Murray State University Athletics
Photo by: Tab Brockman
Racers Return to OVC Action Against Eastern Illinois
1/29/2012 1:23:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Murray State (8-12, 4-3 OVC) vs. Eastern Illinois (16-4, 7-0 OVC)
Monday - 7 p.m.
CFSB Center
Murray, Ky.
Game Notes I Listen Live I Watch Live I Live Stats
The Game
The Murray State women's basketball team will return to Ohio Valley Conference action, Monday, Jan. 30 at 7 p.m. in the CFSB Center when they host Eastern Illinois. The Racers played two non-conference games last week.
Scouting Eastern Illinois
The Panthers are 16-4 overall and 7-0 in the OVC after winning their last nine games.
EIU has three players that are averaging over 10 points per game, and two of those are their main shooters. Ta'Kenya Nixon and Mariah King account for 36 percent of the Panthers shots taken and 42 percent of the shots made. Nixon is averaging 14.1 points and 6.1 rebounds per game, while adding 88 assists and 59 steals and shooting .519 from the field. King is netting 13.1 points and a team-best 7.6 boards per game. She adds 14 blocks and is shooting .462 from the field. Sydney Mitchell is the other player on the roster with double-digits in the point's column, with 11.1 points per game. Mitchell is also averaging 5.3 rebounds per game and is shooting .476 from the field and .349 from beyond the arc.
EIU is leading in all statistical categories on the season box score, including a +14.1 mark in points and +9.1 mark in rebounds. The Panthers are a strong shooting team, hitting their shots at a .425 clip and allowing .363. EIU has six players with a shooting percentage over .400 and just two under .300.
Against the Panthers
In the first meeting between the Racers and EIU this season resulted in a 76-51 win for the Panthers in Charleston, Ill.
MSU was led by juniors Mariah Robinson and Tessa Elkins. Robinson tallied 11 points and Elkins added 10 points and four rebounds. EIU was led by Mariah King (18 points, 10 rebounds) and Sydney Mitchell (11 points, 8 rebounds).
Shooting percentages and rebounds were keys to the game, with the Panthers holding advantages in both columns. EIU shot 44.8 percent to the Racers 30.5 percent from the field and .350 to .250 from beyond the arc. The Panthers also out-rebounded MSU 50-29, including a 14-9 mark on the offensive glass.
The Series
The Racers currently own a 23-14 advantage in the all-time series after EIU has one the last two games. MSU has a larger advantage when playing in Murray, with a 14-4 mark.
Watson Doubling Down
Junior Kyra Watson has been making more of a mark on the season box score for the Racers recently. In MSU's 86-77 win over Longwood, the Aurora, Ill., native made a big mark by recording her first career, and just the team's second double-double of the season. Watson tallied career highs of 14 points and 12 rebounds.
Dynamic Duo
Red-shirt sophomore Erica Burgess and junior Mariah Robinson both had outstanding games for the Racers against Longwood. The duo combined to be the first pair to record 20+ points in a game since Kayla Lowe (28) and Kayla Vance (24) did so against Morehead state (3/2/10). Burgess also made the Last Time It Happened List by recording 31 points and became the first to tally 30+ points in a game since Robinson recorded 44 at Jacksonville State (1/23/12). Robinson added 21 points against the Lancers for the duo mark.
Taking Charge of Monday Night
After spending most of the first half of the season on the road the Racers are finally returning home and Monday nights are a big part of the action. Each Monday night for six weeks (Jan. 9-Feb. 13) MSU's women's basketball team will be hosting a game at the CFSB Center.
When the OVC schedule changed to have Saturday-Monday games for the women's teams in the conference the league implemented “Taking Charge of Monday Night” where each team is featured on OVCSports.com and the game they are playing will be featured free on OVCSports.TV. The Feb. 16 (Thursday) game against UTM is the Racers featured night.
