Josh Embry
Contributing Writer
jembry3@murraystate.edu
Murray State women’s basketball opened up conference play during Christmas break, going 1-3 against the likes of UT Martin, SEMO, Jacksonville State and Tennessee Tech
UT Martin
In the first game of the new year, a 31-point first quarter proved too much for the Murray State women’s basketball team which lost 89-64 to UT Martin to open their 18-game OVC slate.
The Racers turned the ball over 19 times and assisted on only 15 makes. Head Coach Rechelle Turner said the team allowed the Skyhawks’ pressure to affect its offense.
“We allowed their pressure to affect us offensively all night,” Turner said. “We didn’t get into any of our stuff and get a whole lot of open looks. You can’t emulate [their pressure] in practice in any way, shape or form. They smacked us and we didn’t handle that very well.”
UT Martin dominated the glass as well, out-rebounding Murray State 49 to 38 and scoring 20 second-chance points to the Racers’ nine.
The Racers had no answers for the Skyhawks’ hot shooting in the first quarter. UT Martin drilled five of their 10 threes in the first quarter and led 16-3 early on. By the end of the quarter, Murray State was down 31-16.
Turner admitted that it was frustrating how surprisingly well the Skyhawks shot early in the quarter.
“They came out and shot the ball well to begin the game,” Turner said. “That was frustrating to a certain extent because their shooting percentages haven’t been as good as they shot the ball tonight.”
UT Martin’s poor free throw shooting coupled with their 9-for-22 shooting in the second quarter led to the Racers being outscored by only three in the quarter.
At halftime, the Skyhawks held a commanding 53-35 lead.
Murray State was outscored 25-15 in the third quarter and UT Martin’s lead increased to 28 points to begin the fourth quarter.
Despite shooting 3-for-13 from the field and 1-for-5 from behind the arc, solid free throw shooting (7-9 FT) propelled the Racers to win the quarter 14-11. The Skyhawks ultimately won by 25.
Turner was pleased with the team’s defensive schemes but said those possessions did not matter because they did not secure the defensive rebound.
“At times our defense wasn’t bad but then we’d give up two or three offensive boards,” Turner said. “You have to finish each possession with a rebound.”
Four Skyhawks scored in double figures, with junior forward Chelsey Perry scoring 20 points to go along with 10 rebounds. Both junior forward Maddie Waldrop and sophomore guard Damiah Griffin each poured in 15 points. Freshman forward Dasia Young added 14 points, five rebounds and three assists.
With all the Skyhawks’ offensive weapons, Turner struggled to put the Racers in defensive situations to stop their scorers.
“It’s difficult because you’re trying to focus on Chelsey and you know you have to give up on something,” Turner said. “Griffin was able to make those two threes and then Maddie was able to make those threes.”
Waldrop shot a solid 5-for-9 from the field despite shooting only 34% for the season. Turner said that when she is shooting well, she can be a real offensive threat for UT Martin.
“Maddie is a workhorse for them,” Turner said. “She hasn’t been shooting the ball as well as I know she would like to this year and hasn’t been in double figures as near as many times as she would like to, but tonight was a perfect example of what she can do.”
Junior forward Laci Hawthorne had herself a night, scoring a career-high 20 points on an efficient 9-for-13 shooting with eight rebounds in only 25 minutes.
Turner liked how aggressive and ready to play Hawthorne was from the tip.
“She was aggressive going to the offensive glass [and] got us going,” Turner said. “She was aggressive when we did break the press, taking the ball to the basket. She played in that relentless mode you have to be in. She really made herself known early.”
Freshman forward Macie Gibson dropped eight points while shooting 3-for-9 from the field.
Both senior forward Cekeya Mack and sophomore Raegan Blackburn (2-4 3PT) added six points.
Sophomore guard Macey Turley had seven points, six rebounds and five assists but turned over the ball eight times.
UT Martin’s full court pressure and double teams coupled with the Racers’ lack of ball handlers made it difficult for Turley to move the ball and break the press.
