Murray State
Austin Peay
Whelchel's Game-High 17 Points Not Enough As Racers Fall At Austin Peay
2/14/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Senior forward Antione Whelchel poured in a game-high 17 points, but it was not enough as the Murray State Racers dropped a tough 63-56 road decision to Ohio Valley Conference rival Austin Peay tonight at the Dunn Center in Clarksville, Tenn.
With the loss, the Racers (20-5, 10-2 OVC) are now two games behind conference leading Austin Peay (16-7, 13-0 OVC) in the loss column, but MSU does continue to hold a firm lead on second-place with two weeks left in the regular-season.
The Racers also suffered a second loss on the night when junior guard Adam Chiles left the game with 8:58 to go in the first half with a dislocated left (non-shooting) shoulder after diving on the floor for a loose ball. After going to the locker room for treatment, Chiles returned to the MSU bench and his status for the Racers' upcoming games was unknown following the game.
Despite the loss of their starting point guard and fourth-leading scorer on the season, the Racers continued to battle for 40 minutes but could not overcome the Govs stingy defense.
Senior forward Cuthbert Victor joined Whelchel in double-figures with 13 points to go with eight rebounds, one blocked shot and one steal.
APSU gained command of the game early on jumping out to a 20-13 lead before Chiles left with the injury. After the injury, the Govs pushed its margin out to as much as 13 points at 28-15 with 7:24 left in the first half.
The Racers bounced back to close the half by outscoring APSU 18-3 and regained the lead at 33-31 at the halftime break after a pair of Kevin Paschel free throws with :44 seconds left.
The Govs turned up the defensive pressure in the second half and held MSU to just 23 points over the final 20 minutes. Despite the struggles, the Racers still managed to stay in the game as the second half featured five ties with last coming at 43-43 after a Whelchel three-pointer with 6:50 to go.
APSU regained the lead for good at 45-43 on a pair of Adrian Henning free throws with 6:17 left. After the Govs pushed their lead out to seven at 52-45 with 4:03 left, MSU pulled back to within three at 52-49 with 2:25 to go following a pair of Victor free throws and a Whelchel layup. APSU answered back and converted 9-of-11 free throws over the final 2:04 to hold on for the win.
Neither team shot well from the field as MSU was 20-of-52 for 38.5 percent, while APSU had one less field goal at 19-of-48 for 39.6 percent. The Racers were 12-of-16 from the free throw line while the Govs were 21-of-26, and APSU outrebounded MSU 36-31 led by Henning's double-double effort with 10 rebounds to go with a team-high 14 points.
Up next, MSU closes out its five-game road swing through the OVC against Tennessee-Martin on Tuesday, Feb. 17 at 7:30 p.m., at the Elam Center.
NOTES:
-- Despite tonight's loss to the Govs, MSU continues to lead the overall series with Austin Peay with a commanding 66-35 advantage.
-- Tonight 's meeting is the first and only scheduled regular-season matchup between MSU and APSU marking the first season the Govs will not pay a return visit to Murray to play the Racers since APSU joined the OVC in 1963.
POST-GAME COMMENTS
MSU head coach Mick Cronin:
"We battled all night long through a lot of tough situations. We really wanted to continue to play our style of basketball after the injury to Adam, but we had to be careful so Kevin (Paschel) wouldn't fall out from exhaustion. We played hard, but we just didn't execute as well as we could have, and we didn't hit the open shots when we got them."
"It was a hard-fought battle. I'm pleased with our effort. I was disappointed with our execution at times, but we've got to learn from this and continue to move forward. The guys played hard. We did a nice job of turning up the intensity and getting some deflections in our run to close the first half. We wanted to continue to press in the second half, but we just couldn't score enough to jump in it."
"In the end, Austin Peay's offensive rebounding was the difference. We gave up 13 offensive rebounds and that's just too many. We've been outrebounded in all five our losses this year, so that's obviously a key for us. But we can't get down over this. We had to overcome a lot of adversity tonight, and we just didn't get over the hump."
"I was proud of our guys for keeping their heads up even when we were down. We knew we still had a chance to win, and we never stopped fighting. I know I keep saying it, but I'm extra pleased with our effort. We tried to get the ball inside in the second half, but we didn't catch a lot of good breaks tonight and that's going to happen on the road. It's a part of the deal and all we can do is learn from tonight and get ready for Tennessee-Martin on Tuesday night."
"I'm very disappointed for Adam. He's a tough kid that really got a bad break after giving himself up going for a loose ball. Obviously, we won't know the full extent of the injury until it's reexamined next week. It really tested us tonight not having him in there, and I think we handled it pretty well. It's an awful lot to ask of a team to win a tough road game against a good team with that kind of break. We did some good things, but we just didn't do enough. Again though, I feel really, really bad for Adam because he's an important part of this team."
