The men’s basketball team got off to a hot start during Thanksgiving break before things came to a halt Saturday against Belmont.

The Panthers posted back-to-back blowout wins, a 93-64 win against Eureka Nov. 21, and an 82-68 win against Chicago State Tuesday before getting blown out against Belmont 95-62 Saturday.

“We had such a good start to the break, we were starting strong and playing well,” senior forward Edin Suljic said. “Against Belmont, we came out flat and got our (butt) kicked. I think it was a wake-up call for this team.”

The Panthers will try to regroup as they open conference play at 7:30 p.m. today against Tennessee State to open Ohio Valley Conference play.

Eastern head coach Mike Miller said breaks are always difficult because students leave campus and the players are away from their families for the holidays.

“We spent Thanksgiving with our extended family,” Miller said. “I thought we played really well against Chicago State, but I wasn’t happy with how we played against Belmont. It is only the beginning of December and our goal is to get better every month.”

Suljic said in the Belmont game the Panthers came out flat and made a lot of mistakes.

“We have to learn how to bounce back when things like that happen,” Suljic said.

Tennessee State is coming off a six-game road trip, having lost two games in a row. The game was a 69-60 loss to Belmont in Nashville, Tenn.

The Tigers have lost to two major conference opponents including a 69-62 loss to Northwestern (Big Ten) and an 84-53 loss to Iowa State (Big 12).

“They like to do a lot with pick and rolls so we have to be alert,” Suljic said. “We have been preparing a lot for that and we have to be ready to start fast.”

Junior forward Josh Savin leads the team with 13.1 points per game, but he is also leading the team in turnovers, averaging more than 3.3 per game.

Freshman forward Robert Covington leads the Tigers down low averaging 4.4 boards per game, 9.4 points and seven blocks.

Miller said they are an athletic team that plays well off the dribble.

“They have a lot of energy and they are a little different than the teams we have played so far this season. They should press more than any team we have seen so far.”

The Tigers’ pressure style has led to an average of 10 steals per game so far this season.

The Panthers split two meetings with the Tigers a year ago, winning the OVC opener played in Lantz Arena and losing to the Tigers in Nashville in the regular season finale.

After Thursday’s game the Panthers stay in Tennessee as they will travel to Clarksville to take on Austin Peay at 5:30 p.m. Saturday.

These first two OVC games are the only before the new year.

After the weekend the Panthers return to non-conference play for five more non-conference games.

Dan Cusack can be reached at 581-7944 or dscusack@eiu.edu.

Eastern junior guard Tyler Laser takes the ball up the court during the game against Indiana-Purdue-Indianapolis Nov. 18 in Lantz Arena.(Audrey Sawyer/The Daily Eastern News)

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