The men’s basketball team dropped an 89-79 decision to the University of Tennessee-Martin Skyhawks on Saturday. The game was part of thelast-everRamadaWorldwide BracketBusters tournament. The event featured 122 teams across the nation and is designed to give a glimpse into the upcoming NCAA Tournament.
The Lancers lost the game despite leading a tense 43-42 contest at halftime. On the game as a whole, 10th-year Head Coach Mike Gillian said, “I wouldn’t say that there is anything that got away from us in the second half. We needed to get a couple of more defensive stops.”
According to Gillian, part of the reason for the loss was because of the number of free throws attempted by the Skyhawks. “There were a lot of fouls called on us [and that] gave them an opportunity to shoot free throws.” The Skyhawks ended up with a grand total of 24 attempts and connected on 19 of them.
UT-Martin grabbed the lead for good off of a three-point goal from sophomore forward Taylor Myles with 10 minutes left in the game. Myles finished the game with 18 points. Four players on the Skyhawks roster finished the game in double figures.
The Lancers attempted a comeback effort in the final minute after junior guard Tristan Carey drained a three- pointer. It brought the Lancers back to within four at 77-73, but UT-Martin was able to close the deal with their free throws down the stretch.
Carey led the Lancers with 23 points. This performance marked the third game in a row that Carey scored 20 points or more. The offensive output helped Carey earn Big South Player of the Week honors.
Carey is the first Lancer to accomplish this.
Despite the loss, Gillian remains optimistic that the team is heading down the right path. The team has won three of their last five contests dating back to their first-ever Big South win against Winthrop on Feb. 9. According to Gillian, the team “is functioning well together.”
Gillian believes this has a lot to do with the play of Carey, especially on the defensive end of the court. According to Gillian, the standout junior is “putting a considerable effort into doing the things that are necessary for the team to succeed.”
This includes, according to Gillian, grabbing offensive and defensive rebounds on top of scoring as he has the past three games. “The challenge with that now is ... ‘what do you do with that?’”
The play of the Lancers received a boost from freshmen Karal Ziegler and Lucas Woodhouse. Woodhouse finished the game against UT-Martin with 10 points and a team-high five assists. GIllian said, "The game is slowing down and around them... they are realizing that they don't have to rush."
The Lancers will wrap up the regular season with road games against the Campbell Camels tonight, and the VMI Keydets on Saturday. Longwood lost both of the previous games against Campbell and VMI.
In the first match-up against VMI on Feb. 6, the Lancers lost 93-60. The Keydets were by senior Stan Okoye and junior D.J. Covington with 27 and 25 points respectively. The Lancers never seemed to have a chance as VMI opened up a 20-7 lead in the first seven minutes. After that, the Lancers never got closer than 11 points.
In the Campbell game on Jan. 9, the Lancers lost by 10 after the game was tied at 32 going into halftime. Longwood trailed the Camels for a good portion of the tightly contested second half. However, the Lancers were unable to get closer than one point in the final five minutes.
Despite the previous results, Gillian appears to be confident heading into tonight’s game. “What it comes down to is staying focused, especially on defense,” he said. On the offensive end, Gillian believes the team needs to be “balanced and focused.” Gillian is pleased with the offensive output by the team in recent weeks.
After the road games conclude, the attention of Gillian and the Lancers willshifttowardtheBigSouth Tournament on the campus of Coastal Carolina University in Conway, SC, near Myrtle Beach. The team is looking to go in to the tournament with as much momentum as possible.
Despite the standings in the Big South, Gillian said, “I don’t think anyone in this league tournament is going to be looking forward to playing Longwood when we get down to Myrtle Beach.” Tipoff from Buies Creek, NC is slated for 7 p.m. tonight
