Murray State University Athletics
Lady Racers hope tough opposition will help in the chase for the OVC title
1/5/2005 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
The Murray State Lady Racers will soon find out how the experience they gained during the toughest schedule in team history will affect their Ohio Valley Conference play.
The Lady Racers open their OVC schedule on Thursday at home against Morehead State. Tipoff is scheduled for 5:15 p.m. in the Regional Special Events Center.
Murray State's schedule is ranked 50th out of 328 teams in the Sagarin ratings this week, and has included the likes of nationally-ranked DePaul, Iowa State and Western Kentucky -- each receiving votes in the national polls -- and UNC Charlotte and Louisville.
The Lady Racers' non-conference opposition is 75-45 thus far, winning 62.5 percent of its games. The OVC is 46-63 thus far, winning 42.2 percent of its games.
"We were looking for consistency in our non-conference games," said MSU head coach Joi Felton. "The experience and knowledge gained in those games will help us. No team in the conference will present anything that we haven't seen before.
"I am disappointed in the way we finished our non-conference schedule. We have got to learn from our mistakes and capitalize on that the next time out."
Murray State fell 94-46 at Western Kentucky on Monday.
The Lady Eagles (2-9) are coming off of a 71-69 loss to Southern in the Eastern Kentucky University Comfort Suites Classic. OVC Freshman of the Week Anitha Smith-Williams led the Eagles with 22 points, one day after exploding for a career-high 25 points against Longwood the night before.
Sophomore forward Patti White added 11 points for the Lady Eagles, while sophomore forward Natalie Collins added nine points and nine rebounds in her first career start. Junior guard TaNeisha Johnson had seven points, five rebounds and a team-best five assists. Thanks to 47 points in the past two games, Smith-Williams now leads the Lady Eagles in scoring, with 10.5 points per game.
The game can be heard locally on WNBS (1340 AM, Murray) and through the Teamline link at www.GoRacers.com.
