By Mike Lehman, TTU Sports Information & the Ohio Valley Conference
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – On Saturday, the Ohio Valley Conference men's basketball game between Tennessee Tech and Tennessee State was suspended with 3:04 remaining and TSU leading 67-53 due to an injury suffered by a TTU player.
In accordance with the NCAA Rulebook (Section 4), both teams agreed to end the game at the point of interruption and declare Tennessee State the winner. Because the contest had reached "a reasonable point of conclusion" (at least 30 minutes for basketball), the statistics will count for both teams.
Tennessee Tech men's basketball junior guard Diante Wood sustained an injury during the second half of Saturday's contest at Tennessee State. He was evaluated by Tennessee State and Tennessee Tech Athletics training staff members and local, Nashville EMS personnel and taken to the hospital for further observation. After undergoing further evaluation, he was discharged and allowed to return to Cookeville late Saturday evening. In accordance with Tennessee Tech University policy and HIPAA restrictions, no further information will be provided at this time. The Tennessee Tech Department of Athletics would like to thank everyone for their prayers and well wishes throughout the evening and their continued support. We kindly ask that you respect the privacy of Diante, his family, and the members of the Golden Eagle basketball program.
It was a tough go for the Golden Eagles on offense during the evening, posting a season-low 28.3 percent from the field and hitting just 4-of-15 tries from downtown. Tech kept itself in it the contest for much of the night behind 82.6 percent shooting from the charity stripe, sinking 19-of-23 tries.
Trailing for much of the opening stanza, the purple and gold found some life to close the half, using a 7-0 run to take its first lead of the game. Graduate forward Jaylen Sebree buried a triple with 45 seconds to go in the period for a 31-28 advantage heading into the locker room.
Tech finished 10-for-11 from the free-throw line over the first 20 minutes, making up for a 30 percent efficiency from the field. In the second half, the Tigers found their footing on offense, shooting above 50 percent while converting 12-of-14 attempts at the charity stripe.
The Golden Eagles continued to struggle on their side, hitting just 26 percent from the field. TSU used a 10-1 run to push its lead to 14 with 3:04 left in the contest.
At the 3:04 mark, Wood and a pair of Tigers converged on a loose rebound, colliding and falling to the floor. Wood sustained his injury on the play, with a lengthy delay to the game following as he was tended to and eventually transported to a nearby hospital for further evaluation.
Wood finished the contest with a season-high 12 points, draining all six of his free-throw attempts while hauling in three rebounds. He also blocked a game-high three shots and dished out two assists.
Sebree paced the Tech offense with 15 points while tying for the team lead with six rebounds. Graduate guard Ty Perry also snagged six boards while contributing eight points. Brett Thompson added nine points, five rebounds, and three assists to mix.
Former Tech guard and current Tennessee State graduate Jr. Clay led all scorers on the night with 16 points, seven rebounds, and five assists, converting 10 of his 11 attempts at the line. Dedrick Boyd added 15 points for the Tigers while Adong Makuoi posted 12 and Christian Brown contributed 11.
The Tech squad will return home to Cookeville for its final homestand of the 2022-23 regular season, hosting Lindenwood in a 7:30 p.m. CT affair Thursday, Feb. 16 before closing things out in the Eblen Center with a 3:00 p.m. Senior Day tilt against in-state foe UT Martin on Saturday, Feb. 18.
Photo by Thomas Corhern
