Skyhawk Duo Of Trnka And Niang Named OVC Players To Watch
10/14/2025 8:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
EVANSVILLE, Ind. – The Ohio Valley Conference has spotlighted University of Tennessee at Martin juniors Afan Trnka and Lamine Niang as "Players to Watch" for the upcoming 2025-26 men's basketball season.
The OVC unveiled its list of 22 "Players to Watch" during its annual Basketball Media Day festivities, which were held this year at the DoubleTree Hotel and adjacent Ford Center.
A 6-2, 180-pound guard, Trnka is the Skyhawks' leading returning scorer at 8.3 points per outing. He was the only UT Martin player to see action in all 33 games a year ago, logging 23 starts and dishing out a team-best 97 assists (2.9 per contest). The Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina native led the Skyhawks in scoring three times and reached double-digits in points on 14 separate occasions, including a near double-double with career-highs of 18 points and nine assists at Eastern Illinois on Feb. 15. He drained multiple three-pointers in 12 different games, including a career-best five trifectas on the way to 17 points in the OVC Championship quarterfinals against Little Rock on March 6.
Niang saw playing time in 31 contests and made 13 starts in the frontcourt in 2024-25, topping UT Martin in field goal percentage (.584, 45-of-77) and blocked shots (26). The 6-9, 230-pounder from Thiès, Senegal scored in double figures twice, including a double-double of 14 points and 12 rebounds in just 20 minutes against Champion Christian on Dec. 15. His best all-around performance came against Lindenwood on Feb. 6, producing a stat line of nine points, 11 rebounds and a career-best five blocks in 25 minutes. Overall, he hauled in double-digit rebounds on four separate occasions (including a career-high 14 boards with seven points in only 17 minutes against Southern Indiana on Feb. 27) and had six multi-block outings.
Year Two of the Jeremy Shulman Era begins in three weeks as the Skyhawks open the 2025-26 campaign at UNLV on Nov. 4. Season ticket packages are now on sale through the UT Martin Ticket Office at UTMSports.com/tickets.
The OVC unveiled its list of 22 "Players to Watch" during its annual Basketball Media Day festivities, which were held this year at the DoubleTree Hotel and adjacent Ford Center.
A 6-2, 180-pound guard, Trnka is the Skyhawks' leading returning scorer at 8.3 points per outing. He was the only UT Martin player to see action in all 33 games a year ago, logging 23 starts and dishing out a team-best 97 assists (2.9 per contest). The Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina native led the Skyhawks in scoring three times and reached double-digits in points on 14 separate occasions, including a near double-double with career-highs of 18 points and nine assists at Eastern Illinois on Feb. 15. He drained multiple three-pointers in 12 different games, including a career-best five trifectas on the way to 17 points in the OVC Championship quarterfinals against Little Rock on March 6.
Niang saw playing time in 31 contests and made 13 starts in the frontcourt in 2024-25, topping UT Martin in field goal percentage (.584, 45-of-77) and blocked shots (26). The 6-9, 230-pounder from Thiès, Senegal scored in double figures twice, including a double-double of 14 points and 12 rebounds in just 20 minutes against Champion Christian on Dec. 15. His best all-around performance came against Lindenwood on Feb. 6, producing a stat line of nine points, 11 rebounds and a career-best five blocks in 25 minutes. Overall, he hauled in double-digit rebounds on four separate occasions (including a career-high 14 boards with seven points in only 17 minutes against Southern Indiana on Feb. 27) and had six multi-block outings.
Year Two of the Jeremy Shulman Era begins in three weeks as the Skyhawks open the 2025-26 campaign at UNLV on Nov. 4. Season ticket packages are now on sale through the UT Martin Ticket Office at UTMSports.com/tickets.
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