Ohio Valley Conference Tournament Recaps

Nashville, TN (SportsNetwork.com) – Jeremiah Samarrippas tallied a double- double with 16 points and 11 assists to help lead the Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles over the SIU Edwardsville Cougars, 74-67, in the first round of the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament at Municipal Auditorium.

Dwan Caldwell, Dennis Ogbe and Javon McKay all netted 10 points for Tennessee Tech (17-15), which will advance to the quarterfinal round on Thursday to take on Morehead State. Caldwell grabbed a team-high nine rebounds, and Ogbe pulled down five boards of his own in the win, which was the fourth victory in the team’s last five games.

Kris Davis led all scorers in the contest with 19 points for SIU Edwardsville (11-20). Rozell Nunn chipped in 14 points with six rebounds, and Donivine Stewart netted 13 points with four assists and four steals. The loss, which was the team’s fourth in a row, ends the Cougars’ season.

Tennessee Tech was on a mission right from the opening tip. The Golden Eagles connected on 59.1 percent of their field goal tries in the first half, and added 10-of-14 from the free-throw line to take a commanding 38-22 lead into the intermission. SIUE shot just 25 percent in the frame, including 2-of-11 from 3-point distance.

Tennessee Tech didn’t slow down one bit in the second half, netting 57.1 percent of its shot attempts, including 4-of-9 from long range. The Cougars greatly improved their shooting accuracy in the period by hitting 53.6 percent from the floor. SIUE outscored Tennessee Tech, 45-36, in the half, but the first-half deficit was too much for the Cougars to erase.

Tennessee Tech had the edge in bench scoring, 23-16, and won the battle in fast break points, 8-0. The Cougars held the advantage in points off turnovers, 21-12.

Final Score: Southeast Missouri State 79, Eastern Illinois 61

Nashville, TN (SportsNetwork.com) – Tyler Stone scored 27 points and grabbed 11 rebounds as the Southeast Missouri State Redhawks cruised past the Eastern Illinois Panthers, 79-61, in a first round Ohio Valley Conference clash at Municipal Auditorium.

Antonius Cleveland netted 15 points off the bench for SEMO (18-13), while Nino Johnson chipped in 12 points and eight rebounds. Darrian Gray scored 10 points, and Lucas Nutt dished out a team-best 10 assists in the win, which was the fifth in a row for the Redhawks. SEMO will advance to the OVC quarterfinal round to face Eastern Kentucky Thursday.

Sherman Blanford scored 22 points for Eastern Illinois (11-19), adding eight rebounds and three steals to his stat line. Chris Olivier contributed 19 points and seven boards with four blocked shots, and Reggie Smith tallied 14 points with five assists in the loss. The Panthers ended a two-game winning streak that capped their regular season.

Southeast Missouri shot 46.9 percent from the floor in the first half, and connected on 4-of-7 from 3-point range to take a 39-27 lead into the intermission. Eastern Illinois hit 35.5 percent of its field goal tries in the frame, and made 4-of-9 from 3-point distance.

The Redhawks picked it up in the second half, netting 53.3 percent of their shot attempts and again sank 4-of-7 from deep. The Panthers improved slightly in terms of shooting in the period to 39.3 percent, but missed all but one of their eight 3-point tries. EIU fell behind by an additional six points in the frame.

Southeast Missouri outscored Eastern Illinois in points in the paint, 38-24, and had a 24-0 advantage in bench points.

Categorized in: NCAA Basketball