NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The Eastern Kentucky University men's and women's basketball teams will square off against OVC East rival Tennessee State in a Saturday night doubleheader at the Gentry Center.
The women's game will tip at 6:30 p.m. ET, followed by the men's game at 8:30 p.m. ET.
Women's Preview
Live Stats | Live Video | Live Audio | Game Notes | Live Tweets
WHAT TO KNOW
- The Colonels trimmed a 14-point deficit to one in the final period but fell to OVC frontrunner Belmont, 73- 67, Wednesday at McBrayer Arena.
- EKU (9-17, 6-7 OVC) handed the Lady Tigers a 66-62 loss at McBrayer Arena on Jan. 14.
- Four Colonels finished in double figures against the Bruins, marking the third straight game.
- O'Bannon (13.7 ppg),
Alexus Cooper (12.8 ppg), and
Shavontae Naylor (12.2 ppg) rank in the OVC's top-20 in scoring. Meanwhile, O'Bannon's 6.7 rebounds-per-game ranks 10th in the league and Naylor's 6.0 rpg is 15
th. Naylor (45.5 percent) is 14
th in the conference in field goal percentage.
- Eastern Kentucky leads the all-time series, 41-20, over TSU. The Colonels handed the Lady Tigers a 70-66 loss at the Gentry Center last season, ending a seven-game home winning streak for TSU.
SCOUTING THE OPPONENT
- Tennessee State is 9-15 overall and 4-10 in OVC play. The Lady Tigers have lost their last four, but are 6-3 at home this season.
- Senior guard Jayda Johnson's 13.0 ppg leads the Lady Tigers' offense and is 13
th in the league.
- TSU's 10.9 steals-per-game leads the conference and is 22
nd nationally. Three Lady Tigers rank in the league's top-15 in steals.
UP NEXT
- EKU plays its final regular season road game at Jacksonville State University Wednesday. Wednesday's contest is slated for an 8 p.m. tip.
Men's Preview
WHAT TO KNOW
Live Stats I Live Video I Live Audio I Live Tweets I Game Notes
- EKU (10-18, 3-10 OVC) took first-place Belmont to the wire on Thursday night at the Curb Event Center. The Colonels cut a 10-point deficit to one, 69-68, with just over a minute to play. However, the host Bruins held on for a 76-72 victory.
- Freshman
Asante Gist poured in a career-high 28 points at Belmont on Thursday. Gist has now scored 20 points or more in four of EKU's last five games, and he leads all freshmen in the OVC in scoring (15.9 points-per-game) and assists (3.8 assists-per-game).
- Sophomore
Nick Mayo posted 25 points, eight rebounds and three assists at Belmont. Mayo has now scored in double figures in 31 straight games dating back to last season, and he ranks fifth in the OVC in scoring (17.8 points-per-game). He also ranks in the top-15 in the league in rebounding, blocks, field goal percentage and free throw percentage.
- Mayo is now only 52 points shy of 1,000 for his career with at least three games remaining in his sophomore season. He will need to average 17.3 points-per-game over the final three games of the regular season to reach the century mark at the midway point of his career.
- Junior
Zach Charles pulled down a team-best 10 rebounds at Belmont. He has a team-high five double--digit rebounding games this season.
SCOUTING THE OPPONENT
- Tennessee State (16-11, 7-7 OVC) is fresh off a 64-52 win at home over Morehead State on Thursday night.
- The Tigers are led by Tahjere McCall, who comes in averaging 14.3 points, 5.0 assists and an OVC-best 3.0 steals-per-game.
- This is the 60th meeting between EKU and Tennessee State. EKU leads the series, 33-26; however, the Tigers have won two straight over the Colonels, including a 63-49 victory in Richmond in January
UP NEXT
EKU returns home next week and will wrap up the regular season by hosting Jacksonville State on Thursday night and Tennessee Tech on Saturday.
