SLOW START COSTS SKYHAWK MEN’S BASKETBALL IN 81-63 HOME SETBACK TO WESTERN ILLINOIS

Sunday, December 20

Martin, Tenn.

5 p.m.

UT Martin

3-1

Western Illinois

2-4

Western Illinois

UT Martin

SLOW START COSTS SKYHAWK MEN’S BASKETBALL IN 81-63 HOME SETBACK TO WESTERN ILLINOIS

12/20/2020 8:36:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score PDF Boxscore Photo Gallery

MARTIN, Tenn. – The University of Tennessee at Martin men's basketball squad could not shake off a sluggish start to tonight's contest as the Skyhawks fell by an 81-63 margin to Western Illinois at the Kathleen and Tom Elam Center.

UT Martin (3-1) was outscored 13-2 to begin the game and could not recover, ending with season-lows in points (63) and field goal percentage (.346).

Cameron Holden topped the Skyhawks in scoring for the third consecutive game, tossing in 12 points to go along with a team-best five rebounds. Anthony Thomas (10 points) was the only other UT Martin player to score in double figures while Ajani Kennedy (nine points, team-high three assists) and Trey Fort (eight points on a perfect 3-for-3 shooting in only six minutes) also keyed the Skyhawks.

Western Illinois (2-4) shot an even 50 percent in both halves, finishing the game with a 29-of-58 performance from the floor. Will Carius scored the Leathernecks' first 11 points and finished with a game-high 18 points while Justin Brookens contributed 15 points and a game-high five assists. Cameron Burrell (11 points, game-best 10 rebounds) and Tamell Pearson (11 points, three blocks) rounded out the double-digit scorers for Western Illinois.

"Western Illinois came out from the jump and got it going and you have to give those guys credit," UT Martin interim head coach Montez Robinson said. "When they hit a couple three-pointers, the basket's going to get really big and this just wasn't our night defensively. We had some guys come off quarantine just this morning who hadn't practiced in eight days but that's the nature of what we're in right now with COVID-19 and 2020. We're trying to catch up and fill some games but we aren't going to make any excuses – we have to do the small things to get better."

Gallery: (12-20-2020) MBB vs. Western Illinois

A Kenton Eskridge drive in the paint put the Skyhawks on the scoreboard just 72 seconds into the contest but UT Martin's next points wouldn't come until a Thomas trifecta at the 14:26 mark.

The Skyhawks went on a 10-2 run midway through the first half, whittling their deficit to 22-17 after a Holden fast break layup. Another layup – this time by Kennedy – with 7:28 left to play in the first half kept the UT Martin deficit at five points but the Leathernecks ended the half with eight unanswered points to claim a 41-26 lead at the break.

Kennedy's seven points paced the Skyhawks while Carius was responsible for a game-high 14 points in the opening half.

Western Illinois started the second half on a 9-2 surge and the deficit became too large to overcome for UT Martin. The Skyhawks did show scoring balance in the second half as nine different players were responsible for points in the final 20 minutes. Leading the way was Fort, as the freshman out of Jackson, Miss. shined in his collegiate debut with eight consecutive UT Martin points in a span of 84 seconds down the stretch.

The Skyhawks go back on the road for their next outing, a Tuesday, Dec. 22 matchup at Ole Miss. Tipoff from Oxford, Miss. is set for 4 p.m. on SEC Network+.