Murray State MBB Goes Cold in Second Half at Middle Tennessee

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urray State Racers Go Cold in Second Half at Middle Tennessee
Courtesy Murray State Athletics

The Murray State Racers hit the road for the first time in the 2020-21 season and suffered a 78-61 defeat against the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders at the Murphy Center in Murfreesboro, Tenn.

The Racers (1-1) move forward to their next game, against Austin Peay (Dec 8) in their Ohio Valley Conference opener at the CFSB Center in Murray.

Tevin Brown and Chico Carter, Jr. led the Racers with 13 points each. Demond Robinson gave the Racers three players in double-figures each with 10. Brown and Devin Gilmore each had a team high seven rebounds.

In the first half, the Racers jumped in front by seven at 26-19 when Brion Whitley hit a jumper with 9:12 on the clock. However, a cold front came through Murphy Center and the Racers went the next 7:29 without a point. When Justice Hill scored on a drive with 1:43 remaining in the half, the damage wasn’t as bad as it could’ve been. The Racers had committed 10 turnovers to 14 field goals, but only trailed the Blue Raiders 34-30.

In the second half, MTSU (1-2) hit the Racers with an 8-0 run at the start, putting the Racers in a 42-30 hole only 90 seconds in. The Racers cut the lead to 11 with 17:36 left on a basket by DaQuan Smith and were down by the same margin at 13:21, but never got closer the rest of the night.

The Racers shot 40 percent for the game on 23-of-57 from the field, while MTSU hit 44 percent of their shots on 30-of-67. MSU went 3-of-16 from the 3-point line, while the Blue Raiders were 9-of-30. The rebound total was even at 37-37.

Game Notes
Tonight was the 143rd meeting between the Racers and MTSU as they met for an eighth-straight season since renewing their rivalry in 2013. The two competed against each other from 1952-00 as members of the OVC. MTSU is now a member of Conference USA.

After the loss, the Racers are 106-37 all-time against MTSU.

MSU coach Matt McMahon is now 3-3 against MTSU

MSU’s Tevin Brown got closer to joining the MSU 1000-Point Club with a 13-point showing. Brown now has 983 points and will soon become the 47th member of the club.

Because of the adjusted OVC schedule for 2020-21, the Racers will meet rival Austin Peay twice before Christmas for the first time in school history. The first game is at the CFSB Center (Dec, 8), with the second in Clarksville (Dec. 21). MSU and APSU shared the top spot in the OVC Preseason Poll. The game starts the Battle of the Border. The annual bragging rights series encompasses all sports and has a traveling trophy, which currently resides at Murray State.

Dan Hasko

Graduate Assistant – Media Relations