Gage Johnson
Sports Editor
After a blowout victory against Middle Tennessee State University, Murray State men’s basketball team returned to the CFSB Center and earned another 30-plus point win over Kennesaw State University.
Freshman guard DaQuan Smith was the main force behind the Racers’ 74-38 win over the Owls, scoring a career-high 21 points on 7-for-14 shooting from the field and 5-for-9 shooting from beyond the arc, while grabbing four assists and four rebounds.
Murray State wasted no time in establishing a dominant effort on both sides of the floor, quickly jumping out to a big lead. A jumper from sophomore forward KJ Williams capped off a 9-0 run, giving the Racers a 24-3 lead with just under 12 minutes to go in the first half.
Murray State held the Owls without a field goal until the 11:27 mark in the first half and Head Coach Matt McMahon felt it’s the team’s work ethic that has allowed them to get off to such great starts lately.
“It’s back-to-back games where we’ve been able to get off to a terrific start,” McMahon said. “I reminded our guys [that] I thought it was a product of our preparation. I thought we’ve had really good practices the last ten days. I thought the shootarounds both game days have been very detailed with guys locked in and focused on what we have to do to be successful and I think you’re starting to see that carry over to the game floor.”
After that McMahon and company didn’t look back, never letting their lead slip less than 23 points ahead of Kennesaw State.
The Racers continued to control the game on both sides of the floor throughout the game, holding the Owls to 24.4% shooting from the field and 2-for-15 shooting from beyond the arc en route to their second straight 30-plus point win.
DaQuan’s performance was a coming out party of sorts, as the freshman guard was shooting 4-for-22 from beyond the arc on the season and had only scored in double figures once this season.
McMahon has known that DaQuan is capable of these performances and thinks that his progression not only as a scorer, but as a facilitator has been a key part of the team’s offense.
“I’ve said all along I think DaQuan is a really good player,” McMahon said. “I think you’re seeing him get more and more comfortable and I think he’s doing a terrific job running the team. [It] was great to see him make all those threes tonight, but you also look at the last two games: [he’s had] 13 assists and only five turnovers. [We] just want him to get more and more confident with his game.”
Meanwhile, DaQuan credits his work off the floor and constant motivation from teammates to his career night against Kennesaw State.
“Just getting more game shots in practice and all of that,” DaQuan Smith said. “And my teammates keep telling me to shoot the ball when I miss.”
Murray State’s leading scorer sophomore guard Tevin Brown had an off night, shooting 0-for-7 from the field and failing to get some points on the board. However, he was able to impact the game in other ways with five rebounds, four assists with no turnovers, while grabbing two steals.
Senior forward Anthony Smith said the team is confident in its depth and ability to have a “next-man-up” mentality if one player struggles as the season progresses.
“Like we’ve said early in the season, we are really loaded from each position on the floor,” Anthony Smith said. “If Tevin goes 0-for-7 for one night, like DaQuan did tonight, another person is going to step up and just take over the load. We’re not really dependent on one person to take over the offense. Whoever has the hot hand on one night, we’re just going to keep going to him.”
Anthony had a solid night himself, scoring 14 points, grabbing seven rebounds and registering one block. Freshman forward Demond Robinson helped Anthony hold things down in the paint in his second career start with 12 points, seven rebounds, four blocks and two steals.
Robinson has been able to make an immediate impact in his freshman year whether he is starting or coming off the bench and Anthony says Robinson is a problem for opposing teams when he’s focused.
“Demond is a really good athlete,” Anthony Smith said. “When he has his mind locked in and he’s playing hard on both sides of the floor, he can be a monster to deal with. I’ve been really impressed with what I’ve been seeing from him lately.”
The Racers will look to grab its first three-game win streak of the season when they hit the road to take on a University of Evansville team that upset the No. 6 University of Kentucky earlier this year at 6 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 21 at the Ford Center.
