Story by Blake Sandlin
Sports Editor
Murray State’s men’s basketball team escaped Cookeville, Tennessee, with a 67-63 win Saturday night, although the victory seemed to raise more questions than it answered.
Coming off the heels of a humiliating defeat to Jacksonville State on Thursday, Jan. 31, the Racers were handed an opportunity to get back on track against a 7-16 Tennessee Tech team.
What looked on paper to be an undemanding last stop on Murray State’s two-game road swing turned into a late-game slugfest that was ultimately decided by a timely run from the Racers in the final minutes.
Murray State did all it could to allow Tennessee Tech to hang around in Saturday’s game. It gave up 13 offensive rebounds, turned the ball over 17 times and conceded 30 points in the paint to a Golden Eagle team that ranks last in the OVC in scoring offense.
Their deficiencies translated to the scoreboard, as Murray State trailed 31-30 at halftime and looked as if it might lose back-to-back games for the first time since Feb. 25, 2017. If it wasn’t for Tennessee Tech’s first-half shooting struggles of 37 percent from the field, Murray State might’ve found itself in a far scarier situation to start the second half.
Murray State, through several series of bursts in the second half, bolstered its lead to as much as six points, but the Golden Eagles kept clawing. After free throws by junior forward Darnell Cowart built the lead up to 49-43, Tennessee Tech immediately went on a 16-4 run to steal a six-point lead of its own with 4:29 remaining.
With the potential of losing their shot at an OVC regular season title at stake, the Racers finally woke up with minutes to spare. Sparked by sophomore guard Ja Morant’s tenacity down the stretch, Murray State rode a 13-1 run to overtake the lead 64-60 with 26 seconds remaining.
The Racers would ultimately hold on, sealing a 67-63 road win and moving to 8-2 in OVC play. Morant was both an asset and a liability offensively, recording 28 points on 52 percent shooting, but also turning the ball over nine times.
Tennessee Tech was aided by the play of freshman guard Junior Clay, who notched 22 points to lead the Golden Eagles. Forward Malik Martin and freshman guard Hunter Vick pitched in 14 and 13 points, respectively.
Murray State will now return home before clashing with Eastern Illinois at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 7, at the CFSB Center.
