The UTM men’s basketball team forced 21 turnovers this evening, soaring to an 87-74 triumph over Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) rival Tennessee State at the Kathleen and Tom Elam Center.
The Skyhawks (5-9, 1-2 OVC) extended their home winning streak over the Tigers to five games thanks in large part to their defensive intensity. The 21 turnovers and .441 field goal percentage were both season-lows for a UTM Division I opponent this season as the Skyhawks held a 28-10 edge on points off turnovers.
Parker Stewart secured a game-high 31 points while Quintin Dove added 22 points for the Skyhawks, who led for 30:30 of clock time tonight. Playing in his first game since Nov. 13, Steve Wooten, Jr. gave UTM a huge lift with a double-double of 11 points and 10 rebounds. Eman Sertovic also reached double figures in the scoring column for his second consecutive game, tossing in 11 points while fellow freshman Eric Rustin swatted away a game-high four blocks for the Skyhawks.
Tennessee State (10-6, 2-1 OVC) was led by 25 points from Carlos Marshall, Jr. The Tigers also saw Shakem Johnson (13 points), Jy’Lan Washington (11 points) and Michael Littlejohn (11 points) record double-digit scoring games.
“We were pretty balanced tonight,” UTM head coach Anthony Stewart said. “I was pleased we held a very good Tennessee State team that is well-coached to under 75 points. We made it hard on them – it wasn’t perfect but we executed on both ends of the floor when we needed to.”
Marshall scored Tennessee State’s first eight points of the game as the Tigers led by as many as five points (13-8) at the 12:50 mark of the first half. The Skyhawks then exploded for 20 unanswered points over a 3:42 span, using the three-ball to their advantage. UTM splashed six 3-pointers during the 20-0 surge, half of which came from Stewart. A layup by Wooten with four minutes to go expanded the Skyhawk lead out to 35-19 before UT Martin settled for a 41-30 advantage at the break.
Stewart already reached his season scoring average in the opening half as he compiled a game-high 19 points. The Skyhawks were also keyed by Wooten’s 11 points while Marshall posted 14 points for Tennessee State.
After another Stewart trifecta made the score 45-32 in favor of UTM, the Tigers went on a 9-2 run to close their deficit to six points with 16:27 remaining. That’s when Dove heated up, as the Preseason All-OVC forward unleashed 10 consecutive Skyhawk points as UTM stretched its lead back out to double figures. Tennessee State cut the Skyhawk lead to nine points with 7:43 left in the contest but that would be the last time the Tigers would creep within single digits as a highlight reel dunk by Derek Hawthorne, Jr. with 1:35 to go sealed the victory.
UTM continues its two-week homestand with a Saturday, Jan. 11 matchup against OVC rival Belmont. Tipoff from the Kathleen and Tom Elam Center will occur at approximately 4 p.m., following the women’s contest as the backend of a doubleheader.
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