Murray State University Athletics
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Racing To The OVC Finish - MSU Travels To Tech
2/27/2008 6:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Murray State
(16-12) (12-6 OVC)
at
Tennessee Tech
(12-18) (9-10 OVC)
Thursday 6 p.m.
Eblen Center
Cookeville, Tenn.
ESPNU
Click here for LIVE AUDIO
Click here for LIVE STATS
The Murray State Racers enter the final week of the regular season searching for a spark that will put them on the road to returning to the level of play they experienced in January with a pair of games against Tennessee Tech and UT-Martin. MSU begins with a Thursday 6 p.m. game in Cookeville, Tenn. in their 158th meeting with the Tech Golden Eagles. MSU won their last Ohio Valley Conference game at home against Eastern Illinois Feb. 16 by a 67-56 score. Last Saturday, MSU hosted Indiana State in an ESPNU BracketBuster game, and although they enjoyed a 17-point lead in the first half, the Racers struggled at the end in losing by the same margin 79-62.
The series with Tennessee Tech is the longest running series the Racers play, topping the 146 meetings with Eastern Kentucky. The Racers lead the all-time series 113-44 and enjoy a margin of 41-35 when playing in Cookeville. The Racers own a 7-0 lead when the two have met in the OVC Tournament. The series has been much closer since 2003, with MSU having a slim 5-4 advantage, including an 81-67 win earlier this season in Murray. MSU has lost their last two visits to the Eblen Center and haven't won there since 2004.
The OVC Tournament begins Tuesday with the quarterfinals at the top-four seeds home courts. Murray State has already guaranteed a top-four seed and a 12th straight home game. The Racers have never failed to host a game in the quarter-finals. MSU still has a chance to tie league-leader Austin Peay and can wrap up the second seed with a win over Tech or if Eastern Kentucky losses at home to APSU. When the tournament begins, the Racers will be looking for their 19th appearance in the semi-finals and 16th in the championship game in the last 21 tries dating back to 1988.
In checking all NCAA D-I conferences, the Racers are still in control of what could be called a "Grand Slam of Stats." Currently in league games only, the Racers are the only team in the country leading their league in field goal and three-point percentage and in defending them. The Racers are shooting .496 from the field, and .403 from three-point range. On defense, MSU holds opponents to .417 from the field and .333 from behind the arc. All are the best in the OVC. Top top it off, MSU is also the best free throw team in OVC games at .752.
SERIES INFORMATON
Overall: Racers lead 113-44
@ Murray: Racers lead 66-8
@ Cookeville: Racers lead 41-35
Neutral: Racers lead 6-1
OVC Tournament: Racers lead 7-0
First Meeting: 1930 MSU won 61-21 in Memphis, Tenn.
Last Meeting: Jan. 24 MSU won 81-67 in Murray, Ky.
Trend: The home team has won the last five meetings.
Billy Kennedy vs TTU: 2-1
Mike Sutton vs MUR: 4-6
MEDIA INFORMATION
Television: ESPNU - Dave Weekly & Larry Conley
Radio: Froggy 103.7 FM - Neal Bradley & Josh Perigo
Internet: GoRacers.com FREE live audio
GAME NOTES
LOOKING FOR 20: The Racers are within shouting distance of another 20-win campaign. MSU has won 20 or more in 11 of the last 19 seasons. Billy Kennedy has two his previous nine seasons as a head coach. He's had five in 22 seasons in college basketball.
CAREER NUMBERS:
Tyler Holloway is on his way to becoming the 34th member of the MSU 1,000-Point club. He has 795 points in 87 career games.Danero Thomas is only 55 games into his MSU career but already has 471 points. He'll be more than half way to 1,000 before the season is over.
Marvin Williams grabbed his 100th career rebound Dec. 20 at Samford and reached 200 against Indiana State Feb. 23.
Bruce Carter zoomed past 600 career points against SEMO on Jan. 26. and surpassed 700 against Eastern Illinois Feb. 14.
Ray George passed 250 points in his career Jan. 15 against Indiana South Bend. On Feb. 2 against Jacksonville State he passed 100 career assists.
Kevin Thomas passed 100 career assists in the Feb. 9 game at Morehead State.
RACE TO THE BREAK:
The Racers' chances of winning go up when they have the lead at the half. MSU has had the lead at halftime 17 times this season and won 15. Conversely, they are 1-9 when they trail at the intermission.TOO CLOSE TO CALL:
MSU has been involved in some close games this season. Nine times they've played a game that was decided by five or fewer points and are 4-5. MSU has lost two heart-breakers in overtime to Eastern Illinois and Austin Peay.THE MAGIC 80:
Getting to the 80-point mark has been a magical thing for MSU this season, they're 8-1 when they do and only 8-9 when they score 79 or less.THEY CALL THEM FREE:
But they aren't free are they! The Racers are having a great season from the free throw line hitting .727 in conference games, the best in the league. The Racers' percentage also means this is likely to be the third straight season of improved shooting. In 2005-06, the Racers shot .651 and .683 last season in 2006-07. The Racers are having their best season from the line since they shot .737 in 1999-00.STATS GRAND SLAM:
As mentioned on page one, the Racers are the only team in NCAA D-I leading their league in field goal percentage, three-point percentage and defense of both, based on statistics from league games only. There are four teams that lead in three of the categories: Cornell (Ivy), American (Patriot), Stephen F. Austin ( Southland), and IUPUI (Summit).SENIOR MOMENTS:
MSU senior Bruce Carter has 17 straight double-figure scoring games. One can only imagine the kind of numbers Carter would put up if he had played at Murray State for four years. The Racers have rich history of great two-year players and Carter will finish among the best.WHAT A STREAK: One story line in the 07-08 season has been Murray State's push to ensure another winning season. MSU has clinched their 21st straight winning hoops season which is tied for fourth in the nation with Connecticut. The Racers share the same neighborhood with first place Syracuse (38 years), Oklahoma (28 years) and Kansas (25 years). MSU hasn't had a losing season since the 1986-87 campaign.
Here is a look at the best of the best.
CONSECUTIVE WINNING SEASONS
2. Oklahoma 28
3. Kansas 25
4. MURRAY STATE 21
Connecticut 21
RANKING THE FIELD:
The Rating Percentage Index (RPI) is one of the formulas used by the NCAA in rate college basketball. There are currently 341 teams in NCAA D-I. The rankings do not count wins or losses against non-D-I teams. As of Feb. 26, MSU's average opponent RPI was 204, while their OVC opponents rank was 265 and their non-conference opponents 117.RANK TEAM REC
52 Western Kentucky 19-5
95 Indiana State 12-13
96 Belmont 18-8
110 Austin Peay 18-10
113 Rider 18-9
134 Chattanooga 14-11
187 Murray State 14-10
207 Morehead State 11-12
225 UT-Martin 13-14
247 Eastern Kentucky 11-12
257 Samford 10-14
264 Tennessee State 10-15
277 SE Missouri State 10-16
290 Tennessee Tech 10-17
292 Arkansas State 7-17
338 Eastern Illinois 4-21
340 Jacksonville State 4-20
