Team effort drives Racer win over Jackson State

Story by Blake Sandlin

Sports Editor

bsandlin1@murraystate.edu

Sophomore guard Ja Morant didn’t wow in the points column in the Racers’ 74-57 win over Jackson State University on Saturday – but to Murray State’s credit, he didn’t need to.

The Racers relied on a total team effort to beat the Tigers at the CFSB Center, using double-figure scoring by five Racers to extend their winning streak to four and send Jackson State away with a 17-point loss.

Senior guard Shaq Buchanan (19 points), freshman guard Tevin Brown (16), junior forward Darnell Cowart (11), freshman forward KJ Williams (10), and Morant (10) all had sizable contributions in the Murray State win. Morant, who averages 24 ppg, padded his showing with five rebounds and 14 assists, tied for third-most assists in Murray State history.

Head Coach Matt McMahon stressed that this type of collective showing from his team further validates their legitimacy beyond the stellar play of Morant.

“I’ve said it from day one, we’ve got very good players who work extremely hard,” McMahon said. “We’ve got multiple people who can score. Obviously we’ve got an elite, elite playmaker who will put you in great positions to score. We have an unselfish group. I thought we had great balance tonight.”

Perhaps drained from two-straight domineering double-digit road wins, Murray State opened the game struggling to find the basket. With 9:21 remaining in the first half, the Racers trailed Jackson State 20-18.

McMahon said his team gambled a little too much in their attempt to put away the Tigers early in the first half.

“I think what happens when you come off the last 80 minutes that we played and you go on the road against two great programs and you outscore them by 50 points in the two games, you kind of get the feeling like you’ve got to knock somebody out in the first five minutes of the game,” McMahon said. “It doesn’t work that way. I thought we tried to hit some home runs; gambled a little bit defensively. You just don’t beat people like that in a five minute span.”

Gambling turned to handling in the moments shortly after Jackson State took that 20-18 lead. The Racers used a 10-2 run in the ensuing four minutes to claim a six-point edge over Jackson State after two critical plays by Buchanan.

Brown picked up where he left off from the game against Southern Illinois University-Carbondale by hitting three first half 3-pointers to aid in Murray State’s 34-24 lead at the half. Brown has now hit 15-for-30 from the 3-point stripe over the last three games.

The Racers used a 20-7 run over a 10-minute stretch beginning at the 14:31 mark in the second half to bust the game open. Buchanan had 11 points in the second half, including two of his three second-half threes.

The senior guard has struggled with his shot as of late, but he said he is beginning to see the fruits of his labor.

“I just kept my confidence, and my teammates stayed positive with me,” Buchanan said. “I was talking to coach [Tim] Kaine, and I said, ‘I think I found my shot.’ Because I’m shooting everyday trying to improve.”

Murray State finished the game with 17 assists on the team’s 23 buckets. The lone flaw in a game the Racers commanded was their effort on the defensive glass. The team forfeited 16 offensive rebounds to the Tigers, as they were out-rebounded 42 to 39.

“Defense was good, I was just disappointed at our offensive rebounding,” McMahon said. “I thought that was poor tonight.”

Another bright spot for the Racers was the much anticipated return of freshman guard DaQuan Smith. With 2:21 left in the game, Smith took to the court for the first time this season. McMahon noted that Smith is making progress and has the possibility to become more involved in the regular rotation.

“It’s going to be a process,” McMahon said. “He missed four and a half months, so [minute increase] isn’t going to happen overnight. But he’s really progressed well in practice, and we’ll see how he feels tomorrow. He’s getting better everyday. Pain-free, which is most important. Just like anyone else, he has the opportunity to gain time in practice. The thing that was tough for him was he had an unbelievable summer. He was right in the mix to play a ton of minutes, and then had the unfortunate injury. But he’s worked extremely hard to get back, and we’ll see how it goes from here.”

The Racers will face their third Missouri Valley foe of the season when they clash with the University of Evansville on Tuesday, Dec. 18, at the CFSB Center.