By Mike Lehman, TTU Sports Information Coordinator
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – Despite mother nature trying to put a dent in the schedule for the Tennessee Tech men's basketball team, the Golden Eagles will make the trip to Las Cruces, N.M. for the second leg of the Air Force Classic Wednesday evening, albeit at a different time than originally scheduled.
Tech will square off with New Mexico State at 9 p.m. CST, one hour later than the original 8 p.m. start. Blizzard conditions forced delay in the Golden Eagles' travel plans following their contest at Air Force Monday evening, leading to the tip-off time change.
Fans can listen to the action live on 106.1 The Eagle with Dylan Vazzano on the call or follow via live webstream on ESPN3 with Adam Young and Patrick Knapp broadcasting the contest.
Tennessee Tech (1-1) at New Mexico State (1-1)
Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2015
9:00 p.m. CST
Pan American Center – Las Cruces, N.M.
The Broadcasts
TV: None
Radio: 106.1 The Eagle (Dylan Vazzano)
Webcast: AggieVision / ESPN3 (Adam Young & Patrick Knapp)
ABOUT NEW MEXICO STATE
Tech continues its road trip with the second contest of the Air Force Classic, facing off against New Mexico State, Nov. 18 at 8 p.m. CST (ESPN3).
The 2015-16 campaign marks Marvin Menzies' ninth season as the head coach of the Aggies.
Last year, New Mexico State posted a 23-11 (13-1 WAC) record.
Tech is 0-3 all-time against New Mexico State, but the Golden Eagles and Aggies haven't squared off since the 1968-69 season.
The Aggies (1-1) lost to New Mexico Sunday night, 83-74, in the Rio Grande Rivalry.
AIR FORCE RECAP
The Golden Eagles lost their first game of the 2015-16 season, falling in their road-opener, 80-70, to Air Force Nov. 14.
Tech erased a 13-point, halftime deficit to take a one-point lead with seven minutes to play before the Falcons closed the game on a 24-13 run.
Air Force shot 59.2 percent from the field in the contest, nearly 27 percent better than Tech's field goal mark of 32.3 percent.
TTU forced four Air Force turnovers in the second half's opening four minutes, including on three straight possessions that was highlighted by an 11-4 run.
Just two days after connecting on 14-of-31 shots from beyond the 3-point line against Piedmont College, Tech struggled from deep in Colorado, hitting just 7-of-29 attempts against Air Force.
The Golden Eagles hit the offensive glass hard, pulling in 20 offensive rebounds and 43 total for the game. They out-rebounded the Falcons by nine.
Senior Anthony Morse posted his first career double-double after notching career-highs in points with 14 and rebounds with 11. He hauled in eight offensive boards.
Hakeem Rogers knocked down three more 3-pointers in the contest, giving him seven through his first two games. Last year, it took five games for the first Tech player to knock at least seven treys.
BLOCK PARTY
Adept at rejecting an opponents attempt at the bucket since his arrival to the Tech squad in 2012, Anthony Morse has quietly climbed his way up the all-time list for career blocks.
After blocking two shots in the road-opener at Air Force, Morse now has 54 in his career and needs just 12 more to crack the top 10 in Tech history.
At the conclusion of his career in 1997, only three players (Adonal Foyle, Tim Duncan, and Alonzo Mourning) had more blocks in NCAA history than Tech's all-time leader, the late, great Lorenzo Coleman. With 439 rejections in four seasons, he still sits 12th all-time.
BIG ANT
After establishing a new career-high in points in Tech's season-opening victory against Piedmont College with 13, Anthony Morse reset the mark by scoring 14 at Air Force.
The senior also corralled a career-high 11 rebounds, including eight on the offensive glass, recording his first career double-double.
On the year, Morse leads the Ohio Valley Conference in field goal percentage, connecting on 76.9 percent of his shots.
ONE SHOT, ONE OPPORTUNITY
After receiving just one year of eligibility from the NCAA following his transfer from South Plains College, Ryan Martin is out to make the most of his lone season at the Division I level.
