Nashville, TN (Sports Network) - Kelly Thornton finished with 25 points to
lead the Tennessee State Tigers to a 85-81 overtime victory over the Eastern
Kentucky Colonels, in an Ohio Valley Conference tilt at the Gentry Center.
For the Tigers (17-13, 11-5 OVC), Patrick Miller added a double-double with 19
points and 11 assists, Robert Covington posted his own double-double with 13
points and 16 rebounds, Jay Harris scored 11 points and Jordan Cyphers chipped
in with 11 points, Tennessee State will be the four seed in the OVC
Tournament, playing the winner of Morehead State and Tennessee-Martin next
week.
Mike DiNunno scored 24 points for the Colonels (23-8, 12-4), while Glenn Cosey
added 16 points, Corey Walden scored 12 points and Marcus Lewis tallied 10
points. The Colonels will play as the No. 3 seed in the conference tournament
and take on the winner of the game between the No. 6 Southeast Missouri and
No. 7 Eastern Illinois at Municipal Auditorium in Nashville.
The Colonels took a 35-27 lead into halftime by knocking down 7-of-18 from 3-
point range in the first half, as part of a 42.9 shooting performance from the
field. The Tigers shot 40 percent from the field and 2-of-7 from beyond the 3-
point arc before intermission.
In the second half, the Tiger caught fire, draining 71.4 percent of their
field goal tries and holding the Colonels to just 35.5 percent from the field.
With the game tied at 68, Harris hit a 3-pointer from the corner giving the
Tigers the lead with 1:30 left in regulation. The Colonels responded with a
three of their own, and had a chance to win the game in the waning seconds but
two jumpers missed the mark, forcing overtime.
Tennessee State trailed by one point in the overtime until Thornton and Miller
both scored to make it 77-74 in favor of the Tigers. Tennessee State never
relinquished its lead and made 8-of-10 free throws down the stretch and pull
out the win.
The Tigers outscored the Colonels in the paint, 36-20, and outrebounded them,
42-29. The Colonels had the edge in points off of turnovers, 25-13.
GAME NOTES:
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