Turner said that the double teams thrown at Turley showed just how good she is as a primary ball handler and that the team needs to help Turley more against pressure.
“That’s a lot of respect for Maci [when] they are going to [double her],” Turner said. “That’s when it shows that we have to have other players step up and handle the basketball. We’ve gotta find kids willing to step up and handle the ball because most teams are gonna try and take her away or make things very hard for her.”
Following the game, Gibson said the team has to help Turley handle the ball as well.
“We have to have other players step up and handle the pressure,” Gibson said. “We can’t all lean on Macey to handle all the pressure and handle the ball the whole time and have to score all the points.”
Turner knows their games will not get any easier in the future but that they have to move on from this loss.
“We knew the start to the OVC play was going to be tough,” Turner said. “It’s not going to get any easier come Saturday. You gotta have amnesia. You gotta get over it [and] get ready for the next scout and do better.”
SEMO
With a dominant 25-point fourth quarter, the Murray State women’s basketball team was able to hold off Southeast Missouri State for a 70-62 win.
The Racers secured their first win in conference play and are now 1-1 against OVC opponents and 8-5 overall. Murray State handed SEMO their fourth loss on the season and ended their three-game winning streak.
The game was close throughout, with 16 lead changes and 11 ties. Head Coach Rechelle Turner said that despite numerous rebounds and turnovers, the team found a way to win because of their hard work and perseverance.
“I’ve said all year long that all of our wins have come because we’ve worked hard and we’ve given ourselves opportunities,” Turner said. “Tonight wasn’t pretty either. We gave up 27 offensive rebounds [and] we turned the ball over 21 times. There is no reason we’re ahead on the scoreboard except for the fight and the grit from the kids on the floor.”
Turner decided to change the starting lineup, with sophomore guard Raegan Blackburn and sophomore guard Sadie Hill each earning their first starts of their Racer careers. Blackburn, a walk-on, has impressed Turner as of late.
“I thought Raegan did a really good job of holding the [starting] spot for us and then she had to play extended minutes in the first half with Macey in foul trouble,” Turner said. “Raegan is capable of doing that.”
Hill’s impressive performance tonight showed why Turner recruited her and how she can help the team win games going forward.
“Sadie has always been capable,” Turner said. “We recruited Sadie out of high school and I knew what the kid can do. She’s one of the best shooters we have and she’s tough. Tonight just gave people a glimpse of why we wanted her on this basketball team.”
Unlike their last two games where they struggled defensively in the first quarter, the Racers held the Redhawks to only 5-of-19 shooting. Murray State had a double digit lead after going on a 10-0 run but SEMO trimmed the lead to two points to make it 16-14.
The Redhawks took advantage of Murray State’s turnovers and lack of shot attempts in the second quarter to outscore the Racers 17-10. At the half, SEMO led 31-26.
The second half was all Racers, as they outscored the Redhawks in both quarters and cut down their turnovers from 13 in the first half to nine in the second half.
Murray State held SEMO to only 12 points on 5-for-22 shooting in the third quarter and scored 19 points to lead the Redhawks 45-43 going into the fourth quarter.
In the fourth quarter the Racers went on an offensive onslaught, dropping 25 points on 7-for-13 shooting and going 3-for-4 from behind the arc to win by 8 points.
Hill thought the team shot well and that everyone who played contributed.
“Tonight I feel like we had a really good scoring night,” Hill said. “I feel like everybody who touched the floor at least once or twice was able to at least get their hands on the ball and be able to shoot it.”
Two Skyhawks scored in double figures, with junior guard Tesia Thompson scoring a game-high 21 points along with eight rebounds. Senior guard Jessie Harshberger added 18 points.
Senior guard Carrie Shepherd, who averaged 18.4 ppg, was held to only five points on 2-for-17 shooting and 1-for-9 on three pointers. Turner praised her team for making it hard on Shepherd to get open looks and said that was one of the main reasons why they won.
