Josh Embry
Staff Writer
jembry3@murraystate.edu
Murray State women’s basketball secured its third consecutive win in a 74-60 matchup against SIUE at the CFSB Center to close out their four-game home stand.
Prior to their last three wins, the Racers were 1-6 in conference play, playing teams that have a combined conference record of 40-10. Sophomore guard Lex Mayes said the team knew their latter schedule was easier than their first several conference games and that this could lend to easier wins down the road.
“We knew we had a really tough first half of our conference schedule,” Mayes said. “Obviously, we played everyone that was ranked higher than us [in] preseason. We knew the second half would be a good turning point to get ourselves back into the tournament because we faced a lot of really tough teams and we started off rocky but we knew our second half would be teams even with us and some even ranked behind us.”
With the win, Murray State moves back over .500 at 11-10 overall and 4-6 in OVC play. Currently, their conference record has them at seventh in the standings.
The Racers led nearly the entire game and outscored the Cougars in every quarter.
SIUE had three players score in double figures, with freshman forward Mikayla Kinnard scoring a team-high 13 points. Freshman forward Kaitlin Lee was one rebound shy of a double-double, as she scored 12 points.
Freshman guard Tori Handley contributed 11 points while graduate guard Bria Stallworth did a little of everything, finishing with six points, six rebounds and four assists.
A big reason for Murray State’s win was the offensive play of sophomore guard Macey Turley. After being held to only six points (1-for-10 FG) against Eastern Illinois, Turley went on an offensive tear this game, finishing with 29 points—23 in the second half—on 10-for-15 shooting, 4-for-6 from behind the arc and she sank all five of her free throws.
Head Coach Rechelle Turner knew coming into this game that Turley was bound for a bounce-back game.
“I could have told you that Macey Turley was going to come out and have a night because she is hard to keep down for long,” Turner said. “I know she has been frustrated with the way she has been shooting the basketball, so I knew she was going to come out tonight and really look to score.”
Turley said the coaching staff continued to tell her to keep shooting, no matter the shot or the outcome.
“My coaches have been telling me to keep shooting even if they are bad shots because usually my shot is going to be better than some of the other ones,” Turley said. “I have kind of forgot about Thursday’s game so I just wanted to come out here and do the best I can.”
Sophomore forward Alexis Burpo continued her stellar play as of late, as she snagged a career-high 15 rebounds to go along with 11 points and four assists. Her transformation throughout this season has been something to watch, and her teammates and coaches love what they are seeing from her.
“Oh my gosh, it is amazing,” Mayes said. “You knew it was coming and [she] just needed her time and here it is. I love to see it because I do not think there is anybody who can stop her when she gets her mind set and she wants to go off.”
Turner said her performance, coupled with her near triple double on Thursday, could lead her to earn recognition throughout the OVC.
“I told her going into tonight, ‘I know you can do it but I want you to go out there and get a double-double on Saturday night because I think if you do that, we might talk somebody into nominating you for OVC Player of the Week,’” Turner said. “I would really love to see her get that.”
Like in their last two wins, other players who did not score as much earlier in the season have really been able to put up points these last weeks.
Mayes, who finished with 14 points, has played especially well in this win streak, as she is averaging 17 ppg and shooting 40% from downtown and 48% overall.
“She is just back in that zone,” Turner said. “That is the Lex I know. When she shoots it and it does not go in, I am back to being surprised it did not go in. [She] went through that stretch really having a tough time confidence-wise but she has all the confidence in the world [now]. Lex’s game has evolved into a player that can shot-fake and get into the lane and make things happen as well.”
Freshman forward Macie Gibson, who only played 25 minutes due to foul trouble, was still able to score efficiently, as she tallied 12 points (5-9 FG) and five rebounds.
Turner said the team’s offensive performance the last three games has shown how much the players have improved and how resilient and determined they are.
“We had four kids in double figures again,” Turner said. “That just shows the evolution of us becoming a team. We have a lot of kids that are playing hard and doing good things and not only scoring the basketball, but making good defensive plays and rebounding the ball and making good decisions for us.”
The Racers will look to keep their winning streak alive as they travel to Nashville, Tennessee, to take on Belmont for the second time this season at 11 a.m. on Thursday, Feb. 6.