Austin Peay (6-6) at #8/11 Tennessee (9-2)
Wednesday, December 21st | 5:00pm CT/6:00pm ET
Knoxville, TN | Thompson-Boling Arena
Clarksville, TN – The Austin Peay State University (APSU) men’s basketball team travels to No. 8/11 Tennessee Volunteers for a Wednesday matchup. The tip-off is set for 5:00pm CT.
The game is televised on SEC Network+. Updates are also available on the official Austin Peay men’s basketball Twitter and Instagram Story accounts (@GovsMBB).
Game Information
TV: SEC Network+
TV Talent: Roger Hoover (play-by-play), Steve Hamer (analyst), Sarah Detwiler (sideline reporter)
Live Stats: letsgopeay.com
Twitter Updates: @GovsMBB
Instagram Story Updates: @GovsMBB
Series Information
Meeting: 10th
Overall series record: 1-8 (W1)
Series record at Austin Peay: 0-0
Series record at Tennessee: 1-7 (W1)
Series record at neutral site: 0-1 (L1)
Last meeting: Austin Peay 74, Tennessee 70 (Dec. 10, 2011; at Tennessee)
Last Austin Peay home win: N/A
Last Austin Peay road win: Austin Peay 74, Tennessee 70 (Dec. 10, 2011)
Last Austin Peay neutral site win: N/A
Last meeting at Austin Peay: N/A
Last meeting at Tennessee: Austin Peay 74, Tennessee 70 (Dec. 10, 2011)
Last meeting at neutral site: Tennessee 71, Austin Peay 69 (Nov. 29, 1989; Mid-South Classic; Memphis, Tenn.)
First meeting: Tennessee 31, Austin Peay 23 (Dec. 30, 1940; at Tennessee)
First meeting in Dunn Center: N/A
Head Coach Nate James vs. Tennessee: 0-0
About the Austin Peay State University Basketball Team
The Austin Peay State University men’s basketball team is coming off a 68-60 loss at Murray State on December 16th, which snapped a three-game win streak.
In a game that featured four ties and 12 lead changes, the Racers ended the final 4:06 on a 13-2 run. Elijah Hutchins-Everett posted his first double-double this season and seventh of his career, totaling game-highs in points (17) and rebounds (11). He shot 8-of-11 inside the arc.
Sean Durugordon ended with 14 points, and Carlos Paez had 13 points on 5-of-7 shooting, including a 3-of-4 clip from deep, to round out the double figure scorers. Paez also had seven rebounds and tied for a game-high with four steals. Hutchins-Everett and Paez each dished out three assists.
The Governors shot 43.9 percent (25-of-57) overall and 85.7 percent (6-of-7) fm the free throw line, including a 3-of-3 mark from Durugordon.
Austin Peay State University erased a 10-point, second-half deficit and regained the lead, 49-48, following a pair of Jalen Ware free throws at the 9:23 mark. Three lead changes ensued in less than a minute, but a Paez triple put his team back in front, 54-53, with 6:54 to go.
Copeland and Paez baskets gave their team a 58-55 upper hand with 4:53 on the clock. Copeland’s second layup in less than two minutes gave the Governors a 60-58 edge at the 3:36 mark, but his team went scoreless the rest of the way.
Wednesday marks the second-straight year and nine out of the last 10 the Governors face at least one SEC opponent.
Austin Peay State University has won four games against SEC opponents and five against current members of the league in its history.
- Austin Peay 40, Vanderbilt 28 (1939-40; at Austin Peay)
- Austin Peay 2, Vanderbilt 0* (1939-40; at Austin Peay)
- Austin Peay 76, Texas A&M 70^ (December 28th, 1977; neutral site)
- Austin Peay 103, Mississippi State 97 (January 2nd, 1992; at Austin Peay)
- Austin Peay 74, Tennessee 70 (December 10th, 2011; at Tennessee)
* win by forfeit
^ Southwest Conference member at time of game
Prior to facing Murray State, the Governors had not trailed in their previous two games and had not faced a deficit in their last 97:50 of game action.
Elijah Hutchins-Everett posted his first double-double this season and seventh of his career against the Racers after totaling game-highs in points (17) and rebounds (11).
APSU has won three of its last four games in December.
Austin Peay State University’s 26 assists against Kentucky Christian on December 6th were the most since recording that many against Oakland City on November 6th, 2018. The 58 rebounds against Kentucky Christian were the most for the Governors in the Dunn Center since recording 67 against Southern Indiana on December 8th, 1975.
