By Mike Lehman, TTU Sports Information
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee Tech men's basketball team heads east for a Sunday matinee in Johnson City, Tenn., squaring off with ETSU at Freedom Hall in a 3:00 p.m. CT tilt.
The action can be followed live via radio with Roger Ealey on the call on 106.1 The Eagle. Fans can also view the action via stream on ESPN+ with Keith Brake and Bruce Tranbarger providing coverage.
Sunday's match-up represents the 75th all-time between the two in-state rivals, with Tech holding the slight, 38-36 advantage. ETSU holds a commanding 25-9 lead in the series when competing in Johnson City.
Tech and ETSU squared off last season for the first time since 2015, with the purple and gold coming out on top in a 69-62 victory in the Hooper Eblen Center. Each of the 10 Golden Eagles that saw the court during the game scored at least two points and hauled in at least one rebound.
Jaylen Sebree paced the purple and gold with 15 points, all in the second half. He tacked on five rebounds and a pair of assists for good measure. Brett Thompson flirted with a double-double, contributing 10 points and seven rebounds on 4-for-5 shooting. The junior added three boards and three steals to the mix as well.
Local Sparta native Grant Slatten chipped in nine points and a pair of steals off the bench while South Dakota transfer Erik Oliver led the Golden Eagles with seven rebounds to go along with eight points and three dimes.
Last Sunday, the Cookeville crew dropped Alice Lloyd, 108-82, in the Eblen Center. The purple and gold drained a program record-tying 18 triples on the day, lighting up the Hoop from the outset and leading the contest wire-to-wire. It matched the team's effort of 18 makes in a record-shattering 131-57 victory over Toccoa Falls College back on Jan. 11, 2000.
A number of Golden Eagles enjoyed banner days while stuffing the stats sheets, starting with junior guard David Early and his new career-high explosion of 29 points. Easily leading the contest, the Logan, W.Va. native drilled 6-of-11 tries from downtown while finishing 11-for-17 from the field.
Rookie forward Rylee Samons produced a perfect effort off the bench, smashing his previous season-best showing with a whopping 20 points. The Pikeville, Ky. native didn't miss a single shot in the tilt, ending the day 6-for-6 from the field, 5-for-5 from 3-point range, and 3-for-3 from the line, all while tallying a pair of assists.
A pair of Golden Eagles flirted heavily with producing the team's first triple-double since 1995, starting with sophomore forward Daniel Egbuniwe. The Little Rock transfer inked his second double-double of the year with 10 points and 10 rebounds, just missing out on history behind a career-high eight assists. He also rejected three Alice Lloyd shots to lead the team.
Senior guard Jayvis Harvey piled up a career-best seven helpers in the first half alone, ending the night with five points, nine boards, and the seven assists. Continuing the trend of moving the ball, sophomore guard Josiah Davis also racked up seven dimes to go along with 13 points and five rebounds.
Joining the double-digit scoring club was sophomore center David Craig. The big man accounted for 12 points and five rebounds on 6-for-7 shooting with four dunks. Junior guard Bogdan Zimonjic tacked on eight points and three assists off the bench.
On Monday, Samons was named the Ohio Valley Conference's co-Freshman of the Week, sharing the honor with Tennessee State's Jaylen Jones. Samons averaged 13.0 points and two rebounds while shooting 72.7 percent from the field, 77.8 percent from distance, and 100 percent from the free-throw line across two games.
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 Jim Dillon
