FRIDAY'S SCORES
@UT Martin 70, MacMurray College 49
@Morehead State 90, Asbury College 49
@North Carolina State 82, Tennessee Tech 69
South Dakota State 67, @Eastern Illinois 55
@Mississippi State 75, Tennessee State 65
Austin Peay 64, @Saint Louis 62
@Loyola (Chicago) 73, Eastern Kentucky 57 (Nick Kladis Classic)
IPFW 70, @SIU Edwardsville 55
UT MARTIN 70, MacMURRAY COLLEGE 49
MARTIN, Tenn. - The University of Tennessee at Martin men's basketball team forced 26 turnovers and never trailed tonight in a 70-49 season-opening victory over MacMurray College at the Kathleen and Tom Elam Center.
Senior guard Reuben Clayton scored 14 of his game-high 18 points in the second half, while freshmen Mike Liabo (15 points, six rebounds) and Terence Smith (12 points, six rebounds, five steals) each produced impressive collegiate debuts. Sophomore Ron Spencer blocked three shots and pulled down a game-high 10 rebounds (eight offensive) to help the Skyhawks outrebound MacMurray by a 52-41 margin.
UT Martin held a 42-20 advantage in points in the paint and a 26-10 advantage in points off turnovers. The Skyhawks also outscored MacMurray 23-7 in second-chance points and the UT Martin bench outscored the Highlanders' bench 23-9.
Dylan Burton (11 points), CJ McClellan (10) and Clint Lee (10) led the Highlanders in scoring, but MacMurray couldn't find a consistent rhythm. UT Martin's defense held MacMurray to 35.3 percent shooting from the floor for the game while allowing just one three-pointer in 10 attempts tonight.
Liabo found Clayton for a backdoor layup exactly one minute into the game for the season's first points. After MacMurray tied the game on its next possession, the Skyhawks picked up their defensive intensity to put the game out of reach early. UT Martin went on a 15-0 run over a span of 7:10, getting baskets from six different players during that run to cement a 22-6 lead.
McClellan ended MacMurray's drought with a pair of free throws with just under eight minutes remaining in the first half, but Liabo answered right back with a trey to put the Skyhawks ahead 25-8. A Spencer layup made the score 29-10 before the Highlanders went on a run - as Burton scored six points during an 8-0 MacMurray run that made the score 29-18 with 2:35 remaining before the break.
Smith made sure the Highlanders wouldn't get any closer, as he scored six out of UT Martin's last nine points over the final 2:16 of the first half as the Skyhawks carried a comfortable 39-21 lead into the locker room.
Smith's eight points led all scorers at halftime, as UT Martin's stingy defense forced 15 first-half turnovers while limiting the Highlanders to just 28.6 percent shooting (6-for-21).
Liabo had two layups in the first 1:20 of the second half, but MacMurray wouldn't go away quietly. The Highlanders went on an 11-0 run paced by Lee, who scored the last seven points of the run to slice his team's deficit to 45-34 at the 14:15 mark.
Clayton and Smith then willed the Skyhawks back to a big lead. Clayton scored four straight points immediately following MacMurray's run, and Smith nailed back-to-back jumpers at the tail end of an 11-2 UT Martin run that would close the door on another Highlander comeback. MacMurray wouldn't get any closer than 15 points the rest of the way out, as a Clayton three-pointer with 1:41 to go pushed the Skyhawk lead out to 23 points - their biggest lead of the night.
MOREHEAD STATE 90, ASBURY 49
MOREHEAD, Ky. - Four of Morehead State's five starters scored in double figures and the Eagles overcame early shooting woes to cruise to a 90-49 season-opening men's basketball win over Asbury Friday night in Johnson Arena.
It was fifth-year MSU coach Donnie Tyndall's first win in a season opener at Morehead State. It also marked the first time Tyndall has opened the season on his home court. MSU moved to 9-0 all-time versus the NAIA Asbury.