“I thought the holding of Shepherd was the major difference,” Turner said. “We didn’t want her to have any uncontested shots. I thought our kids did a really good job locking her down. They did a really good job of knowing where she was and we did a really good job of finding her in the zone. All of her shots were contested because she’s a big part of their offense.”
Hill had the best scoring night of her career, dropping 19 points—all in the second half—while shooting 5-for-9 from the field, 4-for-6 from behind the arc and 5-for-6 from the charity stripe. She also grabbed five rebounds and had five steals.
Sophomore guard Macey Turley scored 19 points as well and was a perfect 9-for-9 on free throws. Sophomore guard Lex Mayes added 10 points and six rebounds.
Senior forward Cekeya Mack, who was swapped out of the starting lineup, contributed six points and eight rebounds in 28 minutes. Turner said she likes the energy Mack brings off the bench.
“Mack’s our only senior, but I really like her coming off the bench right now,” Turner said. “She just brings a lot of energy and that’s what we kind of looked for.”
The Racers’ lack of rebounding has been evident. Following the game, Turley said that the team is focused on trying to get better on the glass.
“Every night we come out, it’s a dog fight,” Turley said. “We’re really harping on offensive rebounds. We gave up way too many. Not too many teams are going to beat us on their first shot so we can’t give them extra opportunities.”
Jacksonville State
While shooting only 34% from the field and 19% from three-point range, the Murray State women’s basketball team suffered a 68-51 road loss to Jacksonville State on Thursday, Jan. 9.
The Racers fell to 1-2 in OVC play and 8-6 overall. The Gamecocks earned their sixth win of the season and moved to 2-1 in conference play.
Murray State was also out-rebounded 46-32 and had only four second-chance points to Jacksonville State’s 18.
Jacksonville State opened the game with a 6-0 run but the Racers rallied back and scored the last six points of the quarter to cut into the Gamecocks’ lead to make it 15-13.
The second quarter was fairly even despite Murray State shooting only 5-for-14 and 0-for-3 from behind the arc. Jacksonville State shot 7-for-16 from the field and led 31-25 at halftime.
Senior forward Cekeya Mack led all scorers at the half with 10 points while junior guard Taylor Hawks led the Gamecocks with nine points.
The second half was not as evenly matched as the first, as Jacksonville State won both quarters.
The Gamecocks scored nine of its 16 third-quarter points off second-chance opportunities to outscore the Racers by three points to make it 47-38 entering the fourth quarter.
Murray State was not able to stop Jacksonville State’s offense in the fourth quarter, allowing them to shoot 50% from the field and score 21 points to the Racers’ 13 points. The Gamecocks won by 17.
Hawks scored a game-high 21 points on 7-for-14 shooting to lead Jacksonville State. Senior forward Chloe Long secured a double-double with 13 points and 12 rebounds.
Sophomore guard Yamia Johnson added nine points on 3-for-3 shooting from behind the arc. Junior guard Kiana Johnson contributed eight points.
Playing all 40 minutes of the game, sophomore guard Macey Turley led the Racers in scoring with 15 points despite shooting 4-for-17 and 2-for-9 from behind the arc. She collected five rebounds and two assists as well.
Mack dropped a career-high 14 points on an efficient 7-for-11 shooting to go along with five rebounds. Sophomore guard Lex Mayes added six points and junior forward Laci Hawthorne grabbed a team-high 10 rebounds while also scoring four points.
Tennessee Tech
Despite leading the majority of the first three quarters, Murray State women’s basketball was not able to hang on, losing 77-72 to Tennessee Tech on Saturday, Jan. 11.
The Racers slip to 1-3 in OVC play and 8-7 overall. The Golden Eagles remain undefeated in conference play and move to 11-4 on the season.
After only scoring 51 points in their last game, Head Coach Rechelle Turner was pleased that the team scored over 70 points and with the amount of shots the team attempted.
“We got 71 shots up, which was our goal,” Turner said. “We still didn’t shoot the ball well but we got enough shots up and got to the foul line enough that we were able to score 70 points.”
