Central Arkansas over Tennessee-Martin 78-75 Thursday night

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MARTIN, Tenn- Sophomore guard Marcus Pillow nailed a three-pointer from the top of the key with 0.9 seconds left in the game to help the University of Central Arkansas men’s basketball team to a 78-75 victory over Tennessee-Martin at the Elam center on Thursday night. The Bears overcame a 23-point first half defecit to move to 3-1 on the season.

"On the road, 23-point comebacks are few and far between," said UCA head coach Rand Chappell. "We talked at halftime and said you have to keep your head up, you have to keep playing hard."

The Skyhawks (2-2) jumped out to a 7-0 lead over the first 3:20, highlighted by five points from freshman Marquis Weddle. The Bears cut the advantage to 10-9 after a pair of free throws by senior guard Nate Bowie at 14:29 in the first period.

UTM answered by outscoring UCA 32-10 over the next 10 and a half minutes, giving the Skyhawks a 23-point lead with 3:50 left in the half.

The senior tandem of Bowie and forward Durrell Nevels sparked a late first half run. In the final three minutes of the frame, Nevels scored six points and had a blocked shot, while Bowie added four points, cutting the defecit to 44-29 at the break.

The Bears shot 43.5 percent (10-of-23) in the first half, but struggled behind the arc, going 1-for-7. The Skyhawks shot 40.5 percent (15-of-37), but managed to go 5-for-15 from three-point territory.

UTM took advantage by scoring 16 points off of UCA's 12 turnovers in the frame.

Skyhawk senior forward Gerald Robinson scored 16 points and pulled down eight rebounds in the first half.

Central Arkansas commenced the first four minutes of the second half with an 11-2 run, cutting the lead to 46-42. The Bears took the lead for first time with 6:11 remaining when Pillow put in a fast-break layup to give the Bears a 60-58 lead.

Martin responded with back-to-back three-pointers from junior guard Lester Hudson, giving the Skyhawks a 64-60 lead at the 5:24 mark.

Pillow hit a three-pointer from the top of the key with 1:02 left to knot the game at 71-71. After a Weddle three-point miss, junior guard York Sims took the ball the length of the court to put the Bears ahead 73-71 with 27 seconds left.

On the Skyhawks next possession, Hudson made one of two free throws with 17.6 seconds reamaining, making the game 73-72. As soon as the ball was inbounded, UCA sophomore King Cannon was fouled. He made both shots from the charity stripe at the 16.4 second mark, putting the Bears up 75-72.

Hudson hit a three-pointer from the right wing to tie the game at 75-75 with 2.6 seconds left. Pillow answered with the winning three from the top of the key with 0.9 seconds remaining to pull out the victory.

UCA outscored the Skyhawks 49-31 and had 30-21 rebound advantage in the second period. The Bears turned the ball over just three times in the second half.

For the game, UCA outshot the Skyhawks 42.9 to 36.8 percent and had a 48-41 rebound lead.

Pillow, who scored just two points in the first half, ended the game with 23 points. Nevels finished with 15 points and 12 rebounds, including eight offensive boards. Bowie added 13 points and five assists and Sims had 10 points. Junior center Brain Marks pulled down 10 rebounds.

Robinson led the Skyhawks with 19 points and 12 rebounds. Weddle had 18 points. Hudson, who was averaging 30.3 points per game, coming into the game, finished the game with 13 points on 4-of-14 shooting.

The Bears will be back in action on Wednesday, November 21 when they host Missouri Valley.