MARTIN, Tenn. – Five SIUE players scored in double figures Thursday and the Cougars led wire to wire, defeating UT Martin 90-75 at the Elam Center.
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A 14-0 run over a four-plus minute stretch in the first half allowed SIUE to build a 23-6 lead and the Cougars never looked back, improving to 8-22 overall and 5-12 in the Ohio Valley Conference.
"We are building something special and today proves that," SIUE Head Coach Brian Barone said. "The way we played together and the way we came out really proved that this is going in the right direction."
UT Martin fell to 4-13 in the OVC and 8-20 overall.
The Cougars took a 50-29 lead into the break. The 50 points were the most in a first half for the Cougars and the 21-point lead was SIUE's greatest halftime advantage against a Division I opponent.
"They had 19 assists on 20 baskets in the first half," Barone said. "What that shows is a togetherness and a willingness to give of themselves. That shows they fought for nine months as a team and they're not giving anything away just because our last day is Saturday.
"There was a rhythm," Barone added. "We hit nine threes in the first half. That isn't statistically our style. It was really cool to see how they were playing in that rhythm. Defensively it flowed as well."
The Cougars swelled their lead to as many as 25 in the second half when a Cam Williams' three-pointer made it 58-33.
SIUE connected on 48 percent (33-69) of its shots, including knocking down 11 of 24 three-pointers. Brandon Jackson paced SIUE with 21 points on 9-of-15 shooting. It was the first 20-point game of the season for the senior and the sixth of his career. Jackson now has 897 points and is 22nd all time in career scoring at SIUE.
Shamar Wright and Zeke Moore each scored 13 points and dished out three and four assists, respectively. Kenyon Duling tied his career-high with 11 points and Tyresse Williford scored 10 and added six assists. Iziah James scored seven points and provided a career-best five assists.
SIUE finished the game with a season-best 27 assists as a group.
"One of the things we wanted to do tonight was own the gaps," Barone said. "We had to be in good gap help (defense) and we had to hit the gaps offensively. We defended in the first half very well which led to some easy baskets and some fast-break assists. We had a willingness to pass it to the next guy. It became contagious."
UT Martin made two separate 7-0 runs late in the second half thanks to improved shooting. The Skyhawks were just 9-39 (23 percent) from the floor in the first half and just 1-13 from three-point range. They connected on 16 of 30 (53 percent) of their shots in the second half.
Quintin Dove led UT Martin with a double-double of 26 points and a career-best 22 rebounds. Derek Hawthorne scored 22 points and pulled down nine rebounds for UTM, which outrebounded SIUE 49-41.
SIUE concludes its season Saturday when Eastern Illinois comes to First Community Arena for a 2 p.m. tip.
"You have some seniors that are going to be out there for the last time," Barone said. "This will be the last time I get to coach this team. Let's just cherish every darn moment."
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