MARTIN, Tenn. – Playing a two-time defending NCAA Division I Tournament opponent, Martin Methodist hung tough for a half before ultimately falling 96-57 to UT Martin in an exhibition contest Thursday night.
After taking a brief 3-0 lead to start the contest, the RedHawks (1-2) would go back-and-forth with the two-time reigning Ohio Valley Conference champion Skyhawks over the game's opening 20 minutes.
Trailing 33-23 with 7:02 to play in the first half, the RedHawks would close the half on a 12-7 run to whittle the Skyhawks' halftime lead to just 40-35.
In the second half, however, the Skyhawks began to flex their defensive muscles, holding the Redhawks to just 22 points over the game's final 20 minutes to pick up the exhibition victory.
Jessy Christopher led the way offensively for the RedHawks, scoring all 11 points on a 3-of-11 shooting night that including three first-half 3-pointers.
Playing their second straight contest with Keri O'Neal, the RedHawks were led down low by Kyra Knight, who notched her first double-double of the season on a 13 rebound, 10-point effort.
"I thought we battled hard in the first half tonight," RedHawks head coach Jamy Bechler said. "Kyra Knight really stepped up her game tonight against a much bigger team. She was a huge part of our first-half effort.
Guards Bobbi Dodson and Nina Mills added eight and six points each, respectively. Milana Jones also posted six points to go along with seven rebounds in the loss.
Defensively, the RedHawks were sparked by Charmika Franklin, who posted three steals in just ten minutes of game time. Ashton Coleman and Knight also posted two steals each. Ajee Smith did not record a steal, but provided solid defense on traps in the first half.
"I thought Ajee, Ashton and Mika did a great job of sparking our defense in the first half," Bechler said. "They forced some turnovers that led to easy points in transition. That was huge for us."
The Skyhawks (0-0) featured four scorers in double figures, including Heather Butler, who finished with a game-high 20 points.
"Overall, I thought our halfcourt execution both offensively and defensively was great tonight," Bechler said. "Playing a team of UT Martin's caliber is a huge test for us. Our goal is to reach the National Tournament and this type of game will help us to prepare for that."
The RedHawks will return to action Friday and Saturday for two games in the Union (Ky.) College Classic. The RedHawks will play Alice Lloyd (Ky.) College Friday at 5 p.m. before playing Pensacola Christian (Fla.) at 1 p.m. on Saturday. Live stats of this weekend's games will be available on GoRedHawks.com.
