East Tennessee State University (ETSU) men’s basketball team was defeated by Samford 82-72 in overtime at Freedom Hall on Saturday. This loss came despite a career-high 28 points from Taylor, who shot 11-for-18 from the field. ETSU’s record now stands at 19-8 overall and 11-3 in conference play.
The Buccaneers struggled offensively early in the game, making only four of their first sixteen shots and two of seven layups during the opening ten minutes. Taylor helped shift momentum with a dunk midway through the first half, sparking a run that narrowed Samford’s lead to one point. Taylor then put ETSU ahead with a baseline jumper late in the half, but Samford maintained a narrow lead at halftime, up 38-37.
In the second half, neither team led by more than four points. Barkley gave ETSU a brief advantage with a three-point play midway through the period, but Samford quickly responded and reclaimed the lead. Another three-point play by Barkley put ETSU back ahead before Jadin Booth tied the game for Samford with a three-pointer just over a minute left in regulation. With 15 seconds remaining, ETSU had an opportunity to win but Taylor lost possession as time expired, sending the game into overtime.
Samford took control in overtime by scoring the first eleven points—including seven consecutive free throws—securing their fifth straight victory and ending ETSU’s four-game winning streak.
Taylor led all scorers with his career-high performance while Barkley contributed 15 points and another teammate added 12 points. Morris grabbed eight rebounds and also had three assists along with another player; Strothers reached 299 career assists. ETSU was out-rebounded 38-34 and shot 41% from the floor, including just five made three-pointers out of twenty attempts (25%). The team converted 77% of its free throws (17-for-22). Samford finished shooting slightly better at 41.5%, made nearly thirty percent of their threes, and hit over seventy-seven percent from the line (31-for-40). Samford also led in second-chance points (14-10), points off turnovers (16-9), and fast break points (21-10).
Despite this loss, ETSU remains at the top of the Southern Conference standings by one-and-a-half games pending Wofford’s result in round fourteen action. The Buccaneers will host Wofford on Wednesday, February 25 at Freedom Hall after traveling to Furman for their next matchup on Wednesday, February 18.
For further information about ETSU men’s basketball, visit https://www.etsubucs.com/mbasketball/.