Morehead State (1-0) missed 13 of its first 14 field goals, but Kenneth Faried had a layup, a jumper and a dunk seven minutes into the game to pull the Eagles out of their offensive funk and erase an eight-point Asbury lead. Faried had his first double-double of the new season with 21 points and 13 rebounds. It was the senior's 57th career double-dip.
After Morehead State closed the gap, the teams traded points until junior Ty Proffitt scored five straight for MSU, giving the home-standing Eagles the lead for good. Proffitt hit five of his perfect 7-for-7 free throws in the final 4:13 of the first half en route to a career-high 13 points.
Seniors Demonte Harper and Sam Goodman tallied 14 and 10 points respectively, with Harper recording nine rebounds, one shy of a double-double.
MSU led 32-22 at halftime and a pair of triples from Phillip Morrison and Adam Delph offset two Faried baskets to cut the Morehead State lead at the start of the second half. The host Eagles took over from there, rolling off a 16-3 run to open a 21-point lead.
The tenacious MSU press kept Asbury under 30 points in each half and forced 20 turnovers, half of which came from steals. Morehead State also dominated the glass, outrebounding the visiting Eagles on both ends of the court for a total of 56-28.
Asbury (1-3) had two players Austin Flannery and Delph in double figures. Flannery tallied 15 and Delph 10. Jamal Morris and Morrison each had four rebounds to lead AU. MSU held Asbury to 28.1 percent shooting.
NORTH CAROLINA STATE 82, TENNESSEE TECH 69
RALEIGH, N.C. - Headed into the locker room at halftime, the Tennessee Tech men's basketball team looked like anything but the 20-point underdog that they were labeled prior to Friday night's contest at North Carolina State. But the Wolfpack, a powerhouse team in the ACC, took advantage of Tech's second-half foul troubles to escape with an 82-69 victory to the open the 2010-11 season.
After trailing 2-0 for the first three minutes of the game, the Golden Eagles seized the lead and stretched it to as many as five points through the first 11 minutes of the game.
Ten different Golden Eagles combined for the team's 34 first-half points, led by junior point guard Zac Swansey with six in a 3-for-7 effort. Zach Bailey, Kevin Murphy and Matt Marseille each contributed five first-half points, with Marseille showcasing a perfect 2-2 from the field, including one 3-pointer.
Tech matched the Wolfpack in second chance points with nine and total rebounds with 19, and saw 11 points from players coming off the bench. After six lead changes in the fist half and despite trailing by as many as 10, the Golden Eagles trailed by only three points as they took to the locker room with a score of 37-34.
Fouls and turnovers proved the inevitable downfall for Tech though, as they accumulated 11 turnovers in the second half, giving up 21 points on 19 turnovers on the game. The Golden Eagles accumulated eight team fouls in just over nine minutes into the second half, putting the Wolfpack in a bonus situation early. Just under five minutes into the second half, the Wolfpack had stretched their three point lead to an 11-point game, and notched their largest lead of the game, 16 points, with just under seven minutes left on the clock.
Led by Ryan Harrow with a perfect 8-for-8 at the line, N.C. State shot 18-for-25 from the free throw line in the second half. Harrow contributed 16 points on the night, outscored only by teammate C.J. Leslie with 21 points.
Swansey added another seven points in the second half to lead the Golden Eagles offensively with 13 points in his Tech debut, while Terrell Barnes dominated the glass for 10 rebounds to add to Tech's 47 total rebounds, 10 more than the Wolfpack wrestled down.
Zach Bailey finished the day with nine points, while Alfred Jones went 4-for-5 for eight points.
SOUTH DAKOTA STATE 67, EASTERN ILLINOIS 55
CHARLESTON, Ill. - Jeremy Granger was one of four Panthers to score in double-figure with 16 points, but the Eastern Illinois men's basketball squad dropped a 67-55 home contest to South Dakota State on Friday night to open the 2011 basketball season. The Panthers return to action on Sunday with a 2 pm (CST) road game at Ball State
EIU (0-1) finished the game by shooting 37%, with just one three-pointer. Ten of SDSU's 22 total shots were of the three-point variety as they finished the night shooting 39%.
