SIUE Seniors Carry Squad To Win In OVC Tourney; EIU Women Fall

The Cougars finished their season at 9-17 overall. Belmont improved to 25-3.

"We knew coming into this game, they had not seen a version of us that was close to us," SIUE Head Coach Brian Barone said. "The effort has been a given all year, but it was nice to give it more of a showing and earn some respect."

The Cougars led by as many as four early in the game and led 13-12 when Belmont made a push in the first half.

"We came in with a very aggressive mindset," SIUE Head Coach Brian Barone said. "We flew around. We did everything we could.

The Bruins used a 14-2 run to take a 21-15 lead and never trailed in the game again. Belmont led 43-30 at half.

The Cougars trimmed the Belmont lead to 10 at 61-51, but a 10-0 Bruins' run propelled them to a 71-51 lead with under four minutes to play.

"We knew it was going to be a tough battle," Adewunmi said. "We wanted to play loose, play free and play for each other. We knew to never quit and play until the clock hit zero. I am proud of my teammates for doing that. We all bought in. The outcome wasn't what we wanted, but we still went out there and fought and I am proud of my guys for that."

James paced the Cougars with a career-best 18 points, one shy of SIUE's OVC tournament record. He was 8-13 from the field and 2-4 from three-point range.

"Iziah was exhausted. He found it within himself to not come out of the game.

Adewunmi scored 16 points, grabbed six rebounds and added three blocks.

"Mike was flying around," Barone said. "He had some blocked shots from the weak side and in transition. He had a huge three, was rebounding in traffic and getting in the lane."

Senior Jackson Best appeared briefly off the bench.

"Let's not forget about Jackson Best," Barone said. "He lost his father 3-4 weeks ago to Covid. For him to be on the bench for us and to get a minute in a college basketball game after overcoming everything he has is unreal."

Shamar Wright scored 10 points, finishing the season with five straight double-digit outings and 11 in his last 13 games. Lamar Wright scored nine points and grabbed five rebounds. He blocked seven shots, one shy of SIUE's single-game record.

The Cougars finished with 11 blocks, tying the team record for blocks in a game for the second time this season. SIUE shot 45 percent for the game and finished with 11 assists and 10 steals. The Cougars turned the ball over 14 times, while forcing 15 turnovers from Belmont.

"The guys in this locker room were just flying around," Barone added. "They were exhausted. Our fatigue has caught us a little bit. To have 11 blocks and to turn Belmont over more than we turned it over is a credit to them as men and the character they have."

Caleb Hollander scored 17 points to lead Belmont, which shot 48 percent for the game and knocked down 10 of 14 three-point attempts.

"Tonight we had everyone we should have had on our roster with us, whether they were on the bench cheering or they were on the floor," Adewunmi said. "We're all about family and you have to be proud of the guys and the way they fought."

UT Martin 65, EIU 56 (Women)

EVANSVILLE, Ind. -- Eastern Illinois (11-15, 9-12 OVC) fell to the No. 1 seeded UT Martin Skyhawks (19-4, 18-2 OVC), 65-56. The Panthers were led in scoring by Abby Wahl, who recorded 21 points in the game along with nine boards. Karle Pace put up 12 points in what may be her final game with the Panthers. 

QUICK STATS

Karle Pace moves up the No. 11 in career points scored.Abby Wahl recorded a near double-double with 21 points and nine rebounds.The Panthers fall to Skyhawks for the second time in a row against UT Martin.

QUARTER-BY-QUARTER

The Panthers and Skyhawks battled back and forth at the start of the opening game of the OVC Tournament. Wahl was off to a quick start, gathering five rebounds and leading the team in scoring with 7 points in the first. The Panthers were unable to alter shots by the Skyhawks, as UT Martin shot 63% from the field in the first. The Skyhawks led the Panthers, 22-14 at the end of the first.

Washington got hot in the opening of the second quarter. She scored a total of 7 points in the first few minutes of the game. Wahl continued to dominate down low for the Panthers. She scored 8 points in the quarter to help pull the Panthers within four. Pace scored 4 in the quarter to help cut down the lead.

The Skyhawks led the Panthers, 37-33.

The Skyhawks went on a run in the third quarter to pull away from the Panthers. Seygan Robins put up 11 points to extend the Skyhawks lead. The Panthers were only able to manage 10 points in the quarter but allowed 19 for the Skyhawks. UT Martin led the Panthers 56-43 at the end of the third quarter.

Eastern Illinois played some nagging defense in the first half of the final quarter as they pushed the Skyhawks into four turnovers. Wahl continued to fight down low to pull the Panthers, but the deficit was too much to overcome. The Panthers fell 65-56 to end their season.