Ohio Valley Conference Notebook
Bulldogs Showing Bark Early
No one believed in the Samford Bulldogs at the beginning of the season, evident by the Ohio Valley coaches and sports information directors picking them to finish 10th in a conference of 11 teams. However, six games into the conference season, the Bulldogs must have believers now after starting the league 6-0, including a road win Saturday night against Eastern Kentucky.
Samford has been tough at home, winning three games against teams favored to finish at the top of the conference. Tennessee State and Murray State, the top two preseason favorites fell to the Bulldogs, with Eastern Kentucky joining the two schools for Samford’s OVC trifecta.
Coach Jimmy Tillette uses a slow-down Princeton-style offense that relies heavily on shot selection and shooting percentage. Samford lives by the three, and they have been living like kings in their six OVC games. As a team, the Bulldogs are averaging 43 percent from behind the arc, which is first in the OVC and third in the entire nation. Forward J. Robert Merritt leads Samford with 15.8 points per game behind his 49 three pointers on 47 percent shooting on three-point attempts.
Looking ahead on their conference schedule the Bulldogs have a visit to Eastern Illinois and Southeast Missouri State, which could pose a threat to the undefeated streak as the Redhawks disposed of Austin Peay Saturday at SEMO’s Show Me Center. The bottom half of their schedule gets a little tougher with two games against also-undefeated Tennessee Tech, another matchup with Eastern Kentucky and Tennessee State, and two against Austin Peay. No one is going to be taking Samford lightly through the rest of the OVC schedule as the Bulldogs have more than proved themselves in these first couple of weeks.
Tennessee Tech Off to Flying Start
Two teams remain undefeated in OVC play, and with Samford being such a surprise, attention has drifted away from the Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles. Tech sits at 6-0 to start the season behind Preseason OVC Player of the Year Willie Jenkins. Jenkins leads the Golden Eagles in scoring and is second in the OVC with 19.4 points per game. The early favorite for Player of the Year also cleans up on the glass with 7.4 rebounds per game.
Tech started their conference schedule by taking care of business at home with four wins, most notably against Eastern Kentucky. The Golden Eagles narrowly escaped Southeast Missouri State on the road, and they beat Eastern Illinois handily Saturday night. The undefeated record will be on the line Tuesday night as Tennessee Tech visits Clarksville, Tenn. for a matchup against Austin Peay.
OVC Player of the Week: Willie Jenkins, Tennessee Tech
Jenkins has been the main cog in the Tennessee Tech machine that has started with an unblemished 6-0 start in the OVC. Jenkins averaged 27.5 points and 9.5 rebounds in the Golden Eagles two victories against Southeast Missouri State and Eastern Illinois. The forward from Memphis was the difference in an 82-81 overtime win against the Redhawks as he put up 34 points and 10 rebounds.
Team Notes
Samford Bulldogs (11-6, 6-0)
Samford beat Morehead State 56-51 on Jan. 20 to go to 5-0 and then used an incredible second-half comeback to beat the Colonels of Eastern Kentucky Saturday 67-61.
The Bulldogs found themselves trailing at halftime, 30-17, and 33-17 a couple of minutes into the second half. But they soon found a rhythm behind the arc. Samford went on a 44-15 run in the next 14 minutes to go up by as many as 13 points. During the run, Samford’s assassins went 8-of-9 from three-point range. EKU withered down the stretch shooting just 35 percent in the second half.
In their six conference games, Samford is shooting 46 percent from the three-point line and the Bulldogs are leading in team defense giving up only 58 points per game. The style of play has frustrated teams so far, and it looks like only a patient team playing tough D on the perimeter can beat the Bulldogs right now.
Up next: At Eastern Illinois on Jan. 27 and at Southeast Missouri State Jan. 29.
Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles (11-6, 6-0)
It comes to no surprise that Tennessee Tech is at the forefront of the OVC standings as they too have a perfect 6-0 record. Coach Mike Sutton has the leading candidate for OVC Player of the Year, forward Willie Jenkins, as well as a candidate for Newcomer of the Year, forward Derek Stribling. Jenkins and Stribling have teamed with guard Keyon Boyd to lead the Golden Eagles to a fast start within the conference.