Shaun Pratl knocked down 12 points, while Curry McKinney and Tyler Laser chipped in 11 and ten points as EIU shot 42% in the first half as the Jackrabbits took a ten-point lead into the locker room, thanks in part to a last-second three-pointer just before halftime.
Granger not only led the Panthers offensively but also came a rebound shy of his first double-double of the season, via nine rebounds.
The Jackrabbits (1-0) had three players finish with ten or more points, led by Clint Sargent's 19, while Dale Moss and Nate Wolters finished with 16 and 11 points, respectively.
In other team stats, EIU won the rebound game with a 39-to-38 advantage, yet had 13 turnovers as SDSU took advantage and scored 15 points off Panther miscues.
MISSISSIPPI STATE 75, TENNESSEE STATE 65
STARKVILLE, Miss. - To open the 2010-11 basketball season, Tennessee State University dropped a hard fought contest to Mississippi State, 75-65, in Humphrey Coliseum on Friday night.
The Tigers shot 35.9 percent from the floor with three players posting double digits. Robert Covington, Kenny Moore and Patrick Miller each scored 13 points. Covington and Moore each hauled in a team-high seven rebounds.
The Tigers trailed by as much as six in the first half but administered a 9-2 run with under five minutes to play in the half to post their largest lead of the night 26-21. The Bulldogs answered with an 11-5 spurt tying it up before the break on a three-pointer at the horn, 31-31.
In the second, MSU opened up on a 9-4 run to recapture the lead, 40-33, but the Tigers led again outscoring the Bulldogs, 13-4, with 9:14 remaining, 46-44. Late in the half, TSU trailed by 10 points with 1:14 left, but scrapped their way back in to narrow the lead from a 9-4 run, 70-65, with 25 seconds left.
The Bulldogs hit five straight free throws down the stretch to survive the scare. For MSU, Ravern Johnson led all scorers with a career-high, 32 points, including 13-of-14 from the free-throw line netting his 1, 000th career point in the process.
Kodi Augustus recorded the only double-double with 14 points (5-of-9) and a game-high 14 rebounds.
AUSTIN PEAY 64, SAINT LOUIS 62
ST. LOUIS, Mo. - Tyshwan Edmondson knocked down a pair of free throws with 4.2 seconds left and fellow newcomer Josh Terry came up with a steal with less than two seconds remaining as Austin Peay State University defeated St. Louis, 64-62, Friday night in the season opening basketball game for both teams.
It was an impressive opener for the Governors against an Atlantic 10 opponent that is picked sixth in the 14-team league.
Melvin Baker, a junior college product like Edmondson and Terry, set up the game-winning play by blocking a shot by Christain Salecich with 17 seconds left. Baker also grabbed the rebound,
Terry, in his first Division I game, led the Govs with 18 points on 7-of-9 shooting while Edmondson, also in his first Division I contest, added 17 on 6-of-9 shooting.
Austin Peay dominated action much of the first half, leading by as much as eight points on two occasions (26-18 and 31-23), but foul troubles by Baker, Terry and Edmondson slowed the Govs offensively, but APSU still took a 36-32 lead into intermission on 53.6 percent shooting (14 of 26), largely because the bench's significant production.
But it was St. Louis who took control early in the second half. Less than five minutes into the half, the Billikens tied the game at 40 all before bursting out to a 54-46 advantage with 10:31 left behind Kyle Cassity and Jordair Jett.
But the Governors regrouped and Edmondson, who came off the bench in the opener, scored six straight points and then Terry hit two free throws to tie it at 54 with 7:43 remaining. The margin never was larger than four points the game's remainder as St. Louis led 58-54 with 5:44 remaining before the Govs took a 61-58 advantage on a Terry layup with 2:08 left.
