2023-24 Tennessee Tech Men's Basketball Schedule
By Mike Lehman, TTU Sports Information
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – Fresh off the program's best finish in the Ohio Valley Conference since 2004-05, the Tennessee Tech men's basketball team is eagerly preparing for another chance at a league crown. Head coach John Pelphrey officially released the Golden Eagles' 2023-24 schedule Monday afternoon, with a healthy number of familiar foes littering the newest slate.
The purple and gold enter year five of the Pelphrey era with 16 home games, including one exhibition, six non-conference tilts, and nine OVC contests. The schedule also presents 16 road tests throughout the year, including seven during non-conference play.
Fans will have their first opportunity to check out the 2023-24 Golden Eagle squad on Oct. 26 when Tech hosts UT Southern as part of an exhibition doubleheader with the Golden Eagle women's team (playing Christian Brothers) for Purple Palooza.
In non-conference play, Tech will take on a lineup of teams familiar to the Golden Eagle faithful over the past several seasons, many of which put together strong campaigns in 2022-23.
The non-conference portion of the purple and gold slate provides a slew of teams with postseason success in 2021-22. Seven of the team's nine Division I opponents in the first half of the season made it to at least the quarterfinals of their respective conference tournaments, with four falling to the eventual tournament champion.
Just like the 2022-23 season, start times for Saturday and Sunday doubleheaders in the Eblen Center in 2023-24 will feature tips of 1:00 p.m. CT and 3:00 p.m., with the men's squad securing the 3:00 p.m. slot. Any men's contest in the Hoop on a Saturday or Sunday will also begin at 3:00 p.m. Weekday doubleheaders will continue to boast traditional start times of 5:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. while single games will commence at 6:00 p.m.
Kicking off the 102nd season of Tennessee Tech men's basketball will be a familiar trip to Knoxville. The Golden Eagles will open the season at Tennessee for the second straight year, squaring off with the Vols on Monday, Nov. 6 at Thompson-Boling Arena. Last year, Tennessee advanced to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament, falling to eventual Final Four-bound Florida Atlantic.
Tech remains on the road for its second match-up of the year as well, traveling to Kentucky to reopen one of the longest-standing rivalries in program history. The purple and gold will visit former OVC foe Murray State at the CFSB Center for a Friday tilt on Nov. 10, the first meeting between the two rivals since the Racers departed the league two years ago.
A return to Cookeville on Nov. 14 will feature an in-state battle for the team's home opener, as the Golden Eagles take on Lipscomb for the third year in a row. The Bisons stunned the Cookeville crew in Nashville last season, hitting the game-winning bucket with seven seconds to play. Tech takes on Midway University two days later in a Nov. 16 meeting in the Hoop.
It's back to the road for the purple and gold before Thanksgiving, making a visit to in-state rival Chattanooga on Nov. 19 before heading east for a Nov. 22 affair at Presbyterian in Clinton, S.C. Last season, the Mocs advanced all the way to the Southern Conference Tournament title game, falling to champion Furman.
The non-conference slate continues after Thanksgiving with a home game again Western Carolina, a team Tech has tangoed with each of the past four seasons. The Catamounts enter the year after a heartbreaking finish to the 2022-23 season, an overtime loss to Furman in the SoCon Tournament semifinals. Tech heads back on the road on Nov. 30, kicking off a home-and-home series with North Alabama. The Lions will return the trip two weeks later, visiting Cookeville on Dec. 16.
Home tilts with Alice Lloyd on Dec. 3 and Bethel University on Dec. 12 will bookend one final in-state test for the purple and gold. The Golden Eagles will head to Johnson City to take on ETSU on Dec. 10, looking to pull off back-to-back wins over the Bucs after last season's victory in the Hoop.
Rounding out non-conference action for Tech is a Dec. 20 visit to Evansville, playing on the same floor that saw the Golden Eagles narrowly miss out on securing a trip to the NCAA Tournament in March. The purple and gold will take on the Purple Aces at the Ford Center before the planned return at the beginning of March.
OVC play begins with a home weekend this season, with Little Rock and UT Martin slated to visit the Hoop on Dec. 28 and Dec. 30, respectively. Also making the trek to Cookeville in league play this season are Southeast Missouri (Jan. 13), Southern Indiana (Feb. 1), Morehead State (Feb. 3), Tennessee State (Tuesday, Feb. 13), new league foe Western Illinois (Feb. 15), SIUE (Feb. 22), and Eastern Illinois (Feb. 24).
The first road swing for Tech in OVC play features trips to Kentucky and Indiana for contests at Morehead State (Jan. 4) and Southern Indiana (Jan. 6). The remained of the road slate for the Golden Eagles included match-ups at Tennessee State (Jan. 18), Eastern Illinois (Jan. 25), SIUE (Jan. 27), Southeast Missouri (Feb. 8), Lindenwood (Feb. 10), UT Martin (Feb. 29), and Little Rock (Mar. 2).
The OVC Basketball Championships will once again take place at Evansville's Ford Center, scheduled for Mar. 6-9.
Season tickets for Tennessee Tech men's basketball are now on sale. To order, call 931-372-3940, visit the Hooper Eblen Center ticket office, or visit TTUSports.com.
Photo by Thomas Corhern
