UT MARTIN WOMEN’S HOOPS RETURNS HOME TO HOST MOREHEAD STATE IN NEW YEAR’S EVE MATINEE

Saturday, December 31

Martin, Tenn.

1 p.m.

UT Martin

Morehead State

UT MARTIN WOMEN’S HOOPS RETURNS HOME TO HOST MOREHEAD STATE IN NEW YEAR’S EVE MATINEE

12/30/2022 8:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball

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The University of Tennessee at Martin women's basketball team makes its much-anticipated return to the Kathleen and Tom Elam Center to close out the 2022 calendar year when playing host to Ohio Valley Conference foe Morehead State in a New Year's Eve matinee on Saturday, Dec. 31. Tipoff from the Elam Center in the front-end of a doubleheader is scheduled for 1 p.m. with the contest being streamed on ESPN+.

The Skyhawks (4-8, 0-1 OVC) return home to their friendly confines of the Elam Center after a lengthy road swing which saw the squad play five consecutive games on the road with their last home date coming back on Nov. 30. The team will look to lean on their home-court advantage to start their three game homestand where the squad has posted a 95-17 record (84.8 winning percentage) against OVC foes since 2009.

UT Martin wrapped up its road trip with a 2-3 record after picking up wins over Vanderbilt and South Dakota while falling to South Dakota State, Missouri State and Little Rock. The team's setback against Little Rock was particularly heart-breaking after the Skyhawks came back from a 13-point deficit to ultimately take a two-point advantage with 3.3 seconds to play before the Trojans fired up a running three-pointer at the buzzer to lift the home team to a 45-44 win.

Freshman Anaya Brown has taken the next step in her development after leading the Skyhawks in scoring against Little Rock and reaching double figures in the scoring column in three consecutive outings. Brown has averaged 11.3 points per game in the last three contests – including back-to-back career-highs with 12 points against Missouri State and Little Rock.

After missing three games on the road trip, Preseason All-OVC sophomore guard Shae Littleford returned to the fold against Little Rock and reached double figures with 11 points in the contest. Littleford will see if she can replicate her success against Morehead State last season, a team in which she averaged 19.0 points per game – including setting a new career-high with 21 points in the team's last visit to the Martin back in February.

Morehead State (5-7, 1-0 OVC) has taken a step forward in year two of head coach Cayla Petree's tenure after winning just one contest last season. The Eagles are coming off a big win in their league debut on Thursday night, pulling out a dominant 81-58 road victory at Tennessee State after knocking down 12 three-pointers (57.1 percent). Leading the way for the Eagles is Veronica Charles with 13.0 points and 5.9 rebounds per game. Charles tallied 17 points and 11 rebounds in the team's win at TSU while Isabel Gonzales (15 points) and Crystal Corely (11 points) also had big nights.

Saturday's game marks the 59^th game in series history between the two programs, dating back to the inaugural matchup back in 1993. The series is split right down the middle with both teams winning 29 contests while the Skyhawks have won six straight meetings against the Eagles since 2019.

The game will be broadcast on ESPN+ while Chris Brinkley will have the call locally on WCMT 1410 AM/100.5 FM. Those links - plus a link to follow along with live stats - can be found at the top of the webpage.