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EASTERN ILLINOIS (15-9, 12-3 OVC) vs. UT Martin (11-15, 8-7 OVC)
Saturday, February 15  •  1 pm 
Charleston, Ill.  •  Groniger Arena

GAME INFORMATION
NOTES: EIU Complete Game Notes 
RADIO: Hit Mix 88.9 WEIU
TV: ESPN+
LIVE STATS: www.eiupanthers.com
SERIES RECORD: UTM leads 40-25
LAST MEETING: EIU 61, @UTM 48 on Jan. 16, 2025

GAME 25
Eastern Illinois remained one game out of first place in the Ohio Valley Conference standings as the Panthers used a key third quarter run to beat Tennessee State 69-49 on Thursday night extending their current home game win streak to 13 games.  EIU improved to 15-9 on the season and 12-3 in the OVC.   It was the third time in the last six years that EIU has won at least 12 conference games with a high of 14 in 2022-23 during that time frame.  EIU hosts a UT Martin team that is 11-15 overall, 8-7 in the OVC following a road win at SIUE.  Saturday's game will be EIU's annual C.A.R.E. supporting cancer survivors in the local community.

LEWIS WITH A CAREER HIGH
Tiny Lewis entered Thursday's game with Tennessee State having hit just one of her last 24 3-point attempts spanning eight games.  Against the Lady Tigers she put all that behind her knocking down 4-of-7 from 3-point range including a key four-point play midway through the third quarter that sparked the Panthers game clinching run.  At the end of the night the junior guard scored a career high 21 points becoming the fourth different EIU player to crack the 20-point mark in a game this season.  Her previous career high was 18 points last season against Northern Illinois and her season high entering the week was 14 points at North Dakota State.  It was the second time this season that Lewis drained four 3-pointers in a game going 4-of-6 at North Dakota State.  She leads the team in 3-pointers made with 22 and is second on the team in 3-point field goal percentage at 31.4 percent.  It was the fifth double figure game this season for Lewis and 16th of her EIU career. 

ELLIS JUST MISSES ON A DOUBLE-DOUBLE
Sophomore Lalani Ellis just missed on a double-double for the second time in her EIU career.  Ellis scored ten points coming off the bench on Thursday night against Tennessee State while also matching her career high with nine rebounds.  The last time she just missed on a double-double was the third game of her collegiate career with 22 points and nine rebounds against Valparaiso which earned her OVC Player of the Week honors in the opening week of the 2023-24 season.  Ellis has four double figure scoring games this season with a career high 23 points against Western Illinois.  In addition to the scoring and rebounding, she passed out five assists. 

UP NEXT
Thursday, February 20 at Southern Indiana, 5 p.m. (ESPN+)