The Golden Eagles are coming off wins against Southeast Missouri State and Eastern Illinois. Tech had to go to overtime to beat the Redhawks 82-81 on Jan. 20 but had an easier time dispensing of the Panthers 81-68 on Jan. 22. Jenkins’ two games last week earned him Player of the Week honors.
During the Jan. 29 doubleheader versus Tennessee State, the Tech community is hosting Drew Nixon Night to honor a receiver on their football team who suffered a major head injury that left him in a coma. Nixon is still going through recovery, and has had trouble learning how to walk again. His night at the Eblen Center in Cookeville, Tenn., will be the first time in five months that Nixon has walked on campus.
Up next: At Austin Peay Jan. 25 and vs. Tennessee State Jan. 29.
Murray State Racers (10-6, 5-1)
The preseason’s team to beat in the OVC has suffered only one defeat – to first-place Samford – and sits alone in the third-place slot. Like other teams who visited Birmingham, Ala., to face the Bulldogs, the Racers could not force the tempo and make the Bulldog shooters take poor shots.
Murray State had no trouble taking care of Tennessee-Martin, 96-70, on Jan. 18 as they opened the game with a 13-3 run and didn’t look back. The Racers would increase their lead to over 30 before the final margin of 26.
The Racers went home for a game on Jan. 22 when they beat then 3-1 Tennessee State 82-74. Guard Keith Jenifer led the Racers with 17 points, seven assists and just one turnover.
Up next: At Eastern Kentucky Jan.27 and at Morehead State Jan.29.
Tennessee State Tigers (9-11, 4-2)
After going just 6-10 in the conference and 7-21 overall, the Tennessee State Tigers have already surpassed last year’s overall win total, and they are off to a great start within the conference.
The Tigers posted a 92-76 win on the road against Tennessee-Martin on Jan. 20 but suffered an 82-74 loss to Murray State two days later. Last year’s OVC Freshman of the Year Bruce Price has led the Tigers to their 4-2 start in the OVC. Price is averaging 15.2 points per game but has yet to find his shooting stroke, making only 38 percent of his field goals. Price also averages 3.2 assists, good enough for the team lead.
Transfer Rod Flowers is also making a case for Newcomer of the Year as he is averaging 13.8 points a contest. His 7.8 rebounds per game puts him third in the conference.
Up next: At Austin Peay Jan. 27 and at Tennessee Tech Jan. 29.
Eastern Kentucky Colonels (11-6, 3-3)
The scheduling gods were not favorable for the EKU Colonels as they were forced to play their first four games of the conference schedule on the road. Coach Travis Ford and his squad managed to come out 2-2 with losses to Murray State and Tennessee Tech, but they will now be forced to play catch-up after a disappointing 67-61 loss to Samford.
The Colonels led big at the half, but the second half was a completely different story as the Bulldogs shot down the house and made up a double-digit deficit. The Colonels’ leading scorer, guard Matt Witt, could not find his touch, shooting 3-of-15 for just seven points.
Eastern scored a win prior to the Samford loss as they shut down last-place Jacksonville State 72-60. The Colonels are currently on a five-game home stand to balance their first four road games.
Up next: Vs. Murray State Jan. 27 and vs. Tennessee-Martin Jan. 29.
Austin Peay Governors (5-13, 3-3)
Following a perfect 16-0 conference record always has to be hard for a team and its coach, but Austin Peay is still a dangerous team in the conference despite losing most of its players from last season’s team.
In the opposite way of Eastern Kentucky, the Governors played four home games and went 3-1 in that stretch. Two road games followed, and coach Dave Loos and his squad did not find the same luxury as they did at home dropping two straight contests.
Austin Peay lost to Eastern Illinois 63-51 on Jan. 20 and Southeast Missouri State 65-52 on Jan. 22. The Govs never seemed to be in control of either game and could not find an answer for the other team’s attack.
Loos certainly challenged his team with a very difficult non-conference schedule, including games against Louisville, Vanderbilt, Memphis and Western Kentucky, which is part of the reason why his team sits at 5-13.
