UT Martin
North Alabama
UT MARTIN MEN'S BASKETBALL HOSTS REGIONAL FOE NORTH ALABAMA FOR PRE-THANKSGIVING MATINEE
11/21/2023 11:09:00 AM | Men's Basketball
MARTIN, Tenn. – The second Atlantic Sun Conference opponent in the past week awaits the University of Tennessee at Martin men's basketball squad as the Skyhawks host North Alabama on Wednesday, Nov. 22 at the Kathleen and Tom Elam Center. Tipoff is set for 2 p.m. on ESPN+.
Longtime rivals while both schools competed in the Gulf South Conference during their NCAA Division II days, UT Martin and the Lions will square off for the first time since Feb. 4, 1991. The Skyhawks hold a narrow 14-13 all-time advantage in home games against North Alabama.
UT Martin (3-2) will look to continue its recently strong play in front of the home crowd as the Skyhawks have emerged victorious in 16 of their last 18 games inside the Elam Center. UT Martin has averaged 89.3 points per outing during that span.
The Skyhawks are coming off an appearance at the EKU Classic multi-team event last weekend, defeating preseason ASun favorite Eastern Kentucky (80-74) before falling to Prairie View A&M (78-66). The UT Martin trio of Jordan Sears (20.5 points, 4.0 assists per game), Issa Muhammad (14.5 points on 14-of-20 shooting, 10.5 rebounds per contest) and Jacob Crews (16.5 points, 9.5 rebounds per outing) stood out for the Skyhawks, who held the opposition to a combined 30.2 percent accuracy (13-for-43) from three-point land. Sears and Muhammad were each named to the EKU Classic All-Tournament squad for their performances.
Crews parlayed his strong play (plus a career-best 24-point, 17-rebound effort in the Nov. 13 triumph over Brescia) into Ohio Valley Conference Player and Newcomer of the Week accolades on Monday. The transfer from Daytona State College is averaging a double-double and tops the OVC with 2.8 treys per outing.
A 2022-23 College Basketball Invitational postseason participant, the Lions (3-1) downed in-state foe Jacksonville State by a 61-59 margin on Saturday. KJ Johnson went off for a game-high 23 points - including North Alabama's final 14 - and sank the game-winning jumper with 1.9 seconds remaining.
Davis Gregory (play-by-play) and Chris Brinkley (color) will have the call live on ESPN+. That link, in addition to a link to follow along with live stats, can be found above.
