Senior forward Quintin Dove equaled a career-high with 35 points this evening but the UTM men’s basketball team could not shake off a slow start in a 99-86 Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) setback at Eastern Kentucky (EKU).
Dove went 11-for-16 from the floor, making one 3-pointer in addition to a perfect 12-of-12 effort from the free throw line. The Cleveland, Ohio native helped the Skyhawks (6-14, 2-7 OVC) get within single digits in the latter stages of the game but UTM committed 16 first-half turnovers that led to 21 Colonel points.
Parker Stewart (18 points, eight rebounds), Miles Thomas (11 points, eight rebounds, career-high tying five assists and three steals) and Ja’Darius Harris (10 points) also scored in double figures for the Skyhawks, who out-rebounded EKU 37-29 and shot 88 percent (22-of-25) from the charity stripe.
The Colonels (10-12, 7-2 OVC) generated three double-digit scorers, paced by Ty Taylor’s 27 points. Jomaru Brown and Tre King also chipped in 22 points apiece for Eastern Kentucky, who shot 51.5 percent (35-of-68) from the field and 95 percent (19-for-20) from the free throw line.
“We played better in the second half and tried to get out of the hole but we couldn’t dig ourselves out,” UTM head coach Anthony Stewart said. “Quintin’s performance doesn’t surprise me – he can do that every night. We just simply can’t get down 20 points and expect to win.”
The Colonels led by a 12-4 margin early before Harris buried back-to-back trifectas to ignite a 10-0 Skyhawk run. A layup by Dove at the 12:03 mark capped off the surge and provided UTM with a 20-18 advantage. The majority of the first half remained with two possessions before Eastern Kentucky went on a 21-3 run before the halftime break, taking a 57-37 lead into the locker room.
Dove’s 15 points were a team-high for the Skyhawks in the opening half while Taylor (20), Brown (13) and King (12) all reached double figures in the scoring column for the Colonels in the first 20 minutes of play.
UTM’s first eight points of the second half came via Dove as the Skyhawks slowly began to chip away at their deficit. A steal and fast break layup by Harris at the 9:33 mark whittled the Eastern Kentucky lead to 79-67. UTM later unreeled eight unanswered points – six coming from Dove – to get within single digits (91-82) but the Skyhawks ran out of time.
UTM wraps up its four-game road stretch on Saturday, Feb. 1 when it heads to Morehead State. Tipoff against the OVC foe is scheduled for 2 p.m. CST.
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