NW Tennessee News

Jordan Sears and KK Curry each had huge performances today to lift the University of Tennessee at Martin men's basketball squad to an exciting 64-57 victory against Ohio Valley Conference rival Morehead State.
           
The Skyhawks trailed by seven points with under five minutes remaining but closed out the contest on an 18-4 run to defeat the Eagles for the first time in exactly six years. The trio of Sears, Curry and KJ Simon tallied 31 of UT Martin's 33 second-half points as the duo of Sears and Curry combined to score 10 of the Skyhawks' last 12 points.
           
Sears tied season-highs with 18 points and a game-best five assists, converting eight of his 14 field goal attempts. Curry accumulated his second double-double of the season with 14 points and a career-high 16 rebounds – eclipsing his previous high by five boards. Simon added 12 points, four rebounds, two blocks and two steals for UT Martin (9-6, 1-1 OVC), who passed last season's victory total while winning its eighth consecutive decision inside the Kathleen and Tom Elam Center.
           
Morehead State (8-7, 1-1 OVC) placed a pair of players in double digits in the scoring column as Mark Freeman posted 18 points and Drew Thelwell provided 10 points. The Eagles were held to 19.2 percent (5-of-26) shooting in the second half and 4-for-18 (22.2 percent) from three-point range for the game.
           
"That was a heck of a win against a really good basketball team – there's a reason why Morehead State has had continuous success in our league," Skyhawk head coach Ryan Ridder said. "Guys were ready when their number was called. Jordan and KK will get all of the headlines – deservedly so – but guys like Josh Endicott giving us 12 big minutes and Koby Jeffries making a defensive stop towards the end – we just had a collective effort and our group wanted to win the basketball game." 

Curry registered the first made bucket of the contest, sticking in a second-chance layup on the game's opening possession. That began a unique stretch of balanced scoring as eight different players (Curry, Parker Stewart, Sears, David Kamwanga, Jalen Myers, Simon, Jeffries, Endicott) were responsible for UT Martin's first 18 points.
           
Morehead State went on a 15-6 run to take its biggest lead of the day (23-14) with 5:11 remaining before the halftime break. The Skyhawks shaved their deficit down to two points at the half thanks to a Jeffries trifecta from the right corner that made the score 33-31.
           
Sears and Stewart shared the team lead in scoring in the first half, each scoring six points apiece. The Eagles were a perfect 9-for-9 from the free throw line in the first 20 minutes as Freeman's nine points led the way.
           
UT Martin pounded the ball inside during the second half, outscoring the visitors by a 16-4 margin in the paint. After Morehead State scored nine of the first 13 points after the halftime intermission, the Skyhawks went on a 7-0 run. Simon had five points during that stretch, including a turnaround jumper at the 13:06 mark that knotted the score at 42-all.
           
The Eagles answered with the next seven points of the game before a pair of Sears free throws with 5:44 remaining ended UT Martin's scoring drought. The Skyhawks were behind by a 53-46 margin with 4:43 to go before they made their final push – clamping down defensively while coming up with numerous clutch plays down the stretch.
           
Curry rose up for a block on the defensive end and sprinted downcourt to convert a fast break layup off a feed from Sears five seconds later. That flurry of events made the score 56-55 in favor of UT Martin, resulting in the Skyhawks' first lead since the 17:25 mark of the first half.
           
After a Sears driving layup with 49 seconds remaining, Morehead State responded with a Freeman 15-foot jumper on the ensuing trip down the floor. However, that would be the last points of the afternoon for the Eagles as Curry (4-for-4) and Stewart (2-of-2) combined to go a perfect 6-for-6 from the charity stripe over the final 26 seconds of the game.
           
UT Martin resumes its three-game homestand next week with home matchups against Southeast Missouri (8 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 5) and Tennessee Tech (3:30 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 7). 

Original source can be found here