1,000 Point Club Membership
Junior Mariah Robinson is cruising along to a membership in the 1,000 Point Club at Murray State. The Beaver Dam, Ky., native is looking to become the 18th member of the club and would be the ninth Racer to do so during her junior campaign. Robinson currently has 966 points, just 34 away from the milestone and is averaging 15.1 points per game this season. She has played in 77 career games and could be one of the fastest to reach the milestone in MSU history.
Athlete (Year Reached 1,000 Pts.) - Games Taken
Shelia Smith (1986-87) - 57 games
Stephanie Minor (1996-97) - 61 games
Laura Lynn (1979-80) - 66 games
Michelle Wenning (1989-90) - 69 games
Jennifer Parker (1992-93) - 74 games
Amber Guffey (2007-08) - 77 games
Ashley N Hayes (2007-08) - 77 games
Jackie Mounts (1977-78) - 80 games
Making Move Up or On Top-10 Lists
Three members of the team are currently on three top-10 lists at MSU. Junior Mariah Robinson is currently ranked No. 2 on the three's made chart, with 154. She is 56 from No. 1 (210-Amber Guffey). Senior Kayla Lowe also joined Robinson on the list, with her 111 career triples, for the No. 9 spot. She is one from No. 8 (112-Brittany Park).
Fellow senior Mallory Schwab also earned her way onto the blocks top-10 list. The Martinsville, Ind., native has 48 blocks and is tied for No. 8. She needs five more to move up to No. 7 (53-Shaleea Petty).
Three Point Season
The Racers have made 152 triples this season, 65.5 percent of the school record for the most three's in a season (232). MSU has a season-high of 15 made in a single game (vs. Mid-Con) and has recorded the same or more triples than its opponents in every game this season. Of the 12 active players on the team, only one has not attempted a shot from beyond the arc and 7-of-11 have made at least one.
Six-Time OVC Player of the Week
For the sixth time this season, red-shirt sophomore Erica Burgess was named the adidas Ohio Valley Conference Newcomer of the Week, for Jan. 17.
The Memphis, Tenn., native recorded 17.5 points and 7.5 rebounds per game in the Racers victories over Tennessee Tech (76-72) and Jacksonville State (73-57) last week. The guard scored 17 points and brought down a career-best nine rebounds versus the Gamecocks. She also had 18 points against the Golden Eagles. She went 12-for-14 at the free throw line for the week.
Nifty-Fifty
Head Coach Rob Cross reached his first coaching win milestone with the Racers, 76-72, win over Tennessee Tech at the CFSB Center, Jan. 14, 2012. The win gave the fourth-year head coach his 50th career win in just his 108th game coached.
Shaking Up the Line-Up
The Racers have now used nine different starting line-ups this season, the second most for a Division I team this season. MSU has also started nine of their 12 players on the team, with only Erica Burgess earning a starting role in all 15 games this season.
Going for No. 500
The Racers are currently 497-641-2 in their 47th season of basketball. With three more wins the team will record its 500 victory. The 500th win for MSU would make the Racers the sixth team in the conference to record over 500 wins. MSU would join Eastern Illinois, Eastern Kentucky, Southeast Missouri, SIU Edwardsville and Tennessee Tech in the club.
High Pressure Defense
The new high-pressure defense that the Racers are playing this season has forced three of their opponents into 30+ turnovers and seven more into 20+ turnovers. This is the first time since at least 1996-97, when individual game stats are available, that the team has forced more than one opponent into 30+ turnovers. The most forced during that span was 39 (Nov. 18, 2009) by Mid-Continent. So far this season MSU has forced Mid-Con into 33, Ball State into 32 and Evansville into 31.
Jessica's Missing for the Season
Both of the Racers players named Jessica, Jessica Winfrey and Jessica Holder, will miss the 2011-12 campaign due to injury. Winfrey was a key starter for the Racers last year, while Holder was sidelined for most of the 2010-11 campaign due to injury as well.
