Murray State University Athletics
Thursday, January 28
Murray, Ky.
7:30 p.m.
Murray State
7-7,4-5OVC
73
vs
53
Tennessee State
3-11,2-9OVC
1
2
F
Tennessee St.
22
31
53
Murray St.
31
42
73
Photo by: Dave Winder-Murray State Athletics
Williams & Racers Wallop TSU At The Bank
1/28/2021 10:41:00 PM | Men's Basketball
KJ Williams scored a career-high 25 points and tied his career-best with 16 rebounds to lead the Racers past Tennessee State 73-53
Behind a monster night from KJ Williams, the Murray State Racers blitzed past the Tennessee State Tigers 73-53 in Thursday night action in the Ohio Valley Conference at the CFSB Center in Murray, Ky.
The Racers evened their overall mark at 7-7 and improved to 4-5 in the OVC on back-to-back wins. MSU ends a four-game home stand at The Bank when the Belmont Bruins come to town Saturday for a 7:30 p.m. tip.
Williams scored a career-high 25 points on 9-of-16 from the field, including 1-of-3 from the 3-point line and he added six free throws in eight tries. His 16 rebounds tied his career-high. Devin Gilmore scored 12 points in 24 minutes off the bench to go with five rebounds. Chico Carter, Jr., hit a pair of threes off the bench for 10 points.
In the first half, the Tigers had a 15-14 lead 13 minutes into the game before the Racers finished the half on a 17-7 run for a 31-22 lead. With 16:07 remaining in the game, TSU cut the Racers lead to nine, but Gilmore, Williams and Carter combined for three baskets in a row to push it back to a 14-point lead at 13:35. Carter drilled a 3-pointer at 3:54 and Gilmore scored soon after for a 22-point lead, the largest of the game for the Racers at 3:04 when the score was 66-44.
The Racers dominated the rebound stat 45-25, as they limited the Tigers to only four offensive rebounds. The Racers shot 48 percent from the field (26-of-54) and held TSU to 31 percent (16-of-52). MSU was good from the free throw line in making 16-of-21 for 76 percent.
Game Notes
The Racers now lead the all-time series with TSU 57-17 and they are 32-6 at home. MSU has won the last six in the series. This is the only regular-season meeting between the two.
KJ Williams scored 25 points for the single-game best for the Racers this season in 14 games. This was his sixth game of scoring 20 or more points at MSU.
Williams now has 856 points in 78 games at MSU as he eyes becoming the 48th member of the MSU 1000-Point Club. Tevin Brown already joined the club in December and his career total is now at 1,147 in 79 games.
The previous career-high for Williams was 23 points at the Gulf Coast Showcase (11-26-19). He tied his career-high with 16 rebounds, same as he had at Eastern Illinois (1-17-19). The last Racer to grab 15 or more rebounds was Anthony Smith against Belmont (1-23-20). Williams made a run at the CFSB Center rebound record. The record is 18, by James Singleton against EIU in 2003 and Jarvis Williams against Southeast Missouri in 2013.
The Racers host Belmont Saturday in the second game of a women's/men's doubleheader at the CFSB Center. The women's game tips at 4:30 p.m. with the men's game set for 7:30 p.m.
The Racers lost the first meeting this season with the Bruins in Nashville 68-55 (12-30-20).
Check GoRacers.com for the latest basketball schedule information
Men's Schedule
Women's Schedule
About MSU Athletics Mobile Ticketing
Beginning with the 2020-21 basketball season, all Murray State Athletics tickets will be distributed via mobile delivery and no physical ticket sheets will be printed in accordance to guidelines from the Commonwealth of Kentucky. Season ticket holders can use the http://am.ticketmaster.com/murray site to access and manage their tickets. Going mobile is the most convenient and flexible way to receive and manage tickets while increasing protection against fraud. Mobile tickets reduce the risk of lost, stolen, counterfeit or forgotten tickets and quick and contactless entry into the venue.
FAQ About Mobile Ticketing
Racer Restart – Basketball
Through the Racer Restart initiative and planning process, Murray State University will follow a collaborative, thoughtful and proactive approach in re-opening campus. This process includes athletics and our goal to offer you the same Racer brand you have enjoyed over the years in a way that is safe for everyone - the student-athletes, the coaches, the staff and the best fans in the OVC, Racer Nation.
