By Mike Lehman, TTU Sports Information
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee Tech men's basketball team returns to the Hooper Eblen Center for the final two games of the 2020-21 regular season, starting with an in-state rematch with Ohio Valley Conference rival Austin Peay on Thursday.
Tip is scheduled for 8:00 p.m. CT and will follow the Golden Eagle women's contest slated for a 5:00 p.m. start.
Tennessee Tech (3-22, 3-15) vs. Austin Peay (14-10, 10-8)
Thursday, Feb. 25, 2021
8:00 p.m. CT
Eblen Center – Cookeville, Tenn.
The Broadcasts
TV: None
Radio: 106.1 The Eagle (Roger Ealey)
Webcast: ESPN+ (Dylan Vazzano & Michael Cooper)
SERIES/OPPONENT NOTES
Thursday marks the 147th meeting all-time between Tech and Austin Peay, with the Golden Eagles owning a 74-72 lead in the series.
This match-up marks the longest in-state rivalry for the Golden Eagles and the third-longest running series in terms of contests in program history. Tech has only faced Murray State (185) and Morehead State (156) more often than Austin Peay.
The Golden Eagles hold a 38-28 series advantage over the Govs when playing in Cookeville. Austin Peay won each of the past two match-ups in the Eblen Center, with Tech's last home win in the series an 86-74 decision on Jan. 11, 2018.
Both sides have claimed five victories in the past 10 tilts. Tech earned a three-game winning streak between 2017-18, but the Govs have answered.
Austin Peay has won each of the past three tilts between the two programs, including last year's affair in Cookeville and this year's contest in Clarksville.
The Govs defeated the Golden Eagles at the Eblen Center last season, 75-62, with reigning OVC Player of the Year Terry Taylor playing up to that billing.
Taylor led all players with 27 points and 12 rebounds in a contest that saw only the Govs' five starters recording a point for the visitors.
On Tech's side, Jr. Clay (below) led the offensive effort with 20 points on top of four assists and a pair of steals. Darius Allen had 10 points with nine boards and three steals while Keishawn Davidson posted eight points, six assists and three more steals.
In this year's affair at the Dunn Center, Tech nearly pulled off one of the greatest comebacks in program history. Trailing by 22 points (27-5) early on the night, the Golden Eagles fought back to make it a five-point game at halftime.
The Golden Eagles led with as little as 3:51 to go in the contest, but the Govs answered and held on for a 72-69 win.
Clay led the comeback effort for Tech, erupting for a career-high 29 points on 8-for-16 shooting with three rebounds.
Damaria Franklin added 22 points on 9-for-13 shooting while hauling in six boards and snagging a pair of steals.
All but two of Austin Peay's points came from its starting five in the game, led by Terry Taylor's double-double of 24 points and 10 rebounds.
QUICK HITTERS
Two days after turning in its best performance of the season, the Golden Eagle offense struggled to find its rhythm against the league's top squad, falling to undefeated Belmont, 90-66 in Nashville.
Damaria Franklin led the Tech squad with 18 points and seven rebounds while Keishawn Davidson added 13 points and three assists.
In Tech's win over Eastern Illinois, the team compiled a whopping 25 assists on 28 made field goals, the team's highest total of helpers since dishing out 27 on Dec. 6, 2018 against Warren Wilson.
At EKU, the Golden Eagles drilled 15 3-pointers in the contest, tied for the fourth-most in a single game in program history.
Tennessee Tech earned its first win of the 2020-21 campaign by defeating SEMO 72-63 on Dec. 30, 2020, holding off a second-half surge by the Redhawks.
The win snapped an 11-game skid for the Golden Eagles, the longest in program history, after going through arguably the toughest non-conference slate in the history of the team.
A year after facing nine opponents who had won 20 games the previous season, Tech loaded up on a tough gauntlet yet again for the 2020-21 campaign.
Six of Tech's seven non-conference opponents won at least 19 games a season ago, with No. 10-ranked Tennessee as the only team with less (17).
Six of Tech's seven non-conference games came on the road, with the match-up against in-state rival Chattanooga the lone tilt in the Eblen Center.
At the conclusion of its final non-conference tilt at Western Kentucky, Tech's seven foes not in the OVC had combined for a 44-10 mark in 2020-21.
OVC opponents Austin Peay, Belmont and Murray State each compiled 21 or more wins a season ago and will square off with Tech twice this season, just adding to the incredibly challenging slate in 2020-21.
Through six games, Tech already has more double-doubles (three) as it did all of last season (two).
Tech was predicted to finish 9th overall in the 2020-21 OVC race in voting by the league's head coaches and SIDs. The Golden Eagles were selected to finish 8th in the OVC media poll.
Last season, Jr. Clay and Keishawn Davidson became the first pair of Tech teammates to each total at least 100 assists in the same season since 2001-02. That year, Cameron Crisp dished out 122 dimes while DeAntoine Beasley doled out 104 assists.
With an 83-70 win over Martin Methodist on November 9, 2019, Tech head coach John Pelphrey earned his first victory as the leader of the Golden Eagle program.
Pelphrey, who was named the 13th head coach in Golden Eagle history in April, also earned career win No. 150 on the night, the same day the Tech football team earned its 150th victory in Tucker Stadium on the day they celebrated the 150th anniversary of college football.
Both Davidson and Sylla were honored by the OVC on Nov. 11, picking up two of the league's first three weekly honors of the 2019-20 campaign. Davidson was named OVC Freshman of the Week while Sylla was recognized as the OVC Newcomer of the Week.
It marked the first time since 2015-16 that Tech claimed two of the OVC's three weekly accolades. The last time it occurred was Feb. 1, 2016 when Torrance Rowe won OVC Player of the Week and both Ryan Martin and Hakeem Rogers shared OVC Newcomer of the Week honors.
TOP IN THEIR STATES
Three of Tech's players for the 2020-21 season boast a particularly impressive feat as part of their respective resumes, all finishing as finalists for the Mr. Basketball Award for their state during their high school careers.
Junior guard Jr. Clay was a two-time finalist at the TSSAA Division II Class AA level while at The McCallie School in Chattanooga, earning the honor in 2017 and again in 2018.
Transfer sophomore guard CJ Gettelfinger was one of three finalists at the TSSAA Division II Class A level in 2018 while competing for Grace Christian Academy in Knoxville.
Freshman forward Kenny White Jr. was named a finalist for Kentucky's Mr. Basketball Award in 2020 while starring for Madisonville-North Hopkins High School in Madisonville, Ky.
Head coach John Pelphrey, a University of Kentucky Hall of Famer, was a Mr. Basketball Award winner during his high school days, claiming the honor for Paintsville High School in 1987.
ROSTER BREAKDOWN
The 2020-21 Tech roster features 15 players (13 scholarship student-athletes) representing six states and three countries.
Six Golden Eagle players hail from the state Tennessee, while Arkansas and Illinois each boast two Tech players. Alabama, California and Kentucky are represented by one Tech player each.
Two international players round out the roster, including one Golden Eagle from Canada and another from Mali.
Tech has one graduate student, one senior, five juniors, four sophomores and four true freshmen.
Nine Golden Eagles stand 6-foot-5 or taller while the other six measure in at 6-foot-4 or shorter.
Nine members are new to the Tech squad for 2020-21, including Damaria Franklin, CJ Gettelfinger, Shandon Goldman, Austin Harvell, Marcus Hopkins, Taelon Peter, Jalen Stayton, Jamaal Thompson and Kenny White Jr.
Photo by Thomas Corhern, TTU Sports Information