But Cassity answered again to make it a one-point game before Baker hit one of two free throws to push it back to two. But Cassity again drove through the Govs defense to tie the game with 57 seconds left.
However, Austin Peay was called for an inbounds violation to give the ball right back to the Billikens. But Edmondson was able to get a finger on a loose ball and John Fraley was able to come away with the steal.
But the Govs could not take advantage themselves as Salecich came up with a steal in the Govs end with 20 seconds left. He elected to take it the length of the floor and as he went to the basket Baker perfectly timed his leap to block the shot before then grabbing the equally-important rebound.
The Govs called timeout and attempted to set up a play. With the clocking winding down Salecich challenged Edmondson defensively well away from the basket. A foul was called and Edmondson calmly sank both free throws.
Then it was up to Terry to reach in and snatch away Cassity's dribble before the clock ran out.
The Governors finished the night shooting 47.7 percent (21 of 44) from the floor, including three-of-six from the three-point line, along with 19of-27 from the free-throw line (70.4 percent). The Governors outrebounded by the Billikens by a 32-23 margin, led by Fraley's seven.
LOYOLA (CHICAGO) 73, EASTERN KENTUCKY 57
CHICAGO - The Eastern Kentucky University men's basketball team fell to Loyola Chicago, 73-57, in its season opener at the Nick Kladis Classic on Friday night. Senior Spencer Perrin and junior Joshua Jones paced the Colonels with 14 points apiece.
The Colonels (0-1) played the host Ramblers (1-0) tough through the first half, taking their only lead of the game on a three-pointer from the top of the key by freshman Jeff Johnson that made it 6-5 with 16:34 on the clock. A layup by Walt Gibler gave Loyola Chicago an eight point lead, 30-22, late in the second half, but a jumper in the lane by sophomore Willie Cruz with nine seconds on the clock cut the Rambler lead to six at halftime.
Loyola Chicago surged to an 11 point lead early in the second half, but EKU pulled back to within six numerous times throughout the half, the latest with 12:34 remaining in the game when Cruz hit a layup to make it 47-41. However, Ben Averkamp connected on a three-pointer less than a minute later and then hit a jumper in the lane on the Ramblers' next possession to give Loyola Chicago a double digit lead it would hold on to.
Cruz finished the game with 10 points. He and Perrin led the Colonels with five rebounds apiece.
Terrance Hill came off the bench to shoot 5-of-6 from three-point range and lead the Ramblers with 21 points. Gibler contributed with 17 points and nine rebounds.
IPFW 70, SIU EDWARDSVILLE 55
EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - Senior Nikola Bundalo recorded his third career double-double Friday, but it wasn't enough as IPFW defeated Southern Illinois University Edwardsville men's basketball 70-55 in the season opener for both schools.
Bundalo scored 14 points and grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds, including nine in the first half. He was 5 of 8 from the floor and 4 of 6 from the free throw line. Bundalo's 14 points moved the 6-10 center into 45th on the career scoring list. He now has 613 points in his Cougar Career.
Bundalo was one of three Cougars in double figures. Mark Yelovich led SIUE with 15 points and Cornelius Chatt scored 12 in his regular season debut for the Cougars. Chatt was 2 of 8 from three-point range.
IPFW, 1-0, raced to an eight-point lead, going up 10-2 in the first three minutes, and never trailed. The Mastodons led by as many as 18 points following a pair of free throws from Zach Plackemeier with 2:44 to play in the half. The lead was 17 (36-19) at the half.
SIUE trimmed the lead to eight points, at 44-36, on a pair of free throws by Michael Messer with 10:27 to play in the game but never got closer than nine points after that point. IPFW scored the last five points of the game, all on free throws.
Corey Wickware, who added nine points, and Messer, who scored five, were the only other Cougars to register a point Friday. Forrester said he'd like that to change.
The Cougars will have little time to rest. SIUE meets Illinois State Sunday afternoon in Normal. Forrester said it won't be easy.