Josh Embry
Sports Editor
Murray State women’s basketball will look to punch its ticket into the OVC Tournament this week when they return home to take on EKU and Austin Peay.
Murray State
The Racers lost 66-46 at the hands of Eastern Illinois on Thursday, Feb. 20, and lost sophomore guard Macey Turley in the game to a knee injury that sidelined her for Saturday’s game against SIUE.
As of Monday, Feb. 24, Head Coach Rechelle Turner said they are waiting on an MRI so there is no update on Turley’s injury status
Nevertheless, Murray State was able to pull out a 70-61 victory in Edwardsville, Illinois. Turner was pleased with the team’s ability to overcome Turley’s absence and come away with a win.
“Saturday was just a gut-wrenching effort from our team not having a whole lot of time to prepare for not having Macey on the floor,” Turner said. “Kids did a really good job of taking what we were trying to do and going in and following the game plan. Just a resilient effort.”
Junior forward Laci Hawthorne stepped up in Saturday’s game to lead the Racers with 20 points and 17 rebounds. Turner had nothing but positive things to say about Hawthorne’s improvement throughout the season.
“She just continues to get better for us,” Turner said. “We knew that she was going to be a spark for us coming into the year and we knew she could do big things. Her offensive board work has been exceptional [and] it has kept us in a lot of games. [I’m] just really proud of her and her evolution as a player but also her stepping up with our leadership roles.”
Offensive struggles have been a recurring problem for Murray State, and with Turley’s 16.6 ppg on the bench, the Racers will have to find ways to score the basketball without their leading scorer and primary ball handler.
“We just got to continue to look at what we can do and how we can put players in positions to best score the basketball because obviously that has been a nemesis to us all year and it is going to continue to be, especially if she is not running the show,” Turner said.
The Racers are currently eighth in the OVC standings and hold the final OVC Tournament spot. Murray State and Morehead State have the same conference record (6-10) but Murray State owns the tiebreaker between the two.
The Eagles play the same remaining teams as the Racers so these final games of the regular season will be crucial to maintain the final tournament spot.
Turner said the chance to make the OVC Tournament despite all the setbacks and adversity they have faced will be huge for the team’s confidence going into the tournament as well as into next season.
“I think that every single year [the goal] is to get to the NCAA Tournament,” Turner said. “Every time we turn the corner there has been a setback but I think if this team can come together and find a way to win this week and get to the tournament, that it would not only boost them for tournament play but would boost us going into next year.”
Eastern Kentucky University
The Colonels are coming to Murray to take on the Racers for the first and only time this season. EKU is 10-17 overall and 4-12 in conference play. They currently sit at 10th in the OVC standings, and their chances of reaching the tournament are slim.
The Colonels are losers of three straight and have lost eight of their last 10 games, with their most recent loss coming to Belmont, 85-46. Their last win came on Feb. 13 when they defeated Morehead State 68-47.
Despite their record, EKU’s athleticism and inside presence will pose challenges for Murray State.
“Eastern Kentucky is going to bring a lot of athleticism,” Turner said. “They are not highly skilled in a lot of areas but they can get to the basket. Paint points are going to be huge. They do have a couple of kids that can make shots [and] their length and their athleticism is something that [will give] us lots of trouble.”
With the Colonels’ athleticism, Turner said she might have to resort to playing zone defense in stretches. The Racers’ zone defense worked well in their win against Morehead State.
“I think you will have to see some [zone defense],” Turner said. “Obviously we like man [defense] because it is more responsibility but I think with the fatigue and with the foul trouble and things like that, obviously we will have to go through our zones some.”
EKU ranks in the top five of the OVC team statistical categories in only two areas—rebounds (fifth) and blocked shots (fourth). They are ranked second-to-last in scoring offense and free-throw percentage and are average in most other categories.
The Colonels have balanced scoring throughout, with junior guard Teri Goodlett leading the team in conference play with averages of 12.8 ppg and 4.3 rpg.
Junior center I’Liyah Green (9.0 ppg and 7.6 rpg in conference play), junior guard Bria Bass (8.5 ppg and 6.0 rpg) and junior guard Qay Stanton (7.8 ppg in conference play) round out the top performers.
Despite the small chance EKU has in reaching the OVC Tournament, Turner knows first-year Head Coach Samantha Williams will have her team ready to play come Thursday.
“Samantha has done a great job with that program,” Turner said. “To bring them as far as she has in her first season, I know they are going to come in here [ready to play]. Although their chances of making the tournament are slimmer than ours, they are going to go out and try to win their last two games.”
Austin Peay
The Racers will host Austin Peay and will look to exact revenge on the Governors in their final game of the regular season. Murray State could not stop a late comeback in the teams’ previous matchup in which they lost 69-61.
Austin Peay is 16-11 overall and is one game ahead of the Racers in the OVC standings with a 7-9 record. They host Morehead State on Thursday, Feb. 27, before their game against the Racers.
The Governors’ recent three-game winning streak ended at the hands of Eastern Illinois after losing 73-72 in Charleston, Illinois on Saturday, Feb. 22.
Austin Peay is ranked in the middle-of-the-pack in most OVC team statistical categories but are ranked second in steals (9.8 spg), fourth in three-point shooting (31.5%) andfifth in assists (13 apg).
The Governors are led by senior forward Arielle Gonzalez-Varner (10.4 ppg and 7.4 rpg), who came up clutch in the fourth quarter in the two team’s last matchup when she scored 12 of 18 points in the fourth quarter.
Junior guard Brandi Ferby (7.9 ppg in conference play) will certainly be on the Racers radar for Saturday’s game, as she scored 20 points in the previous matchup between the two teams. Freshman guard Ella Sawyer (9.8 ppg in conference play) and sophomore guard Maggie Knowles (8.8 ppg) round out Austin Peay’s top performers.
When and Where
Murray State will return home to the CFSB Center this week to take on EKU at 5:00 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 27, and will face off against Austin Peay at 5:00 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 29.
