Despite the chaos, UT Martin, the No. 3 seed in the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament, went on to win 81-75. Miguel, who was bleeding as he left the court, is a reserve player who averages four points and two rebounds per game. Jordan Sears led UT Martin with 33 points and sealed the victory with a layup with 36 seconds remaining for the Skyhawks. Sears also added five rebounds for the Skyhawks (19-13), while Koby Jeffries scored 14 points going 4 of 8 and 6 of 6 from the free-throw line, and Desmond Williams recorded 11 points and was 3-of-5 shooting (3 for 4 from distance).
Damarco Minor finished with 32 points, nine rebounds, and six assists for the Cougars (19-14). Lamar Wright added 22 points and six rebounds for SIU-Edwardsville. UT Martin will now face Tennessee Tech in the OVC semifinals. It is unclear if any of the three suspended players will face additional punishment.
“I think when you talk about an array of emotions — we talk about winning looks different every night,” Ryan Ridder, the head coach of UT Martin, said on the ESPN+ broadcast. “If you had told me the last two hours would look like this, I wouldn’t have believed you. But at the end of the day, that’s a resilient group that found a way to come out shorthanded and get it done.”
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