Murray State University Athletics
Murray State
Southern Mississippi
Murray State Wins Great Alaska Shootout Title 90-81 in 2OT Over USM
11/27/2011 2:54:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Boxscore
The Murray State Racers claimed the championship of the Great Alaska Shootout with a 90-81 double overtime Sunday over the Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles at Sullivan Arena in Anchorage, Alaska.
Isaiah Canaan led the Racers with 36 points and was named the tournament MVP, while Donte Poole was named to the All-Tournament Team.
After losing a 14-point lead in the second half, the Racers saw USM tie it at 69-69. USM's last second shot from the lane was no good sending the contest to extra time.
In the first overtime, MSU trailed 72-69 when Canaan hit a three with :53 left to send it to a second overtime.
Finally, the Racers broke the game open when Stacy Wilson hit a three and it was followed by another from Canaan for an 80-74 lead for MSU with 3:00 remaining.
The Racers held off USM from there to push their mark this season to 7-0., their best start since the 2003-04 team started 8-0.
In the first half, the Racers ran out 15-6 to start the game at the 13:10 mark on a Poole three-pointer. When USM cut the MSU lead to 32-25, MSU finished the half on a 7-2 run for a 39-27 halftime lead. The Racers held USM to no field goals in the final 4:42.
The Racers' five-game road swing ends Thursday when MSU travels to play Western Kentucky at Diddle Arena in Bowling Green, Ky.
Game Notes
Canaan's 36-point effort ranks 17th all-time for a single game at Murray State tied with Gene Pendelton (1964), Jeff Martin (1988), Frank Allen (1992) and Marcus Brown (1994). Brown holds the record of 45 points which happened in 1995.
This game was the first overtime for the Racers in 77 games. Their last was a home win in 2009 over Eastern Kentucky. MSU's last road OT game was a loss at Austin Peay in 2008. MSU's last double-overtime game was at Western Kentucky in 2003 which MSU won 100-95.
