UT Martin captured two wins in three days over the 5-13 EIU Panthers and the 12-7 SIUE Cougars by a combined eight points as the Skyhawks’ trend of keeping games close continued.
No team has as much experience in close games as the Skyhawks, and that experience paid off two-fold, starting with a 63-68 win over the Eastern Illinois Panthers on Thursday.
A Panthers team that had seen little success this season came out hot in the Elam Center, pouring in 37 points in the first half while holding the Skyhawks to just 23, their lowest-scoring half in conference play.
Senior forward Vladimer Salaridze was the steady scorer for the Skyhawks throughout the game and led the team with 23 points. Salaridze’s impact was felt on every inch of the court, grabbing six rebounds while adding two blocks and steals, respectively, on defense.
Skyhawks leading scorer Tarence Guinyard provided a spark for the Skyhawks in the second half, scoring all of his 18 points in the second half to go along with his team-leading eight rebounds at just 6 feet 2 inches tall. Other contributors for the Skyhawks included Josué Grullon (7 points, 7 rebounds), Carlos Cortijo (5 points, 2 assists) and Afan Trnka (6 points, 5 assists)
The Skyhawks would recover from an eventual 17-point deficit and defeat the Panthers 63-68. The victory marked the largest come-from-behind win for the Skyhawks since 2016.
The Skyhawks also took down the SIUE Cougars 82-85 on Saturday, which moves them to 5-6 in games decided by 5 or less points.
After going down 14-points early in the contest, the Skyhawks clawed back to a three-point lead just before halftime; they would not relinquish control for the rest of the game.
Vlademir Salaridze would lead the Skyhawks for the second game in a row. Putting up 16-points to go along with three assists and two steals. Other contributors for the Skyhawks included Josué Grullon (14 points), Tarence Guinyard (11 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists) and Carlos Cortijo (9 points, 5 assists).
The Cougars would pull within one point of the Skyhawks in the second half but could not keep up with the Skyhawk offense who shot 46% on 15 threes in the second half. A stat that is starting to become a trend as the Skyhawks continue to lead the OVC as the top three-point shooting team.
The pair of wins moved the Skyhawks to a 9-10 record overall and a 5-3 record in the OVC, which ties the Skyhawks for third place in the OVC.
Looking ahead, the Skyhawks travel to Nashville to face the 7-12 Tennessee State Tigers on Tuesday, Jan. 21 at 7:30 p.m. and welcome the 9-10 Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles on Saturday, Jan. 25 at 3:30 p.m.
