Story by Bryan Edwards, Sports Editor
With its season on the line, the Murray State women’s basketball team was matched up with the task of defeating a team that hadn’t lost a game against an Ohio Valley Conference opponent since February 2016.
Unfortunately for the Racers, Belmont extended its winning streak over conference foes to 44 games, defeating Murray State 88-64, ending its season in the first round of the 2018 OVC Tournament.
Trailing the entirety of the game, the Racers pushed back at the Bruins with a 12-3 run in the third quarter to pull the game to within one point. But it was Belmont junior guard Darby Maggard who pushed right back, scoring nine of her 15 points in the final 3:03 of the third quarter to help her team shut the door on Murray State’s year.
“They’re an exceptional basketball team; there’s a reason they’re undefeated in the conference two straight years,” Head Coach Rechelle Turner said. “They just have so many kids that can do so many things and the bottom line is, you try to stop one thing and they burn you in another.”
After the Bruins walked out of the third quarter with a 10-point lead, they cruised the rest of the way, outscoring the Racers 30-16 in the final quarter to secure a spot in the second round of the OVC Tournament.
Despite the 24-point defeat, Turner said her team fought admirably to keep the season alive.
“I thought kids fought hard and represented ourselves well,” Turner said.
Murray State was led by senior guard Bria Bethea. The second team All-OVC player scored 21 points in her final game as a Racer. She also pulled down seven rebounds.
“Bria Bethea played her heart out today,” Turner said. “She really kept us in the game in the third quarter. Every spurt we had began with her effort.”
Senior guard Ke’Shunan James left a final mark in her illustrious Murray State career with a double-double, scoring 17 points and pulling down 11 rebounds.
Other seniors on their way out are Jasmine Borders and Mary Jones. Borders finished with one point and Jones didn’t record a score on the afternoon.
Turner said she was thankful the team gave her a chance to coach them this season.
“It’s hard when a new coach comes in and you’re used to certain things happening,” Turner said. “The buy-in was there and these kids played hard. The relationship I was able to develop with these players will be something that I hold really special.”
The Racers end their season with an 11-19 record in Turner’s first at the helm.