Racers Erase Eagles 17-Point Lead to Earn 81-78 OVC Road Victory

Wednesday, February 1

Morehead, Ky.

5:00 PM

Murray State

Morehead State

Photo by: Tab Brockman

Racers Erase Eagles 17-Point Lead to Earn 81-78 OVC Road Victory

2/1/2012 9:31:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Robinson Tallies 1,000th Career Point

Box Score I Box Score (pdf)

With 12:30 left in the first half of play, the Murray State women's basketball team was trailing Morehead State by 17, but an explosive second half earned the Racers (9-13, 5-4 OVC) an 81-78 Ohio Valley Conference road victory at Johnson Arena. The game was a key OVC match-up that broke the tie between Racers and the Eagles in the OVC standings.

Murray State was led by senior Mallory Schwab and junior Mariah Robinson. Schwab turned in a career-high 26 points and added five rebounds, a block and a steal, while Robinson added 25 points, six rebounds, an assist, a block and a steal. The 25 points by Robinson were what the Beaver Dam, Ky., native needed to become the 18^th member of the Racers 1,000 Point Club in just 79 games.

After both teams landed a triple in the opening two minutes of the game, the Eagles (7-14, 4-5 OVC) went on a 5-0 run over a minute span to take control of the scoreboard (8-3). A second three-point shot by the Racers cut the lead to two (8-6), but Morehead State followed with a 15-0 run to take a 23-6 lead with 12:30 left to play in the half. Murray State cut the lead to nine over the next 2:30, with an 8-0 run, but it was not enough to turn the momentum in their favor and they went to the locker room trailing 43-31.

The second half was like a different game for the Racers, who in the first four minutes of the half went on an 11-4 run to cut the deficit to five. Then over a two minute span, Murray State went on a 10-4 run to cut the lead to one. The game was kept close with key contributions from both Schwab and Robinson until the seven-minute mark when the Racers tied the game and took a short lead. The teams were then still trading baskets, but the Eagles kept hitting three's to Murray State's jumpers to take a four-point advantage.

With 2:40 left on the clock and the Racers trailing by two (73-75), a miscue on the inbounds play by Morehead State gave Erica Burgess the chance to tie the game and give the Racers the needed momentum. The basket by Burgess started a 6-0 run by Murray State that gave them the lead for good. The Eagles' Linda Dixon cut the lead to one (79-78) with a three from the top of the key with a minute left to play. Murray State then turned the ball over with 28 seconds left on a shot clock violation, but Schwab tallied her block and was fouled on the next play. The Martinsville, Ind., native then secured the win for the Racers with two free throws, with seven seconds left on the clock. The Eagles had one shot at a tie, but Dixon missed the last shot and Murray State earned the win.

After shooting just 30.3 percent in the first half, Murray State shot 56.7 percent from the field in the second half and 50 percent from beyond the arc. The Eagles hit 43.3 percent of their shots in the game, including a 50 percent mark in the second half, but the Racers out-scored Morehead State 50-35 in the second stanza. Free throws were a key to the game, as Murray State earned an advantage at the charity stripe, making 20-of-29 attempts to the Eagles 15-of-17 mark.

The Racers will remain on the road for one more game, Saturday, Feb. 4 at UT Martin, before returning to the CFSB Center for a four-game home stand. Tip-off with the Skyhawks is set for 4 p.m., with the men's game to follow at 7 p.m.

Notes: The Racers game at the CFSB Center, Saturday, Feb. 11 vs. Southeast Missouri has been pushed back to a 4:30 p.m. start time…the game will still be a double-header with men's team playing Austin Peay at 7:30 p.m., which will be aired on ESPN3…it was the second game this season that Murray State had two players with 20+ points in the same game…Burgess and Robinson combined for 31 and 21 vs. Longwood (1/23/12)…the win snapped a five-game losing streak to the Eagles and was the first win at Johnson Arena since Feb. 9, 2008…it was the first time that the Racers have trailed with five minutes left to play and won since March 20, 2009 when the Racers defeated Arkansas-Little Rock (67-65) in the first round of the WNIT.