Tennessee State suffers first loss in the OVC

By HBCU Gameday Newswire

Posted on January 10, 2020

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. 

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.

Tennessee State suffers first loss in the OVC