Murray State
Tennessee State
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MSU Moves To OVC Semifinals With 88-74 Win Over TSU
3/4/2009 6:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
The Murray State Racers won a hard-fought 88-74 victory in the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament quarterfinals Tuesday over visiting Tennessee State at the Regional Special Events Center in Murray, Ky.
The Racers advance to play in the semifinals Friday at 8 p.m. at the
MSU got the job done after a gusty effort in which they made big play after big play in the second half.
The Racers lost a seven-point halftime lead when the Tigers took it away with 16:37 remaining at 47-46.
MSU responded with a 15-3 run to go ahead 61-50 with 12:13 left. The run was highlighted by Tony Easley's two baskets and Tyler Holloway's two three-pointers off of TSU turnovers.
TSU wasn't finished; they cut the MSU lead to 67-65 at 6:10.
Again, the Racers responded to go back in front 81-70 at 2:06. The MSU 14-5 run was ended with five straight points by Jeffery McClain.
The Racers rode the free throw line to the 88-74 final.
“Our guys were unselfish and we worked the ball inside,” MSU Head Coach Billy Kennedy said. “TSU was a hot team and shot the ball well. We were able to force some turnovers and sustained our effort for a little while longer.”
Kennedy was impressed by the all-around play of his team.
“Everybody that played had stretches where they played well,” Kennedy said. “We're playing well at the right time of year and we have given ourselves chances to win.”
Ivan Aska came off the MSU bench for 17 points, while four other Racers scored in double-figures. Isacc Miles had 15, with Kevin Thomas and Tony Easley each getting 12, and Jeffery McClain scoring 10.
In the first half, the Racers led by as many as 13 at 38-25 with 4:13 left.
Ivan Aska came off the bench and gave the Racers 12 of his 17 as MSU took a 45-38 lead at the break.
GAME NOTES
MSU has now won four of the seven OVC Tournament games they've played with
MSU is 11-2 in OVC Tournament games at home.
The Racers were hosting a quarterfinal for the 13th season, or all of the years the OVC has held campus sites in the tournament since 1997.
MSU goes to
MSU has won more games in the OVC Tournament than any other school and are now 57-30.
The OVC Tournament semi finals have featured
The two have met five times in the finals (MSU has won four) but this time the only place they can meet is in the semi finals where APSU has won three of five meetings.
