MARTIN, Tenn. – The University of Tennessee at Martin men’s basketball squad shattered a pair of single-game school records today, scoring the first 19 points and not looking back in a 123-56 rout over Champion Christian at the Kathleen and Tom Elam Center.
The Skyhawks knocked down 19 three-pointers – two more than their previous record of 17 against Bethel on Dec. 13, 2022 – on 42 tries for a scorching 45.2 percent shooting effort from downtown. UT Martin also corralled 73 rebounds on the day, breaking the previous mark of 68 set against Troy on Feb. 24, 1979 and Union on Feb. 19, 1974.
For the second straight game, Tarence Guinyard scored a career-best 31 points as the junior guard also added career-highs of eight rebounds and five assists in only 22 minutes of playing time.
The Skyhawk trio of Vladimer Salaridze (12 points, 13 rebounds, career-highs of four assists, four steals and two blocks), Filip Radaković (career-bests across the board of 13 points, 10 rebounds, four assists and three steals in his first start) and Lamine Niang (career-highs of 14 points and 12 rebounds) each posted double-doubles.
Josué Grullon tossed in all of his 23 points in the first half, canning seven treys while tacking on eight rebounds, four assists and two blocks in 21 minutes. Matija Žužić swished five 3-pointers on the way to 17 points, seven rebounds and five assists to complete the double-digit scorers for UT Martin, who improved to 4-7 overall. Afan Trnka dished out a career-best eight assists as the Skyhawks shot 52.9 percent (45-of-85) while flirting with the program’s all-time single-game scoring record of 129 points.
A National Collegiate Christian Association program out of Hot Springs, Ark., Champion Christian (5-2) was led by Noah Brooks’ 14 points. Adrian Brown also contributed 11 points but the stifling UT Martin defense limited the Tigers to 22.9 percent shooting overall (16-for-70) and 7-of-38 from three-point land (18.4 percent).
“I thought our guys had a really good process and came out dialed in,” Skyhawk head coach Jeremy Shulman said. “We pride ourselves on being an unselfish team – 31 assists is the number from the boxscore that I am most proud of from today’s game. Our goal is to get better every possession and every game – I thought we did that today.”
UT Martin did not allow a point until the 14:36 mark of the first half, already taking a 19-point lead in the process. A pair of Salaridze free throws with 8:44 to go before the halftime break extended the Skyhawk advantage out to 39-9.
Grullon scored 11 consecutive UT Martin points during one stretch before a Guinyard coast-to-coast fast break layup just before the halftime buzzer gave the Skyhawks a 68-29 lead. Guinyard (8-of-9 shooting) and Grullon (8-for-12) were both responsible for 23 points apiece in the opening 20 minutes. Brown’s nine points led Champion Christian in the first half.
A Niang fast break dunk at the 13:03 mark pushed UT Martin’s lead to 50 points as the Skyhawks soon hit the century mark on a Salaridze free throw with 9:27 remaining. UT Martin’s biggest lead of the afternoon came after Lucas Williams stroked the Skyhawks’ final trifecta of the day – ballooning UT Martin’s advantage to 74 points with 4:55 left to play.
The Skyhawks will now turn their attention to Ohio Valley Conference play as UT Martin’s first two league matchups are on the road next week. That stretch begins on Thursday, Dec. 19 when the Skyhawks visit Morehead State for a 6:30 p.m. CT tipoff.
