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HomeSportsAPSU Basketball begins four game road trip at UT Martin, Thursday

APSU Basketball begins four game road trip at UT Martin, Thursday

Austin Peay (12-10 / 7-3 OVC) at UT Martin (8-15 / 3-7 OVC)

Thursday, February 1st, 2018 | 7:30pm CT
Martin, TN | Elam Center

APSU Men's BasketballClarksville, TN – Austin Peay State University men’s basketball looks to continue its winning ways with a road trip to UT Martin, 7:30pm, Thursday, February 1st.

The Govs come into the contest on the heels of an offensive hot streak, breaking the 90-point barrier against Eastern Kentucky and Morehead State in wins last.

Austin Peay Men's Basketball travels to Martin Tennessee to take on the UT Martin Skyhawks Thursday nigt at 7:30pm. (APSU Sports Information)
Austin Peay Men’s Basketball travels to Martin Tennessee to take on the UT Martin Skyhawks Thursday nigt at 7:30pm. (APSU Sports Information)

The last time that happened was January 29th-31st, 2008, although those 2008 contests were overtime affairs.

The last time the Govs scored 90-plus in back-to-back regulation contests was December 18th-20th, 1999 against Lee (106-83) and Webster (91-63), while the last time the Govs put up 90 or more in back-to-back games in regulation against OVC foes was February 12th-15th, 1996 (Tennessee Tech, 93-74 and Tennessee State, 102-75).

This contest marks the first time under head coach Matt Figger the Govs will start their second march through the Ohio Valley Conference slate—the only remaining opponent the Govs have yet to face under Figger is archrival Murray State.

About the UT Martin Skyhawks

UT Martin SkyhawksOne of the Ohio Valley Conference’s most punchless offenses (UT Martin’s 64.7 ppg) meets an Austin Peay squad that’s broken the 90-point barrier in its last two games. However, the Skyhawks have been among the stingier defensive units from a shooting standpoint, allowing opponents to hit 41.7 percent from the floor.

Matthew Butler is the man who makes the offensive hum for the Skyhawks; not only is he leading the Skyhawks in scoring and assists, he’s hit 39 percent of UT Martin’s 159 three-pointers.

Although the Skyhawks are among the league’s most prolific at the line (74.7 percent as a team), UT Martin is among the nation’s worst at getting to the line; the Skyhawks are 339th out of 351 teams nationally with 308 total attempts.

Last Time Out Against UT Martin

Austin Peay earned its first 3-0 start in league play since the 2010-11 season with a 75-69 win against the Skyhawks on the CBS Sports Network, January 4th. Quality ball movement ruled the day for the Govs, who put together 19 assists as a team to go above .500 for the first time under head coach Matt Figger.

The night belonged to Chris Porter-Bunton, who led the Govs with a career-high seven assists and scored seven of his team-high 16 points over the final 3:22 of regulation.

Notably

The Govs should be back to 10 men for this trip; freshman Acoydan McCarthy, who missed the last two contests due to illness, returned to practice this week.

Zach Glotta has reached double figures in scoring six times during the 2017-18 season; the Govs are 6-0 in those contests after defeating Eastern Kentucky. He is averaging 8.9 ppg this season in Austin Peay’s 12 victories.

Freshman Terry Taylor is one of three freshmen in the nation leading their respective teams in scoring and rebounding, along with Duke’s Marvin Bagley II and UNLV’s Brandon McCoy.

A win would give the Govs a season sweep of UT Martin for the first time since 2013-14 and give Austin Peay eight OVC wins for the first time since 2011-12.

For the second time this season, Taylor and senior Averyl Ugba enter the weekend as the reigning OVC Freshman and Newcomer of the Week, respectively; they are the 12th and 13th weekly honors received by a Gov this season, most by the program since the 2012-13 campaign.

Next Up for APSU Men’s Basketball

This contest is the first of four on the road for the Govs, who travel to Cape Girardeau for a 4:15pm, Saturday, February 3rd matchup against Southeast Missouri.

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