November 19, 2012

Golden Eagles look for first 4-0 start since 1996-97

With an impressive 3-0 start, the Tennessee Tech men's basketball team will look to begin the campaign 4-0 for the first time since 1996-97. The Golden Eagles will face off Tuesday night against a feisty Evansville team that nearly beat Tech last season before falling 72-70 at home.

Evansville

3-2, 0-0

Tennessee Tech

3-1, 0-0

Final	1	2	T
Evansville 3-2, 0-0	33	29	62
Tennessee Tech 3-1, 0-0	17	33	50

Game Leaders

Evansville

Pts: COX, Ned - 15

Reb: SAWVELL, Ryan - 8

Ast: COX, Ned - 6

Tennessee Tech

Pts: 2 Players (#10, #33) - 10

Reb: Javon Mckay - 6

Ast: Jeremia Samarrippas - 4

Team Stats

Game Statistics	Evansville	Tennessee Tech
Field Goals	(24-49)	(19-50)
Field Goal %	49.0%	38.0%
Rebounds	34	24
Assists	14	12
Turnovers	14	12
Pts off Turnovers	8	15
2nd Chance Pts	14	3
Pts in the Paint	24	14
Fastbreak Pts	0	2
Bench Pts	25	24

Full stats

COOKEVILLE, Tenn. - With an impressive 3-0 start to the 2012-13 season, the Tennessee Tech men's basketball team will look to begin the campaign 4-0 for the first time since 1996-97. The Golden Eagles will face off against a feisty Evansville team that nearly beat Tech last season before falling 72-70 at home.

Tennessee Tech (3-0, 0-0)
vs.
Evansville (2-2, 0-0)
Tuesday, Nov. 18, 2012 / 7:30 p.m. CST
Eblen Center - Cookeville, Tenn.

The Broadcasts
TV: none
Radio: Fox Sports Radio, 106.1 The Eagle (Roger Ealey)
Webcast: OVC Digital Network (Brandon Goodwin)

Setting the Stage

The Golden Eagles take on the Purple Aces in what is expected to be a hard-fought battle. Evansville owns the all-time series leads against Tech, 9-4, despite losing last season's match-up in Evansville, Ind., 72-70.

Evansville sits at an even 2-2 on the year, having won its last two games against Yale and Western Illinois. The team lost its first two games, a six-point squeaker to Buffalo, and an impressive nine-point loss in South Bend, Ind. to Notre Dame.

The Purple Aces boast one of the nation's best shooters in senior guard Colt Ryan. Ryan was recently rated as the 24th best shooter in Division I basketball by CBS sports. The Evansville defense will look to stifle the lighting fast Golden Eagle attack with another solid performance. The Purple Aces' 'D' has not allowed an opponent to score more than 58 points yet this season and their opponents are averaging just 53.5 points per game. The team is also forcing 16.5 turnovers per contest on its opponents, including 34 during its current two-game winning streak.

Evansville will certainly have its hands full on Tuesday trying to keep Tech senior guard Jud Dillard off the scoreboard. The Atlanta, Ga. native currently ranks second in the nation in scoring with 28.0 points per game and has added an impressive 10.3 rebounds per game to average a double-double for the season. He already has established a new career-high in points this season, lighting up Coastal Carolina for 34 in a 71-69 win.

Dillard leads the Ohio Valley Conference in both scoring and rebounding. He is also averaging over 30 minutes per contest and shooting a blazing 61.4% from the field. Dillard sits second on the team with 3.7 assists per game and leads the team with an impressive 5.5 assists to turnover ratio.

Dennis Ogbe will look to build off his season-best 11-point performance against ETSU on Saturday. The German-born starter shot an incredible 100% from the field against the Buccaneers, a career-best mark. He also added 28 solid minutes in the paint for the Golden Eagles, grabbing three rebounds in the contest.

Sophomore guard/forward Javon McKay and junior forward Matt Marseille both came up big on the glass for Tech in its last outing, recording six boards each. The Golden Eagles will look for both players to continue their strong rebounding efforts and add some scoring when it counts.