By Mike Lehman, TTU Sports Information
MOREHEAD, Ky. – For the first time in more than 10 years, the Tennessee Tech men's basketball team claimed victory on the hardwood of Johnson Arena in Morehead, Ky., topping the Ohio Valley Conference's top team, Morehead State, 72-64.
The Eagles (14-8, 9-3), who had taken 17 of the past 18 games between the two programs on their home floor, were in the midst of a run of 11 straight victories and 27 wins in their last 28 home tilts since Jan. 14, 2023, the third-best mark in the country. Morehead's home-court advantage has been particularly stingy in league action, with MSU boasting an OVC-best 67-18 mark over the last five seasons, ranking 10th nationally among all DI teams in terms of conference winning percentage.
All that fanfare went out the window Thursday evening, as the Golden Eagles (11-11, 6-5) rode their momentum from Saturday's overtime triumph at UT Martin into Johnson Arena. Thanks to a 74-55 win in Cookeville at the beginning of the month, the purple and gold accomplished back-to-back victories over their OVC rivals for the first time since match-ups in 2007 and 2008.
It was a slow go for the Cookeville crew early on, with Tech opening the night 3-of-12 from the field. Morehead battled its own struggles offensively, only able to build a four-point advantage up to the 11:21 mark of the opening period.
The Golden Eagle defense continued to make life tough for the MSU offense all night, and the offense responded by giving the team the lead for good. Tech knocked down four straight shots following the second media break of the frame, flipping a four-point deficit into a four-point lead in just two minutes.
Tech pushed the advantage to as much as 11 in the closing minutes of the half, settling for a 34-26 lead heading into the locker room. The purple and gold held the Eagles without a field goal for nearly eight minutes down the stretch, finally yielding one with 11 seconds to play.
Playing a mighty role in the Tech lead at halftime was the team's sharp-shooting abilities, with the crew knocking down six triples at a 40-percent clip. The Golden Eagles spent the second half continuing to frustrate the home team offensively, bending, but never breaking down the stretch.
Morehead pulled back to within one point of Tech at the 9:00-minute mark, but the Golden Eagles responded immediately with a pair of buckets to move back in front by six. A couple of free throws by the Eagles closed the gap to four one final time with 3:49 to play, but the purple and gold iced things in style.
Junior guard Jaylon Johnson found senior guard Matthew Sells for an open 3-pointer and, on Tech's next possession, Sells returned the favor. The Rickman, Tenn. native dished one back to Johnson for a trey of his own, pushing the Tech lead back to 10 one last time.
Sells, Johnson, and sophomore guard Kyle Layton combined to go 8-for-8 from the charity stripe over the closing minute to ensure the huge road win for the Golden Eagles. Overall for the night, the purple and gold connected on 13 of its 15 trips to the line.
It was a balanced approach to the scoreboard for Tech, with all eight Golden Eagles seeing the floor recording at least two points and one rebound. Seven of the eight Cookeville crew members scored at least six points.
Johnson led the group, producing 14 points with three makes from downtown and a team-high four assists. Layton joined his backcourt buddy in double figures, chipping in 13 points while sinking all six of his free throw tries on the night.
Sells rounded out the trio of guards in double digits, securing 12 points and five rebounds while delivering a perfect shooting night. The veteran finished 3-for-3 from the floor, 2-for-2 from distance, and 4-for-4 from the charity stripe.
Junior forward Daniel Egbuniwe chalked up nine points and four rebounds to go with a team-high three steals while sophomore forward JaJuan Nicholls dropped in eight points and a team-high seven boards. Making his return to the hardwood for the first time in five games, senior forward Rodney Johnson Jr. tallied eight points and four rebounds off the bench. Junior guard Ray Glasgow mixed in six points and six rebounds for the effort as well.
The Golden Eagles finally put an end to their four-game road stretch Saturday afternoon, heading to Evansville, Ind. for a 3:30 p.m. CT affair at Southern Indiana.
Photo by Thomas Corhern
