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Tennessee State suffers first loss in the OVC

Courtesy: TSU Athletics

MARTIN, Tenn. — The Tennessee State men’s basketball team suffered its first Ohio Valley Conference loss at UT Martin, Thursday night in the Elam Center, 87-74. A hot start by redshirt-sophomore Carlos Marshall, Jr. did not sustain the Tigers’ five-point lead as the Skyhawks answered with its own 20-0 run in four minutes of play to secure the lead just 10 minutes into the evening. 

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Turnovers clipped the Tigers’ efforts as Tennessee Martin capitalized with 28 points off of TSU’s 21 turnovers. The final place of faulty play occurred at TSU’s free-throw line. Big Blue went 12-of-27 on the night at the charity stripe, leaving a game-deciding 15 points on the floor. 

Marshall Jr. carried the team with 15 points in the first half and another 11 in the second to mark his career-high shooting, registering 44 percent from the floor, 5-of-10 from beyond the arc and a perfect 100 percent, 4-of-4, from the free-throw line. 

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

  • TSU Leaders
    • Points: Carlos Marshall Jr. – 25
    • Rebounds: Jy’lan Washington – 9
    • Assists: Michael Littlejohn – 4
    • Steals: Shakem Johnson, Mark Freeman, Michael Littlejohn – 2
    • Blocks: Emmanuel Egbuta – 3

HOW IT HAPPENED

  • Carlos Marshall Jr. kicked off the night with a three-point shot after the Skyhawks won possession.
  • A Mark Freeman steal and attempted lay was cut short as Shakem Johnson tried to finish a little too early and was called for goaltending. 
  • Three consecutive TSU defensive rebounds were answered on our offensive end with defensive blocks. 
  • Two of UTM’s leading scorers – Stewart and Quinton Dove led the Skyhawks on a devastating 20-0 run to secure the lead. 
  • Emmanuel Egbuta subbed in and registered two blocked shots in just four minutes of play.
  • A Marshall Jr. three broke the scoring drought for Tennessee State, following it up with another.
  • Shakem Johnson three-point play. 
  • Mark Freeman dished the ball to Johnson for a slam, who followed it up with the chance for a three-point play, but missed the extra point. 
  • Abismal shooting at the charity stripe began to take a toll as TSU was 1-8 from the spot. 
  • Jy’lan Washington captured a pass off the inbound, spun in the paint for an easy layup. 
  • Littlejohn broke the free-throw curse in the second half, sinking both of his opportunities. 
  • Washington began to step up and make big shots, including a momentum boosting three. 
  • As the win slowly slipped from the eyes of the Tigers, Marshall continued to make shots, helping the Tigers finish 87-74 in the first conference loss of the season. 

GAME NOTES

  • This marks the 69th meeting between TSU and UTM. 
  • Brian “Penny” Collins is now 1-1 against UTM, 0-1 in Martin. 
  • Anthony Stewart is 3-3 when taking on UTM. 
  • TSU is 3-4 over the last five seasons versus the Skyhawks with all four losses occurring in Martin. 
  • TSU bench earned a technical foul. 

UP NEXT
Tennessee State continues conference play on the road versus SEMO in Cape Girardeau, Saturday, Jan. 11.

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