Despite being severely outsized, Murray State was able to out-rebound Tennessee Tech 50-40. The Racers were out-rebounded in their last three games.
Turner was pleased with the team’s effort and effectiveness on the glass.
“I thought the job that [the team] did on the boards was unbelievable and a lot of that was effort and a lot of that was just execution,” Turner said.
The Racers started the game by shooting an efficient 9-for-19 from the field in the first quarter while holding the Golden Eagles to 7-for-19 shooting. Murray State was up 21-18 at the end of the quarter.
Both teams cooled down in the second quarter, with the Racers shooting just above 30% and Tennessee Tech shooting 29%. Going into halftime, Murray State held a 32-28 lead.
The second half showed how talented the Golden Eagles are and why they were on a six-game winning streak prior to this matchup.
Murray State went even colder in the third quarter, shooting only 5-for-19 but went 7-for-8 from the charity stripe to score 18 points. Tennessee Tech shot a solid 7-for-13 from the field and 8-for-10 from the free-throw line to score 23 points.
At one point in the quarter, the Racers held a six-point advantage but were not able to hold the lead. Following two made free-throws at the end of the quarter, the Golden Eagles held a 51-50 lead going into the fourth quarter.
The fourth quarter was a back-and-forth contest that saw both teams go on big runs. With Murray State down two with seven minutes left, junior guard Jordan Brock went on an offensive tear, scoring eight points in a one minute span to bump Tennessee Tech’s lead to 10 points.
Murray State clawed back into the game following lay-ups, made free-throws and two clutch three-pointers by sophomore guard Macey Turley to cut the lead to four.
However, the Racers did not get any closer as they turned the ball over and missed shots in the final minutes to hand the Golden Eagles a five-point victory.
Turner commended Tennessee Tech’s ability to close out the game and said that her team was not able to make key stops down the stretch.
“Just a very-well coached team [in] Tennessee Tech,” Turner said. “Kim does a great job and they made big shots [and] they made big plays. We had done such a superb job defensively all night and when we needed stops the most, we let some of them loose and they made big shots.”
The Golden Eagles had very balanced scoring throughout. Five players scored in double figures, with Brock scoring a team-high 15 points. Junior guard Kesha Brady contributed 13 points while senior forward Anacia Wilkinson added 12 points.
Both junior forward Mackenzie Coleman and freshman guard Maaliya Owens scored 10 points while senior guard Akia Harris finished with six points, three rebounds and five assists.
Sophomore forward Alexis Burpo had her best game as a Racer, finishing with a career-high 18 points (7-20 FG) and career-highs in rebounds and assists also, with 14 and six, respectively.
Turner was impressed by Burpo’s performance and said that Burpo is proving those who are critical of her play to be wrong.
“That’s the Alexis Burpo that deserves for people to get off her back about not being good enough to play Division I basketball,” Turner said. “She had 18 [points] and 14 [rebounds] against one of the best teams in the conference and she kept us in the game defensively as well as offensively all night long.”
Sophomore guard Macey Turley continued her impressive season by scoring a game-high 28 points while shooting 9-of-22 from the field, 5-for-9 from three-point range and 5-for-6 from the charity stripe.
Senior forward Cekeya Mack just missed having a double-double, finishing with 10 points and nine rebounds in only 18 minutes of action due to foul trouble.
Sophomore guard Sadie Hill added six points along with three rebounds and two assists. Junior forward Laci Hawthorne contributed five points and controlled the glass by grabbing 13 rebounds.
Despite the loss, Burpo said that the team will find success as long as they stay united and focused throughout the remainder of the season.
“If we just keep sticking together and staying the course, I think we can do something good down the road,” Burpo said.
Turner wants the team to learn and grow from this game because their schedule does not get any easier.
“We’ve gotta take some things from this game and take it into the remainder of our conference schedule and it doesn’t get any easier,” Turner said. “We got UT Martin on Thursday on the road so we know what we’re up against and we just gotta stay the course.”
The Racers will look to get back into the win column when they travel to Martin, Tennessee, to take on the Skyhawks at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 16.