EVANSVILLE, Ind. – The Tennessee State men's basketball team is set to face (#4) SEMO in the OVC Quarterfinals on Thursday evening at 6:30pm at the Ford Center. 

The Matchup: No. 5 Tennessee State Tigers (14-17, 8-10 OVC) vs. No. 4 SEMO Redhawks (13-17, 8-9 OVC)
Date/Time: Thursday, March 3 || 6:30 p.m. (CST)
Location: Ford Center || Evansville, Ind.

Watch v. SEMO: ESPN+ will carry the game live with Connor Onion and Marcus Wilson on the call.
Live Stats: To follow live coverage of the game through the stats link, click here.

Series History vs. SEMO: The Tigers will meet for the 55th time in series history in the OVC Quarterfinal. SEMO earned the previous victory, 85-63, on January 20 in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. Nana Akenten posted a game-high 17 points on 6-of-7 from the field. In the first meeting this year, Marcus Fitzgerald Jr. posted his season-high 23 points in a home win, 95-84. The two programs have met once in the OVC Tournament, with the Redhawks securing the overtime victory, 78-75, in 2016-17.

Last Time Out for TSU: The Tigers advanced to the OVC Quarterfinals with a wire-to-wire victory over (#8) SIUE, 77-62, TSU was led by Shakem Johnson who posted his second double-double of the year with a season-high 22 points and 11 rebounds. Tennessee State dominated the paint, 36-20, while they held the Cougars to 30% shooting from the field. Four players registered double-figures for the Tigers.

Looking Ahead to SEMO: The Redhawks secured a first round bye as the No. 4 seed, a half-game above TSU due to a canceled game against Tennessee Tech. This will be SEMO's 17th appearance in the OVC Tourney, including back-to-back years. Eric Reed Jr. was named to the All-OVC first team, while Phillip Russell claimed second team and All-Newcomer honors. Reed Jr. scored 17 points in last year's OVC tourney loss.

Veteran Presence: TSU's veteran, Shakem Johnson, led the way in the opening round victory over SIUE with a season-high 22 points and 11 rebounds. It was only his second double-double of the year, but the senior led the Ohio Valley Conference in shooting percentage (57.4%). His career-high of 30 points came against SIUE last season on February 4, 2021.

Found the Five: Tennessee State has gone 4-0 with the starting lineup of Fitzgerald, Cooper, Johnson, Nicholson and Dupree. This lineup aided the Tigers to a three-game winning streak towards the end of the season. TSU had at least four scorers with double-digit points in three of the four victories, including five double-figure scorers in two of the four.

First Round Notes: Tennessee State's won the opening round game in the OVC Tournament in consecutive appearances. The Tigers swept the season series against SIUE. It was the first meeting between the Cougars and TSU in the OVC Tournament.

All-OVC Honors: Carlos Marshall Jr. and Kassim Nicholson earned second-team honors in the Ohio Valley Conference. Marshall Jr. averaged a team-leading 12.9 points per game, while Nicholson averaged 11.6 points and 8.4 rebounds per game. Nicholson, a graduate transfer from UAB, shot 50.9% from the field in 30.7 minutes per game.

Penny's Vision: With 10 newcomers on the roster to begin the year, head coach Brian "Penny" Collins preached that he expected his team to play their best brand of basketball heading into conference play and the tournament. This vision has come to fruition as the Tigers have won three of the last four games to end the regular season. TSU earned the No. 5 seed, trailing SEMO by a half-game as the Redhawks had a cancellation with Tennessee Tech that was not rescheduled.

Nicholson Dominating: During the regular season, Kassim Nicholson led the team in rebounding and ranked third in scoring. In terms of the OVC, the UAB transfer ranked second in the conference with 11 double-doubles. He's tallied at least ten points and nine rebounds in the last five of the last seven games, including four double-doubles.

Social: Follow @TSUTigersMBB on Twitter and Instagram or visit www.tsutigers.com for more information.

Tickets: Head to Ticketmaster.com or click here for tickets for tonight's session.