MARTIN, Tenn. – Vladimer Salaridze poured in a career-best 23 points while Tarence Guinyard recorded all of his 18 points in the second half as the University of Tennessee at Martin men’s basketball team roared back for a 68-63 triumph over Eastern Illinois.
Trailing by 17 points early in the second half, the Skyhawks (8-10, 4-3 Ohio Valley Conference) outscored the visiting Panthers by a 43-21 margin over the final 17:28 of tonight’s contest. The victory tied for the program’s largest comeback win (in terms of scoring deficit) since an 85-84 overtime win at Austin Peay on Feb. 13, 2016. It marked the first time that UT Martin rallied from at least 17 points to win in regulation since the Skyhawks reversed a 19-point deficit en route to a 75-73 win at Arkansas State on Nov. 17, 2014.
“I’m so proud of these guys,” UT Martin head coach Jeremy Shulman said. “I thought we got away from what we do and we didn’t prepare the way we needed to – that’s on me. At halftime, we laid out what we’re going to do differently and how to get back in the game possession by possession. This is an unbelievable conference with great coaches – win or lose, for our guys to get back up off the mat time and time again says a lot about our toughness and resiliency.”
Salaridze’s 23 points eclipsed his previous high of 17 points one week ago at Western Illinois. The redshirt senior forward from Tbilisi, Georgia added six rebounds, two steals and two blocks in 28 minutes this evening. Guinyard tacked on a team-best eight rebounds and punctuated his performance with a perfect 7-of-7 effort from the charity stripe, including six free throws in the final 30 seconds. Josué Grullon (seven points, seven rebounds) also added a pair of clutch free throws with one second left to make it a two-possession game.
Eastern Illinois (5-12, 1-5 OVC) placed four scorers in double figures, led by Artese Stapleton’s 16 points. Kooper Jacobi posted a double-double (11 points, 12 rebounds) while Nakyel Shelton and Zion Fruster added 15 and 12 points, respectively. The Skyhawk defense forced 11 of the Panthers’ 19 turnovers in the final 20 minutes while mounting their comeback.
Salaridze was responsible for 12 of UT Martin’s first 16 points as both teams got off to slow offensive starts. Following a Matija Žužić triple that evened the score at 21-all, Eastern Illinois went on a 16-2 run to close out the opening half with a 37-23 advantage. Salaridze’s 14 points led all scorers at the break while Shelton (12) and Stapleton (10) both scored in double figures for the Panthers.
The Skyhawks found themselves in a 42-25 hole with 18:29 to go but gradually kept chipping away. Guinyard, Carlos Cortijo and Grullon each swished three-pointers in a stretch of 3:39 that quickly shaved UT Martin’s deficit to 43-38 at the 13:19 mark.
Eastern Illinois was able to push its lead back out to nine points with seven minutes remaining but the Skyhawks outscored the Panthers by a 21-7 margin the rest of the way. An old-fashioned three-point play from Guinyard with three minutes left to play tied the score before a driving layup by Afan Trnka at the 2:40 mark gave UT Martin its first lead since 6:44 remaining in the first half.
Guinyard and Grullon’s flawless 8-for-8 effort followed as the Skyhawks held Eastern Illinois to only three made field goals in the final 7:10.
UT Martin faces a quick turnaround with a home matchup against SIUE on Saturday, Jan. 18. Tipoff time from the Kathleen and Tom Elam Center is set for 3:30 p.m. (following the women’s basketball game as part of a doubleheader) on Talk and News WCMT on 92.7, 96.1, 99.7, 100.5, 103.3 and 1410
(Photo Credit: UTM Athletics)
