Sears leads UT Martin against SIU-Edwardsville after 32-point outing

UT Martin Skyhawks (15-8, 7-3 OVC) at SIU-Edwardsville Cougars (14-9, 5-5 OVC)

Edwardsville, Illinois; Thursday, 7 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: UT Martin takes on the SIU-Edwardsville Cougars after Jordan Sears scored 32 points in UT Martin's 86-83 overtime win against the Southern Indiana Screaming Eagles.

The Cougars are 7-3 in home games. SIU-Edwardsville is seventh in the OVC scoring 72.8 points while shooting 42.8% from the field.

The Skyhawks are 7-3 against OVC opponents. UT Martin is sixth in the OVC shooting 33.4% from deep. Dylan Pumpian paces the Skyhawks shooting 50% from 3-point range.

The matchup Thursday is the first meeting of the season between the two teams in conference play.

TOP PERFORMERS: Ray'Sean Taylor is scoring 14.9 points per game and averaging 4.2 rebounds for the Cougars. Shamar Wright is averaging 1.3 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games for SIU-Edwardsville.

Parker Stewart is averaging 16.2 points and 1.5 steals for the Skyhawks. K.J. Simon is averaging 14 points and 1.7 steals over the past 10 games for UT Martin.

LAST 10 GAMES: Cougars: 5-5, averaging 68.3 points, 34.4 rebounds, 12.8 assists, 6.9 steals and 3.2 blocks per game while shooting 39.3% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 67.1 points per game.

Skyhawks: 7-3, averaging 77.1 points, 35.4 rebounds, 11.7 assists, 7.2 steals and 3.6 blocks per game while shooting 44.9% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 73.7 points.

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.