TTU Golden Eagle men's basketball team releases 2020-21 schedule

2020-21 Tennessee Tech Men's Basketball Schedule

The Tennessee Tech men's basketball team took one more step towards the long-awaited start of the 2020-21 season Thursday, as the Golden Eagles released their full schedule for their second year under the direction of head coach John Pelphrey.

"We're very excited about our season," Pelphrey said. "A lot of hard work went into the last month because we had to rebuild our schedule due to the delay to the season. It was extremely challenging and difficult, but [Director of Athletics] Mark Wilson and [Assistant Coach] Alex Fain did a remarkable job and worked tirelessly with a lot of schools to put it together. We're fortunate with our schedule."

Tech's slate features seven non-conference tilts and 20 contests in Ohio Valley Conference play. Six of the purple and gold's seven games in non-conference play will come on the road and six of the seven opponents won at least 19 games a season ago, both factors in what will surely be a challenging start to the year.

"The thing to understand for us this season is why we have just one non-conference home game," Pelphrey explained. "Certainly COVID has affected everything and everyone in the world. Cookeville and college basketball are no different. Financially, Tech is no different. We were one of the few or only programs that had any flexibility to go out and maybe try to offset some of the challenges and things that had to be done in order to continue on as an athletic department.

"We wanted to play a challenging schedule, but we also felt a responsibility to help out as much as possible in a desperate financial time like many of us throughout college athletics are going through. Our players, families, and coaching staff understood that and were committed to and willing to help. It just felt like the right thing to do during a challenging time. There are a lot of great people working here and if there was something we could do, we wanted to do it."

The Golden Eagles will officially kick off the 2020-21 campaign Wednesday, Nov. 25 with a trek north to one of the cathedrals of college basketball, Indiana's Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. The trip marks the first match-up with the Hoosiers since 2017. Last season, Indiana won 20 games and claimed a first-round victory in the Big Ten Tournament before the remainder of the event was canceled due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

"We're going to get off to a fast start at Indiana," Pelphrey said. "Historically, that's one of the best programs in the country playing in one of the most iconic arenas. I was fortunate enough to play there as a student-athlete and now get the opportunity to go back as a coach, which is unique and exciting for myself."

Tech will return to Cookeville following a brief Thanksgiving break to play host to in-state rival Chattanooga in the team's lone home game during non-conference play. The match-up is set for Nov. 30, reviving a series that has seen four contests between the two programs since 2014. A 20-game winner in 2019-20, the Mocs advanced to the Southern Conference Tournament semifinals before dropping a 72-70 decision to Wofford.

Next on tap for the Golden Eagles is a three-game road swing in just five days, starting with a Dec. 2 affair at perennial Big East contender Xavier. The Musketeers wrapped up the 2019-20 season 19-13 overall and will square off with Tech for the first time in each program's history.

The next day, Dec. 3, features a visit to Northern Kentucky, also a first-time opponent of the Golden Eagles. Finishing 23-9 last year with a 13-5 league record, the Norse claimed their third Horizon League title in four years. The road swing ends with a Dec. 6 appearance at Western Carolina, a rematch of last season's contest in Cookeville. The Catamounts claimed victory, 89-76, on their way to a 19-12 mark and semifinal appearance in the SoCon Tournament.

Rounding out non-conference play are a visit to in-state foe Tennessee on Dec. 19 and a return trip to Western Kentucky on Dec. 22. Last year, the Vols finished 17-14 overall while the Hilltoppers turned in a 20-10 record overall and 13-5 mark in Conference USA play, defeating the Golden Eagles, 76-64, in the season opener.

"With where we are in our program, everything we've done is building towards year three," Pelphrey explained. "For year two, we want to see how much better we can get. We lost the summer, our preseason, and two weeks of the regular season. For us, we won't worry about who or where we are playing. We're happy just to go out and play basketball. We're excited to learn, grow, and get better from it.

"This schedule should make us that much better down the road. Anything worth doing has to have some pain and suffering. Whether it's the schedule, COVID, a tornado, social injustice, or adjusting to life in a new way, going through all of these things we can look back and say it made us better."

OVC play for the Golden Eagles actually kicks off prior to the end of the non-conference slate, featuring a pair of contests with Jacksonville State. Tech will host the Gamecocks on Dec. 13 before returning the favor in Jacksonville, Ala. on Dec. 16. In order to give teams the flexibility to complete their non-conference schedules, schools were given discretion to schedule their two games with their "OVC travel partner" separate from the remaining 18-game conference schedule.

League competition continues Dec. 30 with a home affair against Southeast Missouri and then a three-game road swing beginning at Eastern Illinois on Jan. 2. Tech's annual "Death Valley" road trip features tilts at Morehead State (Jan. 7) and Eastern Kentucky (Jan. 9).

Two more home games feature in-state match-ups against Belmont (Jan. 14) and Tennessee State (Jan. 16). On Jan. 21, the Golden Eagles will visit the Governors of Austin Peay and follow it up with a Jan. 23 trip to take on Murray State.

"Our league is really good," Pelphrey said. "I just hope we can play without disruptions because it should be a fun and challenging slate. Most of the best players last year were sophomores and juniors and have returned. The OVC is very, very competitive, full of good players, and full of good coaches."

Rematches with Eastern Kentucky and Morehead State are slated for Jan. 28 and Jan. 30, respectively to close out the first month of 2021. Opening up the month of February is a trek to Cape Girardeau, Mo. for a second tilt with the Redhawks of Southeast Missouri (Feb. 4), followed by an in-state battle at UT Martin (Feb. 6).

Another home stand will pit the purple and gold against the likes of SIUE (Feb. 11) and Eastern Illinois (Feb. 13). Tech will then embark on their final road trip of the season, visiting Tennessee State on Feb. 18 and Belmont on Feb. 20.

Closing out the regular season in the comfort of the Hooper Eblen Center, the Golden Eagles will host Austin Peay on Feb. 25 and long-time rival Murray State on Feb. 27.

"Everyone needs to understand, this is about the health and safety of our players," Pelphrey expressed. "We have to adhere to protocols. COVID doesn't care who you are or where you're from. We all have to be smart, stay safe, and follow all of the necessary things to help us all, specifically our young men. They could have opted out of this season. They could have stayed home. They all wanted to do what they are passionate about and what they love to do, which is play basketball."

Seating will be available in a limited capacity in accordance with NCAA and OVC regulations. Season tickets are available by calling (931) 372-3940, online at TTUsports.com, or by visiting the Hooper Eblen Center ticket office.

"Our athletic department, behind the guidance of President [Phil] Oldham and Mark Wilson, did a great job to put us in a situation where we can claim that postseason revenue-sharing piece," Pelphrey added. "The OVC worked extremely hard and was very lenient with trying to find a way to have a competitive non-conference schedule where it made sense. The league boosted our conference schedule to get more games and put us in the position to get to the magic number of 13 games for postseason eligibility. I've been very impressed by how everyone in our department, Cookeville, and the OVC has handled themselves and their teams throughout this process."