Clarksville, TN – Sai Witt led the way with 27 points, while Ja’Monta Black and DeMarcus Sharp each totaled 20 points in a 94-71 Atlantic Sun Conference victory against Central Arkansas, Saturday, on Gary Mathews Court at F&M Bank Arena. The 23-point win is the largest margin of victory for the Austin Peay State University (APSU) basketball team in its ASUN Conference Era.
Witt’s 27-point performance was the best as a Governor – surpassing his previous season high of 21 points against Sacramento State on November 22nd, in the 2023 SoCal Challenge – and one point from matching his career high set at Lincoln, Missouri, January 2020.
For Sharp, he now has logged 20 points a team-best 10 times this season, including in each of his last four games. That streak is tied with APSU alum and current Chicago Bull Terry Taylor – who scored 20 points in five-straight games as well– for the second-longest streak of consecutive 20-point performances in the Governors’ digital record-keeping era.
The first six-plus minutes featured all five lead changes, and four instances in the game were locked in a stalemate.
From there, it was all Govs.
After splitting the first 26 points of the game following a Central Arkansas (7-14, 3-2 ASUN) driving layup, Austin Peay (10-10, 3-2 ASUN) went on a 10-0 run that spanned less than two minutes, with Black and Isaac Haney knocking down a pair of three-pointers and Sharp connecting on a par of mid-range jumpers.
After a slight comeback in which UCA trimmed its deficit to single-digits at 28-21, a Dezi Jones driving layup was followed by six-straight points by Witt as the APSU Govs jumped out to their largest lead of the first half, leading 36-21 with 4:55 left in the opening 20 minutes.
Austin Peay State University maintained its double-digit advantage for all but one possession down the stretch of the opening frame and led 47-36 at the break.
The Govs’ 47 first-half points are its most in a first half this season, surpassing a 46-point first-half against Midway on December 5th. The total also was the third-highest across any half this season and trailed only 52 and 48 second-half points against Midway and Life, respectively.
The final period opened with APSU connecting on six of its seven attempts from the field, with the Govs extending its lead to 59-38 with 16:38 remaining in the game following Haney’s third triple of the afternoon.
The Bears trimmed the APSU lead to as low as 14 points on the possession prior to the under-12 media timeout, but back-to-back triples by Black – his fifth and sixth of the game – regained a 20-point cushion for APSU.
Sharp scored eight of APSU’s 10 points between 7:05-3:03 to reach the 20-point mark and conclude the Govs’ offensive masterpiece of a night, with the 94 points tying for its second-highest offensive performance of the season.
The Difference
Balanced scoring. Five Governors scored in double figures and three scored at least 20. The Govs’ second and third-best scorers (Black and Sharp, 20 points) outscored UCA’s top scorer of Daniel Sofield who logged 19 points.
Inside the Box Score
Austin Peay State University improved to 10-10 on the season, 3-2 in ASUN play, and 7-1 at F&M Bank Arena.
The Governors’ 10 wins surpasses their win total from last season, while the three ASUN victories match last year’s total mark.
Sai Witt led Austin Peay State University in scoring for the first time this season with a season-high 27 points. The point total is the second-best of his career and trails only his 28-point performance against Missouri Western, January 30th, 2021 while at Lincoln Missouri.
Witt also led the APSU Govs in rebounding for the fourth time this season with eight.
DeMarcus Sharp scored 20 points in the win, marking his 10th 20-point outing of the season and fourth-straight. He is the first Governor to score 20-plus points in four straight games since Terry Taylor accomplished such, February 2021.
Sharp’s four-straight 20-point performances also are tied with Taylor’s mark for the second-most in the Governors digital record-keeping era, trailing only Taylor’s five-straight, March 5th-November 27th, 2020.
Ja’Monta Black logged his fourth 20-point outing and game with at least five three-pointers as a Gov with his 20 points and six triples.
With seven turnovers, the APSU Govs had had nine-or-fewer giveaways in five-straight games and 11 times this season.
Austin Peay State University scored 47 points in both the first and second half. It was the Govs best first-half point total, and both were the third-best scoring total across any half this season.
After scoring 83 points in Thursday’s win against North Alabama, Austin Peay State University has scored at least 80 points in back-to-back games for the first time this season and the first time against Division I opponents since scoring 86 and 82 points against Belmont and SIU, the respectively, in Jan. 2020.
Austin Peay State University’s 36 field goals are its second-most of the season and most against a Division I opponent.
The Govs’ knocked down 10 triples against the Bears, which marked the program’s sixth time with at least that many this season.
Austin Peay State University’s bench scored 41 points, its highest mark of the season by 10 points – which was set last game against North Alabama.
With Isaac Haney’s three-pointer at the 17:28 mark of the first half, he extended Austin Peay State University’s program record of consecutive games with a triple to 686 games, a streak that began February 23rd, 2002.APSU’s 23-point victory is its largest margin of victory in an ASUN Conference game and is the largest in any conference game since defeating SIUE, 82-58, on January 30th, 2020.
Coach’s Corner
With Head Men’s Basketball Coach Corey Gipson
Overall Thoughts… “Our guys are now starting to put it together. We have had to make some adjustments with how we play offensively and defensively with the additions we’ve made, so that takes some time. We have had to change a few things, and now, we are starting to get into a rhythm with the additions and the new system that we have put in and implemented and now we are starting to see that carry over into games. Now we have to go from good to great. We cannot get content and rest on our laurels, we have to build on the past two games.”
On the Balanced Offense… “It all comes down to chemistry. Those guys are still learning to play with one another and that takes time. Sai Witt had never played with Ja’Monta Black or DeMarcus Sharp before. And then you take Haney, who didn’t get a chance to start the season with the transfer rule. We’ve also added JaVar Daniel and Jordan Wilmore. It has taken time to integrate all these guys. It takes a good heart and a good mind to welcome change, because when you add pieces, sometimes it may take away from playing time of a brother, and that person still has to keep some energy and encourage somebody that may be getting their time now. We got stuck in a rut with something like that, but now we are starting to find some good, loving chemistry and we have to continue to make sure that we don’t get content where we’re at right now. We still have to find a rhythm in getting momentum on the road. We haven’t struck gold that way yet. We have to get momentum on the road down in Florida next week.”
On the Holding a UCA Team that Hit 19 Threes on Thursday to Just Five Tonight… “First of all, that staff is doing a phenomenal job. Central Arkansas’ coach [Anthony Boone] is my hero. Just two years ago, that man had open-heart surgery and he is here pacing that sideline with energy and enthusiasm and being a living witness of ‘you can go through something and still have a passion.’ It is great to see that walking testimony. Our guys did a great job tonight of paying attention to the scouting report. Going into this game, we knew they could really hit the three-ball, so we were able to run them off the line and force them into taking tough two-pointers and that made the difference in the game.”
Follow The APSU Govs
For news and updates throughout the Governors inaugural season in F&M Bank Arena, follow the Austin Peay State Universitymen’s basketball team on X and Instagram (@GovsMBB), on Facebook (Austin Peay Men’s Basketball), or check back at LetsGoPeay.com.
Next Up For APSU Men’s Basketball
It’s back to the road for the Austin Peay Stae University men’s basketball team, as they head down to the Sunshine State for three-straight games beginning with a Thursday 6:00pm CT contest against Stetson, before turning their attention to a Saturday 6:00pm CT contest at Florida Gulf Coast in Fort Myers, Florida.
