By Mike Lehman, TTU Sports Information
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – A dazzling display from distance couldn't make up for a limited inside attack for the Tennessee Tech men's basketball team Saturday afternoon, as the Golden Eagles dropped their second straight home game with a 77-71 loss at the hands of Ohio Valley Conference foe Little Rock in the Hooper Eblen Center.
The Trojans (11-7, 5-2) dominated the paint in the contest, using the inside attack and better performance on the boards to hold off the purple and gold. Little Rock outpaced the Cookeville crew 40-10 inside the lane, holding Tech to just six total two-point field goals the entire day. The visitors also built a 38-28 advantage on the glass.
Coming off a season-low showing of four makes from downtown, the Golden Eagles proved one of their top strengths remains with the long ball, sinking a season-high 15 triples on 30 attempts. The barrage from deep provided the purple and gold a halftime lead of 35-34 and kept the home squad in the ball game all day.
Tech opened the tilt with an impressive 7-for-11 showing from 3-point range, dropping four consecutive treys through the bucket on four straight possessions as part of an early 12-2 run in the first half. After giving up nine triples to the Golden Eagles in the opening stanza, Little Rock adjusted by switching to a zone defense in the second half, limiting the home team's long-range attack just enough to take the win.
Using a 7-0 run to open the second half, the Trojans built as much as a 10-point advantage and kept the Golden Eagles at an arm's distance the rest of the way. Tech was unable to cut the deficit to smaller than four down the stretch, as Little Rock sunk each of their final eight attempts at the charity stripe over the final 30 seconds.
Sophomore guard Kyle Layton led the Golden Eagles with a monster first half, securing all of his career-high 17 points over the opening 20 minutes. The youngster drilled five triples on nine tries for the day, chipping in two free throws for good measure.
Junior forward Daniel Egbuniwe tallied his third double-double of the season behind 14 points and a team-high 10 rebounds, mixing in three assists, two steals, and a block. Local Rickman native Matthew Sells tacked on 11 points as well, converting 3-of-5 attempts from beyond the arc with two assists.
Junior guard Jaylon Johnson flirted with a double-double of his own, settling for eight points and a game-high nine assists while playing all 40 minutes of the contest. Fellow junior guard Ray Glasgow chipped in eight points and five rebounds off the bench.
The Golden Eagles open up a four-game stretch on the road next Thursday, making a quick trip to Nashville for a 7:30 p.m. CT battle with in-state rival Tennessee State at the Gentry Center.
Photo by Jim Dillon
