Clarksville, TN – Nearly two weeks ago, the Austin Peay State University men’s basketball team clinched the program’s first Atlantic Sun Conference Championship berth. Today, they solidified their first-ever home game in the ASUN Conference postseason in a thrilling win against one of the team’s oldest rivals.
Austin Peay State University’s basketball team outscored Eastern Kentucky 46-36 in the second half while shooting 58.1% from the field and 42.9% from the perimeter across the final 20 minutes to earn an 83-79 victory against Eastern Kentucky Wednesday at F&M Bank Arena.
EKU (17-12, 12-3 ASUN) led the game by as many as nine points late in the first half, but double-digit second-half performances by Isaac Haney, Dezi Jones, and DeMarcus Sharp, paired with a game-high 26 points by Sai Witt led helped APSU post its sixth-highest comeback of the season.
Let’s break it down from the top.
Witt scored Austin Peay State University’s first eight points of the game in the opening three minutes until a Jones three-pointer extended APSU’s lead to 11-7 prior to the first media timeout. Austin Peay (16-14, 9-6 ASUN) held the lead until a 7-0 EKU run prior to the following timeout gave EKU a 17-14 advantage nearing the midway point of the opening period.
A 3-for-3 trip to the line by Ja’Monta Black evened the rivals at 17, but would be the final instance of which that would happen, as EKU made a trio of attempts from the line itself over the next two minutes, and extended the lead on a hook shot by Isaiah Cozart to go up five.
The Colonels took a game-high nine-point lead in the final two minutes of the half, with APSU cutting it down to six before the half, after Witt scored the APSU Govs’ final five points of the half.
Witt had 11 points at the break, and continued his scoring run out of the break with a hook shot of his own to trim APSU’s deficit to four on the first possession of the second frame.
The two sides again traded scores Black’s first three-pointer of the night put the Govs up nine with just over three minutes to play. EKU trimmed its deficit to as few as three points down the stretch, but a pair of Dez White free throws in the final 15 seconds were the final nail in the coffin, as the Govs took down the Colonels for the first time in three years.
The Difference
Resiliency. Give them credit; there was a reason that Eastern Kentucky entered the day with at least a share of the ASUN Regular-Season Championship, but you can never count out the APSU Govs on their home hardwood.
After being limited to 37% from the field in the second half, Austin Peay State University answered back with a 58.1 mark across the final 20 minutes and had four players make at least half of their attempts from the field, including Sharp who made all five of his second-half attempts.
Inside the Box Score
Austin Peay State University is now locked into the No. 4 seed in the 2024 Atlantic Sun Conference Men’s Basketball Championship, which will be played March 5th at F&M Bank Arena. The Governors’ opponent and time of the game will be determined at a later date.
APSU earned its sixth win in its last seven games, and its ninth home win in its last 10 home games.
Austin Peay State University improved to 65-57 all-time against Eastern Kentucky, and 39-19 against the Colonels in Clarksville.
Sai Witt led APSU in scoring for the third time this season with his fifth 20-point performance of 2023-24.
Isaac Haney tallied his third game with at least 20 points, all coming in ASUN play.
DeMarcus Sharp returned to the lineup for the first time since a Jan. 31 game at Jacksonville. All 10 of his points came in the second half.
Ja’Monta Black improved his season total of three-pointers to 99, and now needs just four to break Todd Babington’s single-season record.
Coach’s Corner
With Head Basketball Coach Corey Gipson
On the win… “It means so much to us to be able to represent Austin Peay in this fashion. Our guys are so resilient in how they have fought all season long. We knew it was going to be a fight tonight. We knew that it was going to be a game of friction. Eastern Kentucky has a very good ball club that has shown such a competitive nature all season long and we knew that tonight was not going to be different. I am so thankful that our guys were ready for the challenge of two teams that were prepared to let iron sharped iron. Tonight, both teams made the other better.”
On the resiliency… “We have been progressing for a while and we still have not peaked. I felt like today we got some momentum, we had a little more depth and were able to make some substitutions and keep our guys fresh… the game did not dip. Being able to have a home ASUN postseason game, and to be able to do that for the first time in program history, our guys understand what that means. They know that we have to prepare starting tonight and have a great day tomorrow, as we focus on Austin Peay to get ready for the challenge that we have on Friday. We know nobody in this conference is going to lay down for anybody and every night is a fight.”
On the community… “We are all in this together. It’s about everybody. From the beginning, this community has helped push the wagon. This is a push the wagon community, not a bandwagon community. I am so thankful to be a part of a community that has helped push things along, which is something we have talked about since day one.”
Next Up For APSU Men’s Basketball
The Austin Peay State University men’s basketball team concludes the regular season with Alumni Day and Senior Day in a Friday 7:00pm contest against Bellarmine at F&M Bank Arena.
