MARTIN, Tenn. – Yet another University of Tennessee at Martin men’s basketball decision came down to the wire today as the Skyhawks held on for an 85-82 victory over SIUE at the Kathleen and Tom Elam Center.
Today’s result was the 11th contest so far this season where UT Martin’s final score was within five points or went into overtime – including seven of the eight Ohio Valley Conference decisions. The Skyhawks clawed out of a 14-point first-half deficit to lead for the entire second half before crossing the finish line victorious.
Vladimer Salaridze topped UT Martin (9-10, 5-3 OVC) in scoring for the second straight game, tallying 16 points to go along with three rebounds, three assists and two steals. Josué Grullon added 14 points off the bench – including two big free throws with six seconds remaining – while Matija Žužić (12 points) and Tarence Guinyard (11 points, five rebounds, four assists) also cracked double figures in the scoring column.
The Skyhawks also received significant offensive contributions from the point guard duo of Carlos Cortijo and Afan Trnka, who both posted identical stat lines of nine points and a game-high five assists. Andrija Bukumirović added eight points for a UT Martin squad that shot 54.9 percent (28-of-51) from the floor – its highest output against a NCAA Division I opponent in 2024-25.
The Cougars (12-7, 5-3 OVC) were led by 23 points out of Ray’Sean Taylor as their five-game winning streak was snapped. He joined Brian Taylor II (19 points), Ring Malith (14) and Jordan Pickett (12) in double figures scoring but 14 SIUE turnovers led to 20 Skyhawk points.
“SIUE is a great team that is so well-coached and has so much talent,” UT Martin head coach Jeremy Shulman said. “We knew it was going to be an absolute battle coming in and our guys were up for it. Our guards were really good – for us to share the ball on offense and create for others like we did tonight was great to see.”
The Cougars scored 16 of the first 21 points and eventually led by as many as 14 points (27-13) with 10:24 to go in the first half.
Bukumirović then ignited a 19-3 run with back-to-back three-pointers from the left corner. Cortijo was then responsible for six points in a stretch of 1:13 – including a four-point play that tilted the score back in favor of the Skyhawks at 31-30 at the 6:14 mark.
SIUE briefly reclaimed the lead but Grullon scored five of UT Martin’s final seven points of the first half, including a buzzer-beating trifecta that gave the Skyhawks a 39-36 edge through 20 minutes. The trio of Guinyard, Cortijo and Bukumirović each had team-highs of six points for UT Martin, who had seven players score at least four points in the opening half. Brian Taylor’s 10 points guided the Cougars in the first half.
Žužić connected on back-to-back three-pointers to begin the second half, leading to an 8-0 Skyhawk run. Grullon knocked down a triple with 12:45 left to play to extend UT Martin’s lead out to 59-45 – its biggest advantage of the day.
The Cougars pulled back within one possession (64-61) with eight minutes remaining and trimmed the Skyhawk lead to 73-72 with 3:30 to go. UT Martin stayed strong down the stretch, making all three of its field goal tries and adding six free throws over the last 2:37 to claim its fourth consecutive win over SIUE.
The Skyhawks now face a split week where they will face a pair of in-state rivals. UT Martin’s week begins with a Tuesday, Jan. 21 matchup at Tennessee State as tipoff time from Nashville is set for 7:30 p.m.
