Friday, March 6
Evansville, Ind.
7 p.m.
UT Martin
22-11,13-7OVC
55
vs
68
Tennessee State
22-9,15-5OVC
1
2
F
UT Martin
28
27
55
Tennessee St.
36
32
68
Skyhawks Conclude Record-Setting Season In OVC Tournament Semifinals
3/6/2026 10:32:00 PM | Men's Basketball
EVANSVILLE, Ind. – The University of Tennessee at Martin men's basketball team saw its record-setting campaign come to a close in the OVC Basketball Championship semifinals after falling to No. 1 seed and regular season co-champion Tennessee State by a final margin of 68-55.
The Skyhawks (22-11) will go down in program history as one of just three teams in school history to record 22 wins in a single season while boasting one of the nation's stingiest defenses after allowing just 63.2 points per game to rank fourth nationally – sitting only behind Northern Iowa, Houston and Duke.
In a rematch of the regular season finale, UT Martin and Tennessee State went toe-to-toe with a berth in the OVC Basketball Championship title game on the line. As the Skyhawks played in their second semifinal matchup in three seasons, the squad outmatched the Tigers in both points off turnovers (15) and points in the paint (26) but were ultimately outlasted by the league champions.
"In 29 years, this is probably the most enjoyable team that I have ever had," UT Martin head coach Jeremy Shulman said. "These guys were such a joy to coach every single day. There were no bad days. It is bizarre to even say that in college basketball these days but every day these guys wanted to practice, they wanted to watch film and were great human beings. I think it speaks to our guys' character and resiliency. The loss that we had last Saturday could have crushed us but they came back, got Eastern Illinois' best shot last night and just gave everything they could today. We just couldn't quite make enough shots tonight or find enough defensive stops but these guys just kept battling and gave it everything they had."
Gallery: (3-6-2026) MBB vs. Tennessee State - OVC Semis
UT Martin had two players reach double figures in the scoring column as Andrija Bukumirović paced the squad with 17 points while adding five rebounds and a pair of blocks. Freshman Filip Petkovski joined Bukumirović in double-digits by chipping in 11 points while adding four rebounds, three assists and a pair of steals.
Tennessee State (22-9) picked up its eighth win in nine opportunities behind a balanced scoring attack from the two-headed tandem of All-OVC performers Aaron Nkrumah (19 points) and Travis Harper II (14 points). The Tigers were rounded out by a double-double performance from Antoine Lorick III with 13 points and 10 rebounds in the victory.
The Skyhawks (22-11) will go down in program history as one of just three teams in school history to record 22 wins in a single season while boasting one of the nation's stingiest defenses after allowing just 63.2 points per game to rank fourth nationally – sitting only behind Northern Iowa, Houston and Duke.
In a rematch of the regular season finale, UT Martin and Tennessee State went toe-to-toe with a berth in the OVC Basketball Championship title game on the line. As the Skyhawks played in their second semifinal matchup in three seasons, the squad outmatched the Tigers in both points off turnovers (15) and points in the paint (26) but were ultimately outlasted by the league champions.
"In 29 years, this is probably the most enjoyable team that I have ever had," UT Martin head coach Jeremy Shulman said. "These guys were such a joy to coach every single day. There were no bad days. It is bizarre to even say that in college basketball these days but every day these guys wanted to practice, they wanted to watch film and were great human beings. I think it speaks to our guys' character and resiliency. The loss that we had last Saturday could have crushed us but they came back, got Eastern Illinois' best shot last night and just gave everything they could today. We just couldn't quite make enough shots tonight or find enough defensive stops but these guys just kept battling and gave it everything they had."
UT Martin had two players reach double figures in the scoring column as Andrija Bukumirović paced the squad with 17 points while adding five rebounds and a pair of blocks. Freshman Filip Petkovski joined Bukumirović in double-digits by chipping in 11 points while adding four rebounds, three assists and a pair of steals.
Tennessee State (22-9) picked up its eighth win in nine opportunities behind a balanced scoring attack from the two-headed tandem of All-OVC performers Aaron Nkrumah (19 points) and Travis Harper II (14 points). The Tigers were rounded out by a double-double performance from Antoine Lorick III with 13 points and 10 rebounds in the victory.
Team Stats
UTM
TSU
FG%
.375
.473
3FG%
.286
.409
FT%
.714
.875
RB
28
37
TO
14
15
STL
12
8
Game Leaders
Pts
17
FGM
6
3FGM
3
FTM
2
Pts
11
FGM
5
3FGM
1
FTM
0
Pts
9
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
0
Pts
8
FGM
3
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
G
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