Up Next
MSU will hit the road for two games, at Morehead State (Feb. 1) and UT Martin (Feb. 4) before returning home for a four-game home stand Feb. 6-Feb. 16.
Monday - 7 p.m.
CFSB Center
Murray, Ky.
Game Notes I Listen Live I Watch Live I Live Stats
The Game
The Murray State women's basketball team will return to Ohio Valley Conference action, Monday, Jan. 30 at 7 p.m. in the CFSB Center when they host Eastern Illinois. The Racers played two non-conference games last week.
Scouting Eastern Illinois
The Panthers are 16-4 overall and 7-0 in the OVC after winning their last nine games.
EIU has three players that are averaging over 10 points per game, and two of those are their main shooters. Ta'Kenya Nixon and Mariah King account for 36 percent of the Panthers shots taken and 42 percent of the shots made. Nixon is averaging 14.1 points and 6.1 rebounds per game, while adding 88 assists and 59 steals and shooting .519 from the field. King is netting 13.1 points and a team-best 7.6 boards per game. She adds 14 blocks and is shooting .462 from the field. Sydney Mitchell is the other player on the roster with double-digits in the point's column, with 11.1 points per game. Mitchell is also averaging 5.3 rebounds per game and is shooting .476 from the field and .349 from beyond the arc.
EIU is leading in all statistical categories on the season box score, including a +14.1 mark in points and +9.1 mark in rebounds. The Panthers are a strong shooting team, hitting their shots at a .425 clip and allowing .363. EIU has six players with a shooting percentage over .400 and just two under .300.
Against the Panthers
In the first meeting between the Racers and EIU this season resulted in a 76-51 win for the Panthers in Charleston, Ill.
MSU was led by juniors Mariah Robinson and Tessa Elkins. Robinson tallied 11 points and Elkins added 10 points and four rebounds. EIU was led by Mariah King (18 points, 10 rebounds) and Sydney Mitchell (11 points, 8 rebounds).
Shooting percentages and rebounds were keys to the game, with the Panthers holding advantages in both columns. EIU shot 44.8 percent to the Racers 30.5 percent from the field and .350 to .250 from beyond the arc. The Panthers also out-rebounded MSU 50-29, including a 14-9 mark on the offensive glass.
The Series
The Racers currently own a 23-14 advantage in the all-time series after EIU has one the last two games. MSU has a larger advantage when playing in Murray, with a 14-4 mark.
Watson Doubling Down
Junior Kyra Watson has been making more of a mark on the season box score for the Racers recently. In MSU's 86-77 win over Longwood, the Aurora, Ill., native made a big mark by recording her first career, and just the team's second double-double of the season. Watson tallied career highs of 14 points and 12 rebounds.
Dynamic Duo
Red-shirt sophomore Erica Burgess and junior Mariah Robinson both had outstanding games for the Racers against Longwood. The duo combined to be the first pair to record 20+ points in a game since Kayla Lowe (28) and Kayla Vance (24) did so against Morehead state (3/2/10). Burgess also made the Last Time It Happened List by recording 31 points and became the first to tally 30+ points in a game since Robinson recorded 44 at Jacksonville State (1/23/12). Robinson added 21 points against the Lancers for the duo mark.
Taking Charge of Monday Night
After spending most of the first half of the season on the road the Racers are finally returning home and Monday nights are a big part of the action. Each Monday night for six weeks (Jan. 9-Feb. 13) MSU's women's basketball team will be hosting a game at the CFSB Center.
When the OVC schedule changed to have Saturday-Monday games for the women's teams in the conference the league implemented “Taking Charge of Monday Night” where each team is featured on OVCSports.com and the game they are playing will be featured free on OVCSports.TV. The Feb. 16 (Thursday) game against UTM is the Racers featured night.