FAQ About Racer Restart For Basketball
Follow the Racers on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram and on the web at GoRacers.com.
The Racers evened their overall mark at 7-7 and improved to 4-5 in the OVC on back-to-back wins. MSU ends a four-game home stand at The Bank when the Belmont Bruins come to town Saturday for a 7:30 p.m. tip.
Williams scored a career-high 25 points on 9-of-16 from the field, including 1-of-3 from the 3-point line and he added six free throws in eight tries. His 16 rebounds tied his career-high. Devin Gilmore scored 12 points in 24 minutes off the bench to go with five rebounds. Chico Carter, Jr., hit a pair of threes off the bench for 10 points.
In the first half, the Tigers had a 15-14 lead 13 minutes into the game before the Racers finished the half on a 17-7 run for a 31-22 lead. With 16:07 remaining in the game, TSU cut the Racers lead to nine, but Gilmore, Williams and Carter combined for three baskets in a row to push it back to a 14-point lead at 13:35. Carter drilled a 3-pointer at 3:54 and Gilmore scored soon after for a 22-point lead, the largest of the game for the Racers at 3:04 when the score was 66-44.
The Racers dominated the rebound stat 45-25, as they limited the Tigers to only four offensive rebounds. The Racers shot 48 percent from the field (26-of-54) and held TSU to 31 percent (16-of-52). MSU was good from the free throw line in making 16-of-21 for 76 percent.
Game Notes
The Racers now lead the all-time series with TSU 57-17 and they are 32-6 at home. MSU has won the last six in the series. This is the only regular-season meeting between the two.
KJ Williams scored 25 points for the single-game best for the Racers this season in 14 games. This was his sixth game of scoring 20 or more points at MSU.
Williams now has 856 points in 78 games at MSU as he eyes becoming the 48th member of the MSU 1000-Point Club. Tevin Brown already joined the club in December and his career total is now at 1,147 in 79 games.
The previous career-high for Williams was 23 points at the Gulf Coast Showcase (11-26-19). He tied his career-high with 16 rebounds, same as he had at Eastern Illinois (1-17-19). The last Racer to grab 15 or more rebounds was Anthony Smith against Belmont (1-23-20). Williams made a run at the CFSB Center rebound record. The record is 18, by James Singleton against EIU in 2003 and Jarvis Williams against Southeast Missouri in 2013.
The Racers host Belmont Saturday in the second game of a women's/men's doubleheader at the CFSB Center. The women's game tips at 4:30 p.m. with the men's game set for 7:30 p.m.
The Racers lost the first meeting this season with the Bruins in Nashville 68-55 (12-30-20).
Check GoRacers.com for the latest basketball schedule information
Men's Schedule
Women's Schedule
About MSU Athletics Mobile Ticketing
Beginning with the 2020-21 basketball season, all Murray State Athletics tickets will be distributed via mobile delivery and no physical ticket sheets will be printed in accordance to guidelines from the Commonwealth of Kentucky. Season ticket holders can use the http://am.ticketmaster.com/murray site to access and manage their tickets. Going mobile is the most convenient and flexible way to receive and manage tickets while increasing protection against fraud. Mobile tickets reduce the risk of lost, stolen, counterfeit or forgotten tickets and quick and contactless entry into the venue.
FAQ About Mobile Ticketing
Racer Restart – Basketball
Through the Racer Restart initiative and planning process, Murray State University will follow a collaborative, thoughtful and proactive approach in re-opening campus. This process includes athletics and our goal to offer you the same Racer brand you have enjoyed over the years in a way that is safe for everyone - the student-athletes, the coaches, the staff and the best fans in the OVC, Racer Nation.
FAQ About Racer Restart For Basketball
Follow the Racers on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram and on the web at GoRacers.com.
Team Stats
TSU
MSU
FG%
.308
.481
3FG%
.250
.250
FT%
.882
.762
RB
25
45
TO
11
13
STL
7
2
Game Leaders
Pts
25
FGM
9
3FGM
1
FTM
6
Pts
12
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Pts
10
FGM
3
3FGM
2
FTM
2
Pts
8
FGM
2
3FGM
0
FTM
4
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's BasketballF
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