UMass Buzzer Shot Downs Racers at Myrtle Beach

Friday, November 18

Conway, S.C.

1:30 p.m.

Murray State

2-2,0-0MVC

UMass

3-1,0-0Atlantic 10

Massachusetts

Murray St.

Photo by: Dave Winder-Murray State Athletics

11/18/2022 6:16:00 PM | Men's Basketball

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The Murray State men’s basketball team plays Sunday for third place in the Myrtle Beach Invitational in Conway, S.C.

The Murray State Racers lost a heartbreaker Friday 71-69 on a buzzer shot to the UMass Minutemen in the semifinals of the Myrtle Beach Invitational at HTC Center in Conway, South Carolina.

The Racers (2-2) were in control after JaCobi Wood made a pair of free throws for a 69-68 Murray State lead with 7-seconds remaining. UMass worked the ball down the floor where Noah Fernandes hit a fall-away corner three to give the Minutemen (3-1) the victory.

After beating Texas A&M in the first game Thursday, the loss to UMass puts the Racers into the third place game at the MBI on Sunday in a 9:30 a.m. Eastern Time tip against either Tulsa or Charlotte who were set to play the second semifinal game Friday night.

JaCobi Wood led the Racers with another career-high of 24 points on 5-of-9 shooting and 11-of-12 from the free throw line. Wood set his career-high in the Texas A&M game with 23 points. Jamari Smith added 14 points to the Racer offense, while Rob Perry scored 11 points. Kenny White, Jr., led the way with seven rebounds with Perry adding seven assists.

Game Notes

This was the first meeting between the Racers and Minutemen in their long-running programs.
Through four games this season, the Racers are shooting 47 percent (108-228) from the field, 37 percent (31-83) from the 3-point line and 71 percent from the free throw line (68-96).
The Racers have four players scoring in double-figures: Smith (16.7ppg), Wood 15.5, Perry 13.8 and Burns 10.8.
The Racers met Charlotte once in their history, a 1998 neutral site game in Hawaii where the Racers lost 88-75. MSU has played Tulsa three times and have won two, including their last meeting in 2015 when the Racers won 83-62 in the NIT.