The native of London, England was heavily recruited by St. Jonh's University and drew interest from Arizona State, Gonzaga, VCU, Utah State and Louisiana, but the uncertainty of his status with the NCAA cooled most teams away from the big man.
Martin practiced all of last season with the Golden Eagles and participated in Tech's exhibition contest against Bluefield College.
Steve Payne loves Martin's energy level, raving about a motor that never seems to quit. He likes that the Brit plays with emotion and can use it to his advantage.
The senior possesses great rebounding ability and the option to step back and knock down shots from beyond the arc.
In his Golden Eagle debut, Martin tallied 10 points on 3-of-5 shooting and hauled in five rebounds with just 23 minutes of action. He added six points and eight boards at Air Force.
GIVE ME SOME SUGAR
Making just his fourth career start, Aleksa Jugovic enjoyed his best performance in the purple and gold to date in the season-opener, exploding for a career-high 20 points while dishing out five assists with no turnovers. The sophomore shot 8-of-9 from the field while knocking down four out of five 3-point attempts.
Fans can follow Jugovic on Twitter under his handle/nickname @SerbianSugar.
Between his junior and senior years in high school, Jugovic starred for the Serbian U-18 national team, starting at point guard at the 2013 FIBA Europe U-18 Championships. He averaged a team-high 30.2 minutes while recording 8.4 points, 3.4 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.5 steals per game.
The sophomore is one of three current Tech players to have earned adidas® OVC Freshman of the Week, having taken home the honor three times in 2014-15 (Dec. 1, Dec. 29, & Mar. 2).
Jugovic was recruited by assistant coach Frank Davis, Tech's all-time career leader in 3-point field goals made (251) and 3-point field goal percentage (.407). The former Tech standout believes Jugovic can break both records in his time in the purple and gold and numbers support that claim so far.
ROSTER BREAKDOWN
The Golden Eagles' 2015-16 roster features 14 players (13 scholarship student-athletes) representing six states and two countries.
There are just two Golden Eagles who hail from the state Tennessee, but six Tech players call Georgia home. Florida, Louisiana, New Jersey, and Oklahoma all represent home for one player.
Three Tech players were born outside the United States, with two still living in their native countries when not in Cookeville. Aleksa Jugovic is from Serbia, Ryan Martin is from England and Josiah Moore was born in Canada before moving to Atlanta.
Tech has four seniors, two juniors, three sophomores, a redshirt freshman and four true freshmen.
Seven Golden Eagles stand 6-foot-4 or shorter while the other seven rise to 6-foot-5 or taller.
SOUTHPAWS
True freshman Courtney Alexander II is changing the hand he shoots with for the second time in his young career. As a prep player, the forward shot primarily with his left hand, making the switch to his right during his senior season. The rookie began the transition back to his left hand for the 2015-16 season in October.
Torrance Rowe also shoots lefthanded and former Golden Eagle and current Graduate Assistant Manger Mitchell Hill was a southpaw during his Tech career as well.
YEAR IN RESIDENCY
Following a redshirt season in 2014-15, Savonte Frazier made his Golden Eagle debut against Piedmont College, dishing out five assists and hitting his lone field goal attempt, a 3-pointer, to finish with three points.
Steve Payne raved about the youngster's improvement over the summer, making note of his improved strength and shooting ability.
Payne also was quick to talk about his strong leadership ability, which he has displayed since day one in Cookeville, which all starts with his drive and toughness.
EARNING A SPOT
A walk-on to the Tech roster back during the 2013-14 season, Mason Ramsey has done plenty to earn the respect of his teammates and coaches in his two season in the purple and gold.
The local Livingston, Tenn. native was awarded a scholarship by Steve Payne following the 2014-15 season, Ramsey's first year of action on the court in Eblen Center.
After redshirting in 2013-14, Ramsey became the first Tech freshman since 1986-87 to open his career with a double-double, posting 14 points and 14 rebounds.
Now just a sophomore, Ramsey is averaging seven points and three rebounds while shooting 57.1 percent form the field and 85.7 percent from the charity stripe during the 2015-16 campaign.
Photo by Jim Dillon