The 23 offensive rebounds were the most for Austin Peay State University at home since pulling down 24 versus Eastern Kentucky on February 15th, 2020.
The 25 made free throws versus Lindsey Wilson were the most for the Governors since tallying 27 against Dayton on November 20th, 2021. The 29 free throw attempts were the most for Nate James‘s squad since attempting 38 against Southeast Missouri on Jan. 1, 2022.
The Governors have shot better than 50 percent in three of their last five games.
Austin Peay State University is the only team in the nation to face the two tallest players in the country this season in Western Kentucky’s Jamarion Sharp (7-foot-5) and Purdue’s Zach Edey (7-foot-4). Including South Florida’s Russel Tchewa (7-foot-0), Bucknell’s Andre Screen (7-foot-1) and Noah Williamson (7-foot-0), Lindsey Wilson’s Lucas Ribeiro (7-foot-0), and Tennessee’s Uros Plavsic (7-foot-1), the Governors will have faced seven 7-footers this year.
Drew Calderon posted career-highs in 3-pointers made (6) and attempted (11) in the Governors’ win over Kentucky Christian.
Durugordon was named the ASUN Newcomer of the Week on December 5th. He became the school’s second player to garner the honor in three weeks after Shon Robinson claimed the award Nov. 21.
Durugordon averaged 16.0 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 2.5 assists against Western Kentucky and Tennessee State. He recorded eight points, seven rebounds and two assists, on November 30th, in a one-point loss to the Hilltoppers in the Dunn Center.
Durugordon posted career-highs in points (24), minutes (40), field goals made (9), and steals (2) and tied a career-high with three assists, on December 3rd, in the Governors’ 77-61 win at home against Tennessee State. He also tallied six boards and a block against the Tigers.
Cameron Copeland has scored in double figures in six of the last eight games, including three of 15 points or more.
Austin Peay State University is 4-1 this season when Caleb Stone-Carrawell scores at least 12 points.
APSU has recorded 22 dunks in 12 games.
Against Murray State, Carlos Paez, now with 361 career assists, passed Greg Franklin (1989-93) for sixth on Austin Peay State University’s all-time list.
The Governors are 9-1 in their last nine games when holding opponents to 60 or fewer points.
Over the past five seasons, Austin Peay State University is 74-22 when holding a halftime lead.
Since the 2010-11 season, the APSU Govs have compiled a record of 155-82 when scoring 70 points or more.
Austin Peay State University has made at least one 3-pointer in 649-straight games. The last time the Governors did not make a trey was on February 18th, 2002 against Morehead State.
The Governors have won four of their last five games when they make 10 or more 3-pointers.
Austin Peay State University has won five of its last six games, including three straight, when recording 10 or more steals.
APSU leads the ASUN in free throws made per game (13.2). The Governors are second in the league and 79th nationally in 3-point percentage defense (.305), third in the conference and 73rd in the country in turnover margin (2.7) and offensive rebounds per game (12.0).
Hutchins-Everett is second in the league in rebounds (86). Durugordon is second in the conference in offensive rebounds per game (2.58).
The Governors are represented by nine states – Tennessee (Kamarie Coffey, Codey Bates, Jacob Roberts), North Carolina (Stone-Carrawell, Ware), New York (Durugordon, Kelechi Okworogwo), New Jersey (Elijah Perkins, Rodrique Massenat), Texas (Calderon), Maryland (Guy Fauntleroy), Illinois (Robinson), Alabama (Nathan Moore), and Georgia (Copeland). Paez, from Venezuela, is the team’s lone international player. Austin Peay has had a player from outside of the United States on its roster every season dating back to the 2013-14 campaign.
Austin Peay State University is:
- 5-1 when leading with five minutes to play in regulation
- 6-2 when leading with two minutes to play in regulation
- 5-0 when shooting a higher field goal percentage than its opponent
- 5-2 when shooting 40 percent or better
- 6-2 when its opponent shoots under 50 percent
- 5-1 when outrebounding its opponent
- 3-1 when making 10 or more 3-pointers
- 5-1 when making more free throws than its opponent
- 4-1 when making 15 or more free throws
- 4-1 when recording more assists than its opponent
- 3-0 when recording 15 or more assists
- 3-0 when scoring more points in the paint than its opponent
- 3-1 in December
Austin Peay State University has won at least three-consecutive games:
- in the Dunn Center
- on Mondays
- leading with two minutes to play in regulation
- shooting a higher field goal percentage than its opponent
- outrebounding its opponent
- recording more offensive rebounds than its opponent
- making more 3-pointers than its opponent
- sinking more free throws than its opponent
- making 15 or more free throws
- recording 15 or more assists
- scoring more bench points than its opponent
- scoring more points in the paint than its opponent
- scoring more second chance points than its opponent
About the Tennessee Men’s Basketball
The Tennessee Vols basketball team is coming off a 75-70 loss at then-No. 9/9 Arizona on December 17th. Zakai Zeigler netted a career-high 21 points on 8-for-11 shooting. Olivier Nkamhoua was the other Vol in double figures, scoring 16 points.
