-69.
Despite four Skyhawks scoring into the double-digits, UTM had their shooting woes throughout the contest. The Skyhawks shot a poor field goal percentage of 35.7% (20-56) and an even worse three-point percentage of 23.5% (4-17). Belmont, on the other hand, recorded a team field goal percentage of 59.6% (34-57) and a three-point percentage of 44% (11-25).
Junior forward Cameron Holden once again led the Skyhawks in points (21) and rebounds (6). Other double-digit scorers from UTM include junior forward Jaron Williams (11), sophomore guard Eden Holt (13) and junior forward Ajani Kennedy (10).
Junior guard Kenton Eskridge had a solid outing on both sides of the court. Offensively, Eskridge scored four points and produced a game-high seven assists while earning four defensive rebounds and a team-leading three steals. Senior center Hannes Polla also returned to the starting lineup, scoring seven points.
Belmont guard Ben Sheppard put up big numbers across the board with 21 points, seven rebounds, an assist and a game-high six steals. Center Nick Muszynski (13 points) and guard JaCobi Wood (17) served as Sheppard’s scoring sidekicks while guard Grayson Murphy performed well defensively with five defensive rebounds and a steal in addition to producing six assists.
The Sheppard-Murphy connection got the Bruins on the board first thanks to a fast break layup by Sheppard and an assist by Murphy to put Belmont up 2-0. Two free throws by Polla soon put tied the score up at 2-2, which was followed by a steal from Eskridge and a jumper by Holden to put UTM up 4-2 at the 17:44 mark.
Less than 20 seconds later, Sheppard sank a three to put the Bruins on top again. The following score would also be by Sheppard to lift the Bruins up 7-4 at 16:55. From the 16:05 mark to the 12:08 mark, the Bruins embarked on a 9-0 run to increase UTM’s deficit to 5-16. The Bruins were able to prevent the Skyhawks from reaching double-digits until 10:43, but by that time the Skyhawks trailed 11-20.
The Bruins were able to close out the half with a 20-point margin (44-24) over the Skyhawks. By this point, Sheppard had already notched 12 points, complemented by Murphy’s five assists. While Belmont featured two double-digit scorers by halftime Sheppard and Wood (10), the Skyhawks had none.
The Skyhawks failed to ever closing the gap in the second, with their closest deficit being a 13-point margin (48-61) at 9:55. Belmont would at times extend their margin to 20+ points, never giving UTM a chance to catch up.
Defensive miscues hurt the Skyhawks greatly, as UTM surrendered 26 points on the fast break. In the paint, the Skyhawks were outscored 28-46 by the likes of Sheppard and Wood.
The Skyhawks now find themselves sitting at eighth in the conference while the Bruins strengthen their grasp on the top spot. UTM will return to action Jan. 7 when they play on the road against last-place Tennessee State (0-4 OVC).
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