The trio of Parker Stewart, Quintin Dove and Derek Hawthorne, Jr. combined to score 97% of the University of Tennessee at Martin’s points this afternoon but Morehead State claimed an 85-77 win in Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) men’s basketball action.
Stewart tied a career-high with 33 points to go along with eight rebounds while Dove earned the eighth double-double of his Skyhawk career (24 points, 13 rebounds). Hawthorne added 18 points with a career-best four steals for UTM, who led for nearly 15 minutes in the first half of a game that featured 10 ties and 10 lead changes.
The Eagles (11-12, 5-5 OVC) were led by Jordan Walker’s 22 points and seven rebounds. Ta’lon Cooper (14 points), Djimon Henson (14) and James Baker (10) also scored in double figures to help Morehead State improve to 10-2 inside Johnson Arena on the season.
“I thought overall, we played closer to how we like to play, want to play and expect to play,” Skyhawk head coach Anthony Stewart said. “We just have to keep on fighting. Morehead State played hard just like they always do and this is a hard place to win. We were right there but we don’t want any moral victories. We have a good home stretch coming up and we need to take advantage of that.”
UTM (6-15, 2-8 OVC) controlled the tempo for a majority of the first half. An old-fashioned three-point play by Stewart at the 18:07 mark provided the Skyhawks with their first lead of the contest. UTM led by as many as seven points (26-19) with six minutes to go before the halftime break but the Eagles used a 9-2 run to take a 33-31 lead at the intermission.
Dove already accumulated a double-double with game-highs of 15 points and 10 rebounds in the first half while Stewart added 14 points in the first half for the Skyhawks. Baker’s nine points topped Morehead State in the opening 20 minutes.
A free throw by Dove just over a minute into the second half tilted the score back in favor of UTM at 34-33. However, that would be the last time the Skyhawks would lead in the contest. Hawthorne swished a jumper in the paint at the 14:37 mark to tie the score at 42-all but the Eagles answered with seven consecutive points over a 1:38 span. A layup by Miles Thomas with 6:28 remaining pulled UTM within four points (62-58) but Morehead State used a 6-0 run to take the first double-digit lead of the day. Hawthorne scored 10 straight Skyhawk points but UTM’s comeback attempt fell short.
The Skyhawks return home next week, hosting OVC rivals Tennessee Tech (Thursday, Feb. 6) and Jacksonville State (Saturday, Feb. 8) at the Kathleen and Tom Elam Center.
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