Gage Johnson
Editor-in-Chief
gjohnson17@murraystate.edu
Murray State men’s basketball hung on to the sixth longest active home winning streak in college basketball, trouncing Austin Peay with an emphatic 87-57 victory.
It was a slow start for both teams, with the score sitting at a measly 6-4 at the first media timeout, with senior forward Terry Taylor converting all six for the Governors. After some adjustments following the media timeout from the Racers’ defense, Taylor only found the bottom of the net one more time in the first half.
Junior guard Tevin Brown said it was their goal to make the three-time All-OVC member work for his points.
“[We] just [tried] to play hard defensively, make every catch a hard catch, try to deny the post as much as we could and I feel like we came out and did that,” Brown said.
This along with shooting struggles from sophomore guard Jordyn Adams allowed the Racers to get off to a blistering pace offensively.
With 12:51 left in the first half, Murray State gained its first lead of the night and bolted off to a 17-0 run, taking a commanding 26-10 lead.
Once going up 28-13, the Racers’ defense continued to give the Governors problems, holding them scoreless for nearly six minutes. This along with a blistering pace offensively, had them heading into the locker room holding a 41-18 lead.
Head Coach Matt McMahon said it was his team’s intensity on the defensive end of the floor that allowed them to limit production from Taylor and Austin Peay as a whole offensively.
“I thought our defensive pressure was really good,” McMahon said. “When you looked at the halftime stats they had only one assist and 11 turnovers. I thought that was a credit to our guys’ effort, our ability to pressure the basketball and try to provide as much help as you can. You’re not going to stop Terry Taylor. Before the game even starts you can mark him down for his double-double, but we just wanted to try and make him earn everything he got.”
Murray State took its momentum on both ends of the floor into the second half. Austin Peay tried to piece together a comeback early on in the half, but the Racers always had an answer.
The first emphatic answer came from a chase-down block of Adams’ layup from senior guard Brion Whitley, which led to a transition three for Brown to take a 48-25 lead.
Whitley was a key contributor on both sides of the floor for Murray State, providing an infectious energy defensively while attacking the rim to match his career-high 10 points on 4-7 shooting.
“I thought his effort was fantastic,” McMahon said. “I thought he was aggressive, driving through the gaps of their defense and got to the rim and finished plays in the first half and I thought he was terrific defensively for us. I just thought he was really locked in and played to the standards we expect from him.”
The second came from sophomore guard Chico Carter Jr., who nailed back-to-back threes as Austin Peay attempted to cut Murray State’s lead below 20. After the pair of triples, the Racers never looked back, coming away with an 87-57 lead.
“The offensive efficiency was fantastic,” McMahon said. “I think a huge lift was when Chico came into the game in the first half. I thought he just made great decisions offensively. Our post players were able to create some driving lanes and Chico got the ball to the rim and finished plays.”
Carter Jr. said his mindset in coming off the bench this season is to not let up on the momentum the starters give the team when he comes in the game.
“Just to bring a spark off the bench to keep up with the starting five,” Carter Jr. said. “I know they’re going to bring a lot of energy off the tip and I just want to bring a spark of energy and keep it going.”
In the dictionary next to the word efficiency, Murray State’s offense might be pictured. They shot an impressive 60% from the field, led by Brown with 19 points on 7-16 shooting with a 5-10 clip from beyond the arc.
Junior forward KJ Williams also poured in 16 points on 6-6 shooting and McMahon said the two upperclassmen have provided intensity since day one of practice and its translating to their success as a team.
“I really challenged them on Thursday last week and they both have answered the challenge and have been really good, more importantly in practice,” McMahon said. “I think they’ve set the tone in practice for how we want to be as a team and it has carried over into the games.”
McMahon said Brown’s defense has been crucial for the team and his play has perfectly set the example for his teammates as the season progresses.
“He’s been an elite defender for our team and these last 80 minutes against Illinois State and Austin Peay his defense has been incredible,” McMahon said. “The players on our team have such respect for him because he’s so talented and such a winner, that I think that defensive energy and intensity he’s brought to the team has been contagious.”
The win moves the Racers to 3-1 overall, with a 1-0 record in OVC play. They’ll return to non-conference play Friday, Dec. 8, when they take on Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, Illinois, at 6:30 p.m.