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NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Four of the five starters for the Eastern Kentucky University men's basketball team finished in double figures as the Colonels rallied for a 65-63 win over host Tennessee State Thursday night. The Colonels (9-10, 6-5 OVC) have now won four of the last five meetings with TSU (8-11, 5-5) in the Gentry Center.
Trailing 57-52 coming out of the final media timeout, Eastern Kentucky rattled off nine straight points to take its first lead since very early in the second half. Junior
Mike Rose, who led all Colonels with 18 points, started the run with an old-fashioned three-point play following an acrobatic reverse lay-up. After Tennessee State missed the front end of a one-and-one, a
Darnell Dialls bucket leveled the score at 57-all with 3:14 remaining.
Two free throws by Rose then put Eastern ahead, 59-57, with 2:39 left. Following Tennessee State's second straight turnover, freshman
Justin Stommes netted a back-door play to stretch the Colonel advantage to four points, 61-57.
Two offensive rebounds and putbacks in the final minute helped Eastern Kentucky hold on for the win. Rose tallied the first putback after a missed
Josh Taylor three-point attempt to make the score, 63-59. With 13 seconds remaining, Dialls tipped in an
Adam Leonard shot to keep Eastern ahead, 65-61.
Tennessee State climbed back to within two thanks to a pair of Bruce Price free throws with eight seconds left. Dialls then missed the front end of a one-and-one, allowing the Tigers a shot to tie or win the game. Gerald Robinson took the ball coast-to-coast, but missed a driving lay-up attempt with a second left.
Eastern Kentucky shot 57.7 percent (15-of-26) in the second half and 50 percent (25-of-50) for the game. Besides 18 points from Rose, Dialls recorded 15 points, seven rebounds and four assists. Leonard and Stommes added 13 points as well.
Andre Belton came off the bench to tally a game-high 19 points for Tennessee State. Price and Robinson each finished with 16 points.
Eastern Kentucky has the weekend off before traveling to Tennessee-Martin on Tuesday, Jan. 29. Game time is set for 8 p.m.