1,000 Point Club Membership
Junior Mariah Robinson is cruising along to a membership in the 1,000 Point Club at Murray State. The Beaver Dam, Ky., native is looking to become the 18th member of the club and would be the ninth Racer to do so during her junior campaign. Robinson currently has 966 points, just 34 away from the milestone and is averaging 15.1 points per game this season. She has played in 77 career games and could be one of the fastest to reach the milestone in MSU history.
Athlete (Year Reached 1,000 Pts.) - Games Taken
Shelia Smith (1986-87) - 57 games
Stephanie Minor (1996-97) - 61 games
Laura Lynn (1979-80) - 66 games
Michelle Wenning (1989-90) - 69 games
Jennifer Parker (1992-93) - 74 games
Amber Guffey (2007-08) - 77 games
Ashley N Hayes (2007-08) - 77 games
Jackie Mounts (1977-78) - 80 games
Making Move Up or On Top-10 Lists
Three members of the team are currently on three top-10 lists at MSU. Junior Mariah Robinson is currently ranked No. 2 on the three's made chart, with 154. She is 56 from No. 1 (210-Amber Guffey). Senior Kayla Lowe also joined Robinson on the list, with her 111 career triples, for the No. 9 spot. She is one from No. 8 (112-Brittany Park).
Fellow senior Mallory Schwab also earned her way onto the blocks top-10 list. The Martinsville, Ind., native has 48 blocks and is tied for No. 8. She needs five more to move up to No. 7 (53-Shaleea Petty).
Three Point Season
The Racers have made 152 triples this season, 65.5 percent of the school record for the most three's in a season (232). MSU has a season-high of 15 made in a single game (vs. Mid-Con) and has recorded the same or more triples than its opponents in every game this season. Of the 12 active players on the team, only one has not attempted a shot from beyond the arc and 7-of-11 have made at least one.
Six-Time OVC Player of the Week
For the sixth time this season, red-shirt sophomore Erica Burgess was named the adidas Ohio Valley Conference Newcomer of the Week, for Jan. 17.
The Memphis, Tenn., native recorded 17.5 points and 7.5 rebounds per game in the Racers victories over Tennessee Tech (76-72) and Jacksonville State (73-57) last week. The guard scored 17 points and brought down a career-best nine rebounds versus the Gamecocks. She also had 18 points against the Golden Eagles. She went 12-for-14 at the free throw line for the week.
Nifty-Fifty
Head Coach Rob Cross reached his first coaching win milestone with the Racers, 76-72, win over Tennessee Tech at the CFSB Center, Jan. 14, 2012. The win gave the fourth-year head coach his 50th career win in just his 108th game coached.
Shaking Up the Line-Up
The Racers have now used nine different starting line-ups this season, the second most for a Division I team this season. MSU has also started nine of their 12 players on the team, with only Erica Burgess earning a starting role in all 15 games this season.
Going for No. 500
The Racers are currently 497-641-2 in their 47th season of basketball. With three more wins the team will record its 500 victory. The 500th win for MSU would make the Racers the sixth team in the conference to record over 500 wins. MSU would join Eastern Illinois, Eastern Kentucky, Southeast Missouri, SIU Edwardsville and Tennessee Tech in the club.
High Pressure Defense
The new high-pressure defense that the Racers are playing this season has forced three of their opponents into 30+ turnovers and seven more into 20+ turnovers. This is the first time since at least 1996-97, when individual game stats are available, that the team has forced more than one opponent into 30+ turnovers. The most forced during that span was 39 (Nov. 18, 2009) by Mid-Continent. So far this season MSU has forced Mid-Con into 33, Ball State into 32 and Evansville into 31.
Jessica's Missing for the Season
Both of the Racers players named Jessica, Jessica Winfrey and Jessica Holder, will miss the 2011-12 campaign due to injury. Winfrey was a key starter for the Racers last year, while Holder was sidelined for most of the 2010-11 campaign due to injury as well.
Up Next
MSU will hit the road for two games, at Morehead State (Feb. 1) and UT Martin (Feb. 4) before returning home for a four-game home stand Feb. 6-Feb. 16.
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