Murray State University Athletics
Murray State
Eastern Illinois
Racers Fall Just Short Against Eastern Illinois on Senior Day
2/20/2010 11:00:00 PM | Women's Basketball
The Murray State women's basketball fell in a tight game to league-leading Eastern Illinois, 76-71, on Senior Day. The Racers are now 12-15 overall and 7-9 in the Ohio Valley Conference standings.
MSU was led by senior Kayla Vance for the fourth-straight game. The West Paducah, Ky., native tallied 18 points, while sophomore Kayla Lowe added 14 as the only other Racer to finish with a double-digit point total.
The Panthers (19-9, 14-2 OVC) got on the scoreboard first, but it was the Racers who went on an early 7-0 run to take a 7-2 lead in the first 2:30 of the game. After the first media time-out EIU then went on a 6-0 run to cut the deficit to two (12-10) The teams then traded baskets for a while before the Panthers again took control with an 8-0 run to take a shot lead. Sophomore Kayla Lowe tied the game at 21 at 10:34 before both teams went cold shooting for the next two minutes.
EIU broke the scoreless streak first, at 8:49, but it was a three from Mallory Schwab at 8:27 that started a MSU 10-2 run to give the Racers the lead. The battle resumed and the teams tied the score five more times in the opening stanza before a leader was determined at 1:28. Sophomore Rachael Isom hit a three to end the first-half scoring and give MSU a 49-46 advantage heading into the intermission.
Like the first meeting this season between the teams, the Panthers opened the second half with a run. This time it was a 7-1 run that covered almost the first four minutes before the Racers scored a basket in the half. However, MSU counted with a 6-2 run over the next two minutes, holding EIU without a field goal during the span. The rest of the half was a back-and-forth battle with four ties and two lead changes in the final 15 minutes of the half.
The final tie came with 1:50 remaining on the clock and the scoreboard reading 68-68. From there the Panthers went on an 8-3 run to earn the victory, with six of their points coming at the free-throw line.
Free throws became a key to the victory for EIU, as the team with 23-of-30 from the charity stripe and the Racers were only able to get to the line nine times and made six during the game. MSU earned a clear advantage from beyond the arc, going 13-of-23, while the Panthers made just three of their 16 triple attempts in the game.
Rebounding was also a large factor in the outcome. EIU earned a 53-32 advantage on the boards, including a 19-7 mark on the offensive side. The advantage lead to the Panthers earning 23 second-chance points to the Racers five.
The Racers will now hit the road for the final two regular-season games of the 2009-10 season. MSU first heads to Morehead, Ky., to face Morehead State, Thursday, Feb. 25 at 4:15 p.m. The final regular-season game will be in Richmond, Ky., to face Eastern Kentucky, Saturday, Feb. 27 at 3 p.m.
Quotes
Head Coach Rob Cross
"I feel bad for the team because they put a lot of effort in and they just came up a little short. I am proud of the way that everyone played, especially our seniors. I don't question the team's effort today, maybe just the toughness in a few spots."
"When a team attempts 21 more free throws than you and you give up 19 offensive rebounds you are going to have some issues. That was the difference in the ball game today."
"We did a good job contesting shots and forcing people to their weaknesses for the most part, we just had a few defensive breakdowns today. The biggest thing is that you just have to go get the ball sometimes and EIU did a good job of that today."
