MOREHEAD, Ky. -- Morehead State struggled offensively on Wednesday, as the Eagles fell to the UT Martin Skyhawks on the road, 54-36.
The Eagles outrebounded UT Martin 39-29, a notable difference from the first meeting between the two teams, but turnovers were the story for the Eagles, who gave up the ball 29 times due to a relentless matchup zone defense from the Skyhawks, resulting in 20 points for UT Martin.
The Eagles had no players in double figures, but did get a balanced scoring attack, with Jada Claude leading the charge with eight points and nine rebounds alongside Tyler Moore, who also finished with eight points. Julan McDonald added seven points and Morgan Browning posted six points to go with a career high-tying eight rebounds.
The game got off to a slow start, with no scoring from either team for the first three minutes of action, but after falling into a 5-0 hole, the Eagles rattled off six in a row to take the lead. The Skyhawks answered with back-to-back baskets, but a late three from Tyler Moore ended the grind out quarter at 9-9. A back and forth second quarter saw the Eagles take a 16-14 lead at the midway point, but UT Martin rattled off eight straight to head into halftime with a 22-16 advantage.
A 9-0 run in the middle of the third quarter and a 5-0 run to open the fourth quarter, coupled with 14 second half turnovers from the Eagles allowed the Skyhawks to finally get some distance and pull out the victory.
Next up, the Eagles return to Johnson Arena for the final time this season when they take on SEMO on senior night. Tip-off is scheduled for 2:00 PM ET.