Tennessee is 20-1 all-time against current members of the Atlantic Sun Conference, with its only loss to the Governors in 2011.
Tennessee assistant coach Rod Clark held the same role at Austin Peay State University during the 2020-21 season. The ensuing offseason, Clark was hired by head coach Rick Barnes to join the Volunteers’ staff.
The Volunteers lead the nation in offensive rebounding, pulling down 15.0 offensive boards per game.
Julian Phillips ranks third among all major-conference freshmen in offensive rebounding, with 2.8 per game. No freshman has attempted more free throws than Phillips (67).
Santiago Vescovi became the 54th player in program history to reach the 1,000-point milestone. He reached the mark in his 90th-career game.
During the Barnes era (2015-present), Tennessee has made 30 appearances in the top 10 of the AP Top 25.
Tennessee has not lost consecutive games since the 2021 postseason. The Volunteers have not suffered consecutive non-conference losses since dropping games against Wisconsin (December 28th, 2019) and at No. 3 Kansas (January 25th, 2020).
For the fourth straight week, the Volunteers own the best adjusted defensive efficiency in the country, per KenPom, allowing only 80.9 points per 100 possessions. Tennessee owns the best 3-point percentage defense (.202) and second-best overall field-goal defense (.336).
Tennessee has won its last 10 games against in-state opponents and is 26-5 against in-state foes under Barnes, but Wednesday marks the first time these programs will meet during Barnes’ Tennessee tenure.
Last Meeting
Austin Peay State University won at Tennessee, 74-70, on December 10th, 2011.
APSU scored the game’s final eight points. With the Governors trailing 70-66 with 2:39 remaining, Melvin Baker, on a pass from TyShwan Edmondson, responded with his second 3 of the game at the 2:08 mark to slice the deficit to one.
After a Tennessee turnover, the Govs captured the lead, 71-70, when Edmondson threaded a bounce pass to Josh Terry on a reverse layup with 1:05 remaining.
After Baker blocked Cameron Tatum’s drive to the hoop with 51 seconds left, Edmondson continued the Governors’ momentum by driving the lane and floating in a jumper with 16 seconds left.
After being fouled, Terry made the second of the two-shot free-throw attempt, sealing the Governors’ first win against an SEC opponent since a 103-97 victory at home over Mississippi State on January 2nd, 1992.
Austin Peay State University shot 72.7 percent (16-of-22) from the floor in the second half.
The Governors led early in the game but trailed by as much as 10, 36-26, in the first half before cutting it to seven, 37-30, at halftime. Tennessee bolted from halftime to lead 47-35 with 17:07 remaining and still led by 11, 64-53, with 6:27 left.
However, Austin Peay closed the game on a 21-6 run, with all 21 points scored by Governors seniors – Terry (9), Edmondson (7), Baker (3), and John Fraley (2).
Terry led all scorers with 20 points to go with five assists and four steals. Edmondson added 19 points, including 11 in the final half, while Baker tossed in 10.
The APSU Govs shot a then-season-high 59.1 percent (26-of-44) from the floor.
The Governors were outrebounded 24-12 in the first half, out-boarded Tennessee in the second, 12-10, and only allowed four second-chance points.
After committing 10 first-half turnovers, the Governors only committed six in the second period while forcing nine Volunteers’ miscues. Austin Peay finished with 10 steals.
Jeronne Maybin finished with 18 points and nine rebounds in the loss. Jordan McRae added 14 points and Kenny Hall 12 along with 10 rebounds for a double-double effort.
Tip-Ins
A pair of sophomores – Coffey and Tennessee forward Alec Kegler – are both natives of Clarksville. Coffey attended West Creek High School and Kegler Northeast High School.
Tickets
Single-game tickets to any of the Governors’ nine remaining regular-season home contests in their final season in the Dunn Center start as low as $10.00 and can be purchased:
- In-person by visiting the SS&E office inside the Dunn Center
- online
- By calling 931-221-PEAY (7329)
