In the second game of a double-header, the UTM Men’s Basketball team followed a 100-point showing from the Women’s team with a 100-81 victory over Tennessee State for their first Ohio Valley Conference win of the year.
“It kind of all came together tonight, right from the opening tip to the final buzzer,” said head coach Jason James. “We were engaged and ready to go. We came out with great energy and went up 9-0 … We were just on it tonight.”
The Skyhawks (6-14, 1-4 OVC) came into the game on a six-game losing streak that dated back to Dec. 19.
“We needed [this conference win],” said James. “We’ve worked hard enough for it, it had just alluded us. We can win. We won three in a row and then took a couple steps backwards. To come out and play with this kind of energy from start to finish was the most encouraging part. Now we’ve seen what our guys can do. We’ve seen how good we can be.”
UTM jumped out to an early 16-1 lead, going on a 9-0 run and hitting 11 of their first 12 shots to start the game. However, Tennessee State (2-17, OVC 1-4) battled back to only trail 26-18 with 10:24 remaining in the half.
The two teams traded shots over the next ten minutes, but the Skyhawks held the lead, going into halftime with a 48-37 advantage over the Tigers.
In the second, UTM continued on their streak of excellent shooting. The Skyhawks shot 63.3 percent on field goals and 44.4 percent of three-pointers.
UTM finished the game with six players in double-digits: Terence Smith, Myles Taylor, Dee Oldham, Justin Childs, Marshun Newell and Mike Liabo
“Great balance for us,” said James. “Myles got in foul trouble early and we had guys answer the bell. Dee made a bunch of shots early. Terence was good, just making an impact on just about every play … Marshun was good just finding guys in transition … Mike didn’t shoot the ball great, but he made an impact … Everybody just answered the bell when their number was called.”
Taylor finished the game with a team-high 25 points. Smith was second on the team with 20, he also tallied 7 rebounds. Oldham finished with 15 points. Liabo added 13 while Newell totaled 11 and recorded a game-high 10 assists. Childs finished the game with 10 points on the night.
“We’ve still got a long way to go, but it’s good to try and get back on the right track.”
