By Ryne Rickman, UT Martin Sports Information Director
BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – The University of Tennessee at Martin men’s basketball team set a new season-high in three-point field goals made for the second straight contest but the Skyhawks could not protect a halftime lead in an 81-66 loss at Western Kentucky.
Keyed by five treys apiece out of Darius Simmons and David Didenko, UT Martin (3-4) canned 13 three-pointers this afternoon – including eight in the first half on its way to a 38-34 advantage at the break. However, the Hilltoppers shot 63 percent (17-of-27) over the final 20 minutes to claim the win.
Simmons led the team in scoring for the second consecutive outing – pumping in 21 points on 8-of-13 shooting. Didenko followed closely behind with a career-best 15 points while KJ Simon added 12 points, a team-high six rebounds and game-high two steals. Didenko and Koby Jeffries shared the team lead with four assists each for the Skyhawks, who led for over 21 minutes of clock time.
Western Kentucky saw four players score in double digits, led by Jairus Hamilton’s 24 points and 11 rebounds. Camron Justice contributed 17 points while Luke Frampton and Dayvion McKnight each scored 16 points as the Hilltoppers held a 19-1 advantage on free throw attempts.
Didenko swished a three-pointer to cap off an early 7-0 run for UT Martin less than three minutes into the contest. Triples from Didenko and Simmons kicked off a separate 8-0 spurt for the Skyhawks that pushed their lead out to 17-12 at the 11:21 mark of the first half.
Josiah Morris got in on the three-point action a little under two minutes later before another Simmons trey resulted in UT Martin’s biggest lead of the day (26-18) with 7:19 remaining before the halftime break.
Western Kentucky went on a 14-4 run to briefly take a lead but Didenko and Mikel Henderson both knocked down three-pointers on back-to-back possessions to help the Skyhawks claim a 38-34 lead at the half.
Both Didenko (12) and Simmons (10) already reached double figures in the scoring column at the break while the Hilltopper duo of Hamilton and McKnight each had nine points apiece.
A Simon jumper kept UT Martin’s lead at four points at the 18:06 mark of the second half but Western Kentucky responded by scoring eight unanswered points. The Hilltoppers took a 48-43 lead but the Skyhawks got right back in the game with a 12-4 run over a 3:33 span. KK Curry got things started with an old-fashioned three-point play before a Didenko three-pointer and two-handed slam dunk by KJ Simon. Koby Jeffries and Simmons followed with trifectas on back-to-back trips down the floor to make the score 57-52 in favor of UT Martin.
Western Kentucky came back with a 10-0 run before back-to-back jumpers from Jeffries willed the Skyhawks within one possession (64-61) with 5:23 remaining.
However, the Hilltoppers tallied a 12-2 run and UT Martin could not get back within single digits the rest of the way.
The Skyhawks head to in-state foe Middle Tennessee on Wednesday, Dec. 1. Tipoff time from Murfreesboro is scheduled for 6 p.m.
Graphic Courtesy of UT Martin Sports Information