Tech Men's Hoops Edged by SIUE 62-58 on the Road
Tennessee Tech men’s basketball kept it to within a couple of buckets in the 62-58 loss at SIUE on Saturday afternoon.
| Final | 1 | 2 | T |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
24 | 34 | 58 |
|
|
27 | 35 | 62 |
Team Stats
SIUE
| Game Statistics | Tennessee Tech | SIUE |
|---|---|---|
| Field Goals | (22-58) | (23-55) |
| Field Goal % | 37.9% | 41.8% |
| Rebounds | 35 | 36 |
| Assists | 8 | 9 |
| Turnovers | 6 | 8 |
| Pts off Turnovers | 11 | 6 |
| 2nd Chance Pts | 11 | 13 |
| Pts in the Paint | 34 | 34 |
| Fastbreak Pts | 11 | 8 |
| Bench Pts | 16 | 13 |
By Jeff Bowe, TTU Athletics Media Relations
EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. – Tennessee Tech men's basketball kept it to within a one-possession game in a 62-58 loss at SIUE on Saturday afternoon.
JaJuan Nicholls had 17 points, Mekhi Cameron notched 15, and Ty Owens added 11 in a 62-58 loss to SIUE on the road. Nicholls recorded his second straight double-digit performance with 17 points on 8-of-13 (61.5%) shooting and 1-of-3 (33.3%) from the line, after scoring 15 at Lindenwood on Thursday.
Cameron has posted double figures in two of his last three games with 15 points on 4-of-11 shooting from the field, and 7-of-8 (87.5%) at the free-throw line.
Owens scored double figures for the first time since Dec. 18 against SEMO (12 pts), with 11 points on 4-of-13 from the field, 1-of-6 from three, and 2-of-2 at the free-throw line.
At the 8:03-mark, the Golden Eagles trailed 21-8, but from that point on, Tech outscored SIUE 16-6 to close to within three at the halftime break, 27-24. A pair of free throws by Cameron, a pair of two-point buckets by Owens, and an offensive rebound by Cameron, leading to two free throws, made it 21-14, Tech trailing by seven.
Grant Slatten drilled a three-pointer to cut the deficit to six points, 25-19, with 3:16 left in the first half. Owens made a three-pointer, slicing the deficit to three, 25-22, with 1:21 left in the first half. Mekhi Turner made a free throw, and Cameron added another, cutting it to 27-24 at halftime.
At the half, Cameron and Owens led the Golden Eagles with seven points each. TTU struggled overall from the field, shooting 25.9 percent (7-27) in the half, but made 8-of-10 from the free throw line (80.0%) in the first 20 minutes.
SIUE also struggled shooting in the first half, making 11-of-28 (39.3) in the first half, and did not have a player score in double figures for the first half.
Nicholls led the Golden Eagles with 13 points on 6-of-7 shooting in the second 20 minutes. He led all scorers in the game with 17 points and tied for the team lead with five rebounds (Brandon Muntu, 5 reb.).
In the second half, Tech shot 15-of-31 (48.4) from the field but struggled from three, making just one of seven attempts from distance.
In the second half, SIUE built a 15-point lead, its largest of the game, with 8:25 left, but a 10-0 run from the Golden Eagles cut into the deficit to pull the score close once again.
The Golden Eagles' best scoring run was a 10-0 mark with 5:49 left in the first half. SIUE held the lead for 39:43 of the game. There were no lead changes, and the game was never tied.
Tech committed 11 turnovers to SIUE's six. Points in the paint were even 34-34. SIUE held a slight advantage in points in the paint (13-11), and TTU held the advantage in fast break points 11-8 and bench points 16-13.
The Golden Eagles drop their fourth straight and have lost eight of the last nine games.
NEXT UP
TTU travels to Tennessee State on Tuesday, Jan. 27 at 7:30 p.m. CT, to mark the second matchup with the Tigers this season. The Golden Eagles fell 86-76 in the last head-to-head contest with TSU back on Dec. 30. Tech will return home to face Little Rock on Jan. 31.
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