By Mike Lehman, TTU Sports Information
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee Tech men's basketball team makes its way back to Cookeville to kick off a four-game, Ohio Valley Conference homestand, beginning with a Tuesday-night tilt against in-state rival Tennessee State at 7:30 p.m. CT. The contest will be sponsored by Golden Oak Sedation Dental & Implant Center.
The action can be followed live via radio with Roger Ealey and Frank Harrell on the call on 106.1 The Eagle while Dylan Vazzano and Steve Smith will provide video coverage of the contest on ESPN+.
Tuesday's match-up represents the 78th all-time between the two programs, with the Tigers holding a slight, 40-37 advantage in the series. When competing in Cookeville, Tech owns a 20-17 edge.
When the two sides met earlier this season, on Jan. 18 in Nashville, TSU dominated offensively, even with Tech turning in a decisive 11-2 advantage on the offensive glass. The Tigers used 63.3 percent shooting, – the highest mark allowed by the Golden Eagles this season – including a 12-for-21 display from distance, to deliver an 85-53 final.
Senior guard Jayvis Harvey led the purple and gold with 17 points, contributing five rebounds, four assists and three steals to the mix. Sophomore guard Josiah Davis contributed 13 points with four boards while junior forward Rodney Johnson Jr. added 13 points and five rebounds off the bench.
Last season, the two in-state rivals squared off twice, with each side claiming victory on their respective home courts. The Golden Eagles kicked off the season series with a 71-63 win in Cookeville, using a strong advantage at the charity stripe to earn the W.
Tech finished 17-of-23 at the charity stripe in the contest while a quartet of Golden Eagles scored in double figures. Ty Perry paced the effort with 15 points while Harvey followed with 14 points. Jaylen Sebree added 11 points to the mix with a team-high six rebounds while Brett Thompson chipped in 10 points off the bench.
TSU took the victory in the rematch in Nashville, a contest overshadowed by a scary moment on the hardwood. Current senior guard Diante Wood sustained an injury in the second half of the contest, one that required a trip to the hospital for further evaluation.
With 3:04 left in the game, and the Tigers leading 67-53, both sides agreed to end the game at that point and declare TSU the winner. The night served as a sort of rallying point for the purple and gold, as the Golden Eagles would go on to finish the regular season 3-1 down the stretch and secure a second-place finish and spot in the OVC Tournament semifinals.
In the contest, Sebree led the Cookeville crew with 15 points and six rebounds while Wood turned in a then-season-high 12 points, three blocks, and a 6-for-6 showing at the line before the injury. Thompson added nine points and five boards while Perry contributed eight points and six rebounds.
On Saturday, the Golden Eagles snapped a six-game skid with a gritty victory at Lindenwood in overtime. Trailing 14-0 right out of the gates, Tech fought back to tie the game at the break. While the Lions seemed to have the advantage after sending the contest to an extra session with a last-second bucket, the Cookeville crew reversed the momentum immediately, out-scoring the home team 14-5 in overtime for a 62-53 win.
To go along with his game-high and career-high-tying 20 points, Josiah Davis also led the purple and gold with a career-high 13 rebounds for his second-ever double-double. The Kitchener, Ontario native ended the day 8-for-15 from the floor with a pair of assists. In a pair of Tech contests over the weekend, Davis averaged 20.0 points and 9.0 rebounds, shooting 8-for-15 from the floor in each game.
Johnson flirted with his own double-double, settling for 17 points and eight boards behind 7-for-13 shooting. Sophomore forward Daniel Egbuniwe added seven points, two rebounds, and a game-high four blocks to the mix while Wood produced seven points, seven rebounds, and a team-high three assists.
Coming off a career-high-tying eight points at Southeast Missouri on Thursday, junior guard Bogdan Zimonjic played a huge factor in Tech staying in the contest in the first half. The Belgrade, Serbia native scored all seven of his points in the opening 20 minutes, leading Tech at the break.
Photo by Patrick Clark, Athlete's Eye
