The Tennessee at Martin Skyhawks secured a crucial 81-76 road victory over the Southern Illinois Univ.-Edwardsville Cougars, led by Andrija Bukumirovic's impressive 19-point, 9-rebound performance. UT Martin's balanced attack, which included 15 points from Pedro Santos and 13 points from Filip Radakovic, proved too much for SIU Edwardsville to handle. The Skyhawks' 44-point first half set the tone for the game, as they shot 51.9% from the field and outrebounded the Cougars 38-32.
Andrija Bukumirovic Becomes 10th UT Martin Player to Record 300 Rebounds in a Season
The game unfolded with UT Martin taking an early 12-point lead, but SIU Edwardsville fought back to trail by just 12 at halftime, 44-32. The Cougars' Tyler King scored 14 of his 27 points in the second half, including 5 points during a crucial 10-2 run that cut the deficit to 5 with 5:35 remaining. However, UT Martin's defense held strong, limiting SIU Edwardsville to just 2 field goals over the final 3:15. The Skyhawks' 37 second-half points were enough to secure the 5-point victory, despite being outscored by the Cougars 44-37 in the period. UT Martin's 81 points marked their 13th game this season with 80 or more points, while SIU Edwardsville's 76 points were their 10th highest total of the year.
The top performers for both teams were on full display, with Tyler King leading SIU Edwardsville with 27 points and 6 rebounds. Jack Campion added 21 points for the Cougars, while Arnas Sakenis chipped in with 15 points and 9 rebounds. For UT Martin, Andrija Bukumirovic's 19 points and 9 rebounds paced the team, while Pedro Santos and Filip Radakovic contributed 15 and 13 points, respectively. The Skyhawks' bench outscored SIU Edwardsville's 22-12, with 12 of those points coming from reserve guard, Jalen Myers. King's 27 points marked his 5th game this season with 25 or more points, while Bukumirovic's 9 rebounds were his 10th game with 8 or more boards.
CHD Scout Report Card
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Final
A closer look at the box score reveals several key statistical takeaways from the game. UT Martin outrebounded SIU Edwardsville 38-32, including a 12-8 advantage on the offensive glass. The Skyhawks also committed just 12 turnovers, compared to 15 for the Cougars. SIU Edwardsville shot 45.8% from the field, but were just 6-20 from 3-point range. UT Martin, on the other hand, connected on 8-22 3-point attempts, including 3-6 from Bukumirovic. The Skyhawks' 51.9% field goal percentage marked their 12th game this season shooting 50% or better.
The CHD Scout model predicted a 69-66 victory for SIU Edwardsville, with a predicted margin of 2.9 points. However, the actual result was a 5-point win for UT Martin, 81-76. This marked a significant deviation from the predicted outcome, with the model underestimating the Skyhawks' offense and overestimating the Cougars' defense. The predicted score of 69-66 also fell short of the actual total, as both teams combined for 157 points. The model's incorrect prediction dropped its accuracy rating to 72.1% on the season, with 15 incorrect predictions out of 208 total games.
The victory improved UT Martin's record to 20-7, while SIU Edwardsville fell to 17-10. The game was classified as a Quad 3 win for UT Martin, which should help boost their NET ranking from its current position of 182. Conversely, the loss was a Quad 4 defeat for SIU Edwardsville, which may hurt their chances of moving up from their current NET ranking of 240. UT Martin's win marked their 5th Quad 3 victory of the season, while SIU Edwardsville's loss was their 4th Quad 4 defeat. The Skyhawks' 20-7 record also marked their best start through 27 games since the 2014-2015 season.
UT Martin want to build on their momentum when they host the Morehead State Eagles on February 18th. SIU Edwardsville, meanwhile, will travel to face the Eastern Illinois Panthers on February 19th. Both games matters in determining the teams' seeding for their respective conference tournaments. UT Martin's next 3 games will be against teams with a combined record of 45-30, while SIU Edwardsville's next 3 opponents have a combined record of 38-37.