Jordyn Adams and Terry Taylor.

There is no other way to start this game story than with just those two names.

On Thursday, the freshman guard and junior wing became the first teammates in Austin Peay State men’s basketball history to each score at least 35 points in the same game. The duo upped the ante, scoring 37 apiece against the Tennessee State Tigers, leading the Governors to a 99-74 victory at the Dunn Center.

“It makes my job extremely easy,” said APSU coach Matt Figger. “I like to say it’s all coaching, but that’s just having two really good exceptional players.”

The two players alone matched their foes score on a combined 24-for-38 shooting (63.2 percent) with an 11-for-16 (68.8 percent) effort from three. Taylor was 6-for-6 on threes – a career best.

It was pretty obvious out of the gate that the duo was locked in, too. They had Austin Peay’s first 21 points, starting with a thunderous dunk from Adams off a steal to start the scoring.

Adams racked up 28 points in the first half – just shy of his career-high 31 in a game set just five days prior – on 8-for-13 shooting and making all nine of his free throw attempts.

“(Adams) was in the zone,” Taylor said. “People don’t realize how special he is. I witnessed it in practice and during the summer when he first got here. When he gets going, it’s hard to stop him. It’s a blessing to have someone like that that can get going and take the pressure off me and score it. I’m very thankful that Jordyn does what he does, and I’m thankful that he’s my teammate.”

While he was doing that, Taylor quietly put up 17 points and eight rebounds. Then, after halftime, the Tigers wisely decided to pay more attention to Adams. That, in turn, put the ball in the hands of Taylor.

You see where this is going.

In the latter half, Taylor scored 20 points of his own – Adams had nine while five other Govs got on the board – to bury Tennessee State.

Adams, a budding star the way Taylor was two seasons ago, is well aware of the effect he and his co-bucket-getter have on each other.

“They double team him, he knows how to make the right basketball play,” Adams said. “He’ll pass it out, they’ll close out on me. In the second half they were focusing on me, so that opened up his game. In the first half, they were like, ‘Focus on him,’ and that opened up my game.”

With the victory, the Governors improved to 7-0 in OVC play. As of Friday, they are one of two remaining unbeaten teams in the conference and one of 16 teams in the country to have not lost a conference game.

That record will be put to the test in a big way on Saturday when APSU hosts the Belmont Bruins (14-6, 5-2 OVC). The game is scheduled to tip-off following the conclusion of the women’s contest.

BOX SCORE

Austin Peay (99): Terry Taylor 37, Jordyn Adams 37, Carlos Paez 6, Sita Conteh 5, Eli Abaev 4, Alec Woodard 3, Codey Bates 3, Antwuan Butler 2, Evan Hinson 2

Tennessee State (74): Mark Freeman 19, Jy’Lan Washington 17, Emmanuel Egbuta 13, Carlos Marshall Jr 11, Shakem Johnson 6, Michael Littlejohn 3, Ben Kone 3, Jon Brown 2