Murray State University Athletics
Murray State
Morehead State
Racers Just Miss Win Versus Morehead State
2/24/2011 10:01:14 PM | Women's Basketball
Box Score
Murray State was led by sophomore Mariah Robinson, with 23 points and five rebounds. Red-shirt freshman added 15 points and eight rebounds, while junior Kayla Lowe tallied 13 points.
The Eagles (20-8, 13-4 OVC) may have struck first in the opening stanza, but the Racers followed with a 5-0 run to take the lead. Morehead tied the game at seven, with 17:33 remaining, but it was a Murray State 9-0 run that pushed them ahead for most of the half. The Racers kept the advantage around 3-5 points for most of the half before the Eagles were able to cut the advantage to two, with 7:30 minutes left to play. The teams then traded runs over the next five minutes as Morehead got within one point (29-28). In the final two minutes of the half the Eagles used a 5-1 run, including a last second shot, to take a 33-32 lead heading into the locker room.
The second half was a battle for the scoreboard, as the teams combined for four lead changes and were tied once in the half. The Racers started the half by going on a 7-3 run before allowing Morehead to garner its first field goal. Murray State added an 8-0 run from 16:02 to 13:46 to push the advantage to nine (49-40). However, Morehead followed with a 7-2 run that started a slow loss of the Racers' lead.
The Eagles had one larger run in their play book, going on a 13-4 run from 9:12 until 3:47 to take the lead. The Racers then pushed back and went on a 5-1 run in the next minute to retake the lead (66-63). However, Morehead hit five more points in 50 seconds to take a 70-66 advantage with 1:08 remaining. The teams then increased the defensive pressure and held each other scoreless until the final seconds when Robinson hit a three to cut the lead to one and end the scoring.
Murray State had a strong shooting performance on the night, making 50 percent of its shots and 44.4 percent of those beyond the arc. The Racers were strong in the paint, scoring 38 of their 69 points in the paint. Murray State won the rebounding battle, 36-34, but trailed on the offensive glass (6-10). Both teams struggled to make free throws at key moments in the game, with Murray State making 15-of-23 and Morehead hitting just 12-of-21.
The Racers will play host to Eastern Kentucky Saturday, Feb. 26, in a must win game to advance to the OVC Championship, March 2-5 in Nashville, Tenn. Tip-off is scheduled for 5:15 p.m. at the CFSB Center and is the final regular-season game of the 2010-11 campaign.
Notes: Mariah Robinson hit double-figures in the scoring column in the first 5:30 minutes of the game…the Racers tallied 22 of their 32 points in the opening half from points in the paint…Robinson tallied 20+ points for the seventh time this season.
