EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. – SIUE and UT Martin combined for 24 three-pointers Saturday as a battle for the top spot in the Ohio Valley Conference went to the Skyhawks who came away with an 81-76 victory over the Cougars.
Tyler King and Jack Campion both turned in career games for the Cougars. King led all scorers with a career-high 27 points. He was 9-16 overall and 6-11 from three-point range. Campion finished with a career-high 21 points. Campion 7-15 overall and 5-8 from three-point range.
The Cougars had a four-game win streak come to an end as they dropped to 10-6 in the OVC and 17-10 overall. UT Martin improved to 12-4 in the OVC and 20-7 overall. The Skyhawks regained sole possession of the top spot in the league with the win.
UT Martin hit seven three-pointers in the first half and led 44-32 at halftime.
SIUE, looking for a second-half comeback for the second consecutive game, came out shooting to open the second half.
The Cougars drained their first five three-pointers and opened the half on a 22-0 run to lead 54-44 after a three by King with 13:31 left.
Beginning with the last minute of the first half, SIUE kept UTM off the scoreboard for a combined 8:20 of game play.
UT Martin struggled to score, missing its first seven field goals, and hitting just 2-10 to start the second half.
A three-pointer from Jack Campion gave SIUE and 63-55 lead at 7:25 when UT Martin went on a run. The Skyhawks used an 18-2 run to lead 73-65 with the only Cougars points coming from a pair of free throws by Arnas Sakenis.
In all, SIUE didn't score outside of free throws for more than seven minutes.
The Cougars knocked down a season-best 13 three-pointers, including eight in the second half. They finished 13-28 (46 percent). They were 23-54 (43 percent) shooting overall.
Arnas Sakenis finished a rebound shy of his second consecutive double-double with 15 points and nine rebounds. He added two blocks and is two blocks away from tying for SIUE's all-time lead in blocked shots.
UT Martin hit 53 percent (26-49) of its shots overall and 11-24 (46 percent) of its three-point attempts. All five Skyhawks starters finished in double figures, led by Andrija Bukumirovic's 19 points. He added nine rebounds.
SIUE returns to the road to face Tennessee Tech Thursday in Cookeville, Tennessee.
