By Thomas Corhern, TTU Sports Information
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – Tennessee Tech certainly remembers the last time it faced Tennessee State at the Gentry Center as Gia Adams knocked down a game-winning desperation heave to win the game for the Lady Tigers in overtime.
Now, with the Ohio Valley Conference race down to its final five games of the regular season, the Golden Eagles are taking no chances as they look to take down TSU on Saturday afternoon.
Tipoff from the Gentry Center is scheduled for 1 p.m. Roger Ealey will broadcast the game on 106.1 The Eagle, while it will also be carried on ESPN+ (subscription required).
With five games remaining, Eastern Illinois and Little Rock are on the verge of locking up the top two seeds in the OVC tournament as the Panthers are 13-0 and the Trojans 12-1. Tech, at 9-4, are in third – three games back from Little Rock and four games back from EIU.
The two teams in fourth – UT Martin and SIUE at 6-7 – can not catch the top two teams, but are still in potential position to catch the Golden Eagles as Tech is three games ahead of the Skyhawks and the Cougars.
With Tech holding a little bit of a cushion for the third spot, it's only two games separating fourth place to ninth and potentially missing the conference tournament. Southeast Missouri and Morehead State (both 5-8), as well as Southern Indiana and Tennessee State (both 4-9) stand in that mix, while Lindenwood, who earned its first OVC win a week ago against UT Martin, still has a chance to avoid elimination at just three games back from the Screaming Eagles and the Lady Tigers.
The last time Tech and TSU squared off the Golden Eagles defended their home court with a 83-76 victory. Jada Guinn led Tech with 24 points on 8-of-9 shooting from the field and 8-for-9 from the free-throw line, while Maaliya Owens scored 21 points with five 3-pointers. Reghan Grimes scored 17 as she pulled down eight rebounds and dished out six assists.
Ashley Malone and Saniah Parker each had 14 points for the Lady Tigers, while Erica Haynes-Overton had 11. Adams had 12 points, but did not finish the game with an apparent injury. Adams has since returned, playing in the last three games.
Tennessee State has won just one of its last seven games, including an overtime loss to Southeast Missouri in its last outing.
The Lady Tigers are averaging 65.5 points and allowing 71.8 points a game, while TSU is shooting .400 from the field, .264 from 3-point range and .682 from the free-throw line.
The Golden Eagles lead the all-time series 64-15, including victories in 13 of the last 15 meetings. Tech head coach Kim Rosamond is 11-2 against the Lady Tigers.
Tech is coming off of a 79-59 victory over Southern Indiana as the Golden Eagles used a 16-0 run in the first quarter to put distance over the Screaming Eagles. Owens hit nine 3-pointers in the game, tying her the second-most in a single game with Dana Bilyeu, Rachael Gobble and Kellie Cook and just one short of Stephanie Holbrook's school-record 10 against Eastern Illinois in 2005.
Owens leads the team in scoring with 14.2 points a game and is shooting .416 from 3-point range – a conference-best 64 made in 154 tries. Anna Walker is averaging 9.9 points and Guinn 9.8
Tech is averaging 68.9 points a game and allowing 63.7, while shooting .426 from the field, .327 from long-range and .756 from the free-throw line.
