A Must See Game - Racers vs Western At CFSB Center - Murray State University Athletics

Game-3
Western Kentucky at Murray State
Nov. 14, 2023 - 7 p.m. CT
CFSB Center - Murray, Ky. (8,600)
Red Panda Halftime Performance

Western Kentucky Hilltoppers 1-1 (0-0 CUSA)
Head Coach: Steve Lutz Alma mater: Texas Luthern (1995)
at WKU: 1-1 (1st Season) Career: 220-139 (12th Season) Conference USA: 0-0

Murray State Racers 2-0 (0-0 MVC)
Head Coach: Steve Prohm Alma Mater: Alabama (1997)
at MUR: 6th season (122-44) Career: 12th season (219-139) Missouri Valley: 11-9

Game Day Story Lines

The Racers and Hilltoppers go back a long way, long before they were founding members of the Ohio Valley Conference in 1948.
From 1948 to 1982, they competed in the OVC and the game was usually famous every time they met on the court.
Since then, MSU and WKU have met 23 times with 13 times including the last meeting in 2014 at the CFSB Center in a 93-81 final.
The Racers are 2-0 after home wins over Midway and Tennessee Tech.
The Racers have won their last 26 non-conference home games since an 81-77 defeat to Auburn (12-19-2017).
Newcomer Nick Ellington is off to a great start for the Racers with a scoring clip of 17.0ppg and a rebound average of 11.0.
Ellington has hit 12-of-16 (.750) in the first two games.
JaCobi Wood begins the night needing 94 points to reach 1000 for his collegiate career.
The Racers are in their 99th season of collegiate basketball, their 26th in the CFSB Center and their second in the Missouri Valley Conference.
Coach Steve Prohm begins his 6th season in his tour with the Racers and the 2023-24 season marks his 13th as a head coach.
A year ago, the Racers were predicted for an eighth-place finish, but did better with a spot in seventh place after an 11-9 league record.
A year later, the Racers are the No. 7 selection in a vote of the MVC coaches and Sports Communications staff and media members.
Drake has was chosen No. 1 in the preseason, with UNI, Bradley, Indiana State and Belmont in the top-5. Missouri State is No. 6, followed by the Racers, Illinois State, Southern Illinois and UIC in the top-10. Evansville and Valparaiso round out the poll.
Murray State senior Rob Perry is part of the All-MVC Preseason Team.
Not only is Tuesday a big game, fans also get the chance to see Red Panda in action at halftime.

A Rivalry Renewed in 2023
The game between the Racers and Hilltoppers marks the beginning of a four-year deal starting in 2023. It's their first meeting since 2014. MSU's game at WKU next season will be their first at Diddle arena since 2013. Between 1948 and 1982, the Racers and WKU had great battles over 34 seasons after they each were among the founding schools of the league.

Memorable MSU Wins
Dec. 6, 2014 – CFSB Center
The last meeting on Dec, 6, 2014 is the perfect proof if you have a great guard and forward working on the same team, the results can be stunning. Murray State's Cameron Payne and Jarvis Williams each put up 24 points, with Williams hauling in 12 rebounds and Payne dishing out seven assists. The Racers led by 17 at the half and won comfortably 92-81. T.J. Sapp added 19 points on 4-of-4 from the 3-point line. Williams went 11-of-17 from the field as the Racers shot 56 percent for the game. This win was MSU's third of what would eventually become the OVC record of a 25-game winning streak.

Dec. 1, 2011 – Diddle Arena
In 2011, the Racers rolled into Bowling Green 7-0 on their way to the now famous 2011-12 season that saw the Racers become the final undefeated team in the nation at 23-0. MSU climbed into the top-10 of the national rankings, became a No. 6 seed in Louisville at the NCAA Tournament and all of it came Steve Prohm's rookie season as head coach. On this night at Diddle Arena, the Racers got 18 points from Isaiah Canaan, 14 from Ivan Aska and 10 from Donte Poole. This win is the last time the Racers won at Diddle Arena.

Dec. 7, 2003 – Diddle Arena
Rookie Coach Mick Cronin took the Racers to WKU in 2003 and Cuthbert Victor had one more game to cement his fame as one of the top players in MSU history. The Racers won the game in double overtime 100-95 with Victor, a senior from the Virgin Islands, scoring 26 points and grabbing 20 rebounds. MSU's Rick Jones scored 18, while Adam Chiles added 12 points. The win pushed the Racers to a 7-0 start to the 2003-04 season that eventually led MSU to the OVC regular season title and a trip to the NCAA Tournament.

Jan. 23, 1971 – Racer Arena
In Coach Cal Luther's 13 seasons, the height of the rivalry with WKU was in full view when the Hilltoppers rolled into Racer Arena ranked No. 7 in the nation (later advanced to the NCAA Final Four). In a game that had 15 tied scores, the Racers trailed 41-37 at the half and outscored WKU 36-30 in the second half. All-America selection Jim McDaniel hit the Racers with 20 points and seven rebounds, but he was so good that MSU actually did a good job on him holding McDaniel under his 29ppg average and 15 rebounds per game average. MSU's Jimmy Young scored 20 points, while Ron Williams had 18, Les Taylor 17 and Hector Blondet 13. It was Taylor's tip in with 19 seconds remaining to put the Racers ahead for good. And yes, the MSU student section knew what this game meant and they stormed the floor at the final buzzer. The Paducah Sun's Jerry Atkin's wrote there were 8,000 in Racer Arena that night, incredible if verified, as capacity was listed at 5,500. The Racers won the 73-71, which is still Murray State's best win against a ranked team. It topped the win MSU had for Coach Harlan Hodges over WKU in 1953 when Western was No. 9 in the nation.

A Must See Game - Racers vs Western At CFSB Center

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Players Mentioned

Nick Ellington

Rob Perry

JaCobi Wood

Murray State University