UT Martin
Prairie View A&M
SKYHAWK MEN'S HOOPS TAKES ON PRAIRIE VIEW A&M FOR SECOND STRAIGHT SEASON ON DAY TWO OF EKU CLASSIC
11/18/2023 8:36:00 AM | Men's Basketball
MARTIN, Tenn. – An EKU Classic championship trophy is on the line for the University of Tennessee at Martin men's basketball team on Sunday, Nov. 19 as the Skyhawks collide against the Prairie View A&M Panthers out of the Southwestern Athletic Conference. Tipoff for the neutral-site matchup from Baptist Health Arena in Richmond, Ky. is set for noon CT.
UT Martin (3-1) won its first leg of the multi-team event on Friday, defeating tournament host Eastern Kentucky by an 80-74 margin. The Skyhawks built up a 17-point second-half advantage and turned up the defensive intensity late, holding the Colonels to 36.7 percent (29-of-79) shooting with a 28.1 percent success rate (9-for-32) from beyond the three-point arc.
Jacob Crews topped UT Martin in scoring for the second straight game, piling up 20 points and nine rebounds. Jordan Sears chipped in 18 points while Issa Muhammad and Justus Jackson each contributed 14 points apiece for the Skyhawks, who won against their former Ohio Valley Conference rival for the first time since Feb. 8, 2018.
This marks the second consecutive season that UT Martin and Prairie View A&M meet on the hardwood as the Skyhawks edged out the Panthers 80-79 in Martin almost exactly one year ago (Nov. 20, 2022). Sears scored 18 points (aided by a 9-of-11 effort from the free throw line) while KK Curry (15 points, game-high eight rebounds, three steals) and Desmond Williams (three treys, team-best three assists) also stood out for UT Martin.
Prairie View A&M (2-2) is coming off a 79-74 road triumph at Abilene Christian on Tuesday. Chris Felix, Jr. registered 25 points while Andre Nunley went 12-for-12 from the free throw line on the way to 22 points for the Panthers, who also saw Charles Smith IV (13) and Charles Lane, Jr. (11) score in double digits. As a team, Prairie View sank a remarkable 97.1 percent (33-for-34) of its attempts from the charity stripe.
Live stats will be available for the game as that link can be found at the top of the webpage.