Up next: Vs. Tennessee Tech Jan. 25 and vs. Tennessee State Jan. 27.
Morehead State Eagles (8-9, 2-4)
The Eagles of Morehead State got off to a rough 1-4 start but have since gained a win and are looking for more wins at home to increase their conference record.
Morehead fell to Samford 56-51 on Jan. 20 and beat Jacksonville State 69-63 on Jan. 22. One of the questions going into the season was who was going to step in for Ricky Minard and Chez Marks, and the answer has been Chad McKnight and Josh Reed.
McKnight leads the team in scoring with 15.9 points per game and rebounding with 7.1 rebounds per game, while Reed is second in scoring with 11.4 points per game. Reed is also shooting a respectable 40 percent from three-point range.
With seven freshmen on the Eagles’ roster, coach Kyle Macy is using this year to rebuild. But at the same time, he wants to make sure his team takes part in the OVC Tournament come March.
Up next: Vs. Tennessee-Martin Jan. 27 and vs. Murray State Jan. 29.
Southeast Missouri State Redhawks (7-10, 2-4)
Although Southeast Missouri State may have a new mascot and team name, it doesn’t mean that no one recognizes them anymore. Despite going just 2-4 in their first six games of the OVC schedule, the Redhawks have two of the most dominating players thus far in the conference.
Forward Dainmon Gonner is averaging 20.6 points and 6.9 rebounds per game while center Reggie Golson averages 16.8 points, 8.8 rebounds and 2.5 blocks per game. Gonner leads the OVC in scoring while Golson is third in scoring and tied for first in rebounding.
The Redhawks went 1-1 last week with an 82-81 overtime loss to undefeated Tennessee Tech and a 65-52 win against last season’s regular season champion Austin Peay.
Up next: Vs. Jacksonville State Jan. 27 and vs. Samford Jan. 29.
Eastern Illinois Panthers (6-11, 1-5)
Eastern Illinois continues to make strides from last season when they finished last in the OVC with four wins and six wins overall. The Panthers are already at six wins overall this season, but they are not having much luck in OVC play.
The Panthers lost their first four OVC games – all on the road – but rebounded with a home win against Austin Peay 63-51 on Jan. 20. However, EIU could not keep the momentum going and fell to Tennessee Tech 81-68 two days later.
Junior guard Josh Gomes leads the Panthers in scoring with 15.2 points per game. Emanuel Dildy averages 14.7 points a game and leads EIU in assists with 3.4 a game.
Up next: Vs. Samford Jan. 27 and vs. Jacksonville State Jan. 29.
Tennessee-Martin Skyhawks (4-13, 1-5)
Tennessee-Martin has failed to get off to a good start as poor shooting in almost all of their conference games has been its downfall. The Skyhawks are shooting just 41 percent from the field, which is last among all teams in the OVC.
The Skyhawks are on a three-game skid which includes losses against Samford on the road and Murray State and Tennessee State at home. Martin was pounded from the start of the Murray State contest and lost 96-70, and they gave up 90 points in their second straight game, this time to the Tigers in a 92-76 loss.
Jared Newson is the team’s leading scorer with 14.8 points per game, but he is shooting just 40 percent from the field and 18 percent from the three-point line.
Up next: At Morehead State Jan. 27 and at Eastern Kentucky Jan. 29.
Jacksonville State Gamecocks (4-14, 0-6)
After finishing their first season in the OVC with a 7-9 record, Jacksonville State seems to be experiencing a sophomore slump with losses in their first six conference games. The Gamecocks are also on an 11-game losing streak overall.
Jacksonville State is fresh off losses to Eastern Kentucky and Morehead State last week. They fell 72-60 against the Colonels and 69-63 to the Eagles in their turn on the Death Valley road trip.
The Gamecocks have been losing on the court and off of it as coach Mike LaPlante granted junior Rod Venner his release from the team so he could start the transfer process.
Venner played in 11 games this season averaging five points a game in 17.2 minutes per game. He started one game for Jacksonville State.
Up next: At Southeast Missouri State Jan. 27 and at Eastern Illinois Jan. 29.
