Jakob Milani
Staff Writer
Due to a poor rebounding effort, the Murray State women’s basketball team lost a close game to the Austin Peay Governors by a score of 74-71.
Murray State got out to a great start as the team went on a 12-0 run for 3:33 of the first five minutes. The Governors eventually got their defense together, not allowing a field goal from the Racers for 4:30 after their run to start the game. During that time, the Governors scored 11 points, while the Racers made four free throws. After the Racers made a field goal to end their drought, they held their lead and ended the first quarter up 21-17.
The Racers started the second quarter by extending their lead, scoring the only three points of the first three minutes of the quarter. The Governors put a stop to the Racers’ scoring for a bit, going on a 6-0 run for 2:38, giving the Governors a 30-29 lead. The Racers kept it close toward the end of the quarter, but the Governors held their lead and went into halftime up 36-34.
The Governors led in rebounds by a large margin at halftime, grabbing 22 in the first half compared to the Racers’ 10. The Governors were also leading with points in the paint, scoring 18 of their 36 in the paint while the Racers scored just 10 in the paint. Junior guard Macey Turley led all scorers in the game at halftime with 12 points on 3-4 shooting from three-point range and 3-4 shooting from the free throw line.
Despite a strong start to the third quarter, the Racers were held to a field drought that lasted 4:19, starting at the 6:16 mark. In that time, the Governors only scored seven points, while the Racers made all six of their free throws. The Racers picked it up after the dry spell, and ended the quarter on a 7-0 run over the last 1:14 of the quarter. Going into the fourth, the Racers were up 53-52 over the Governors.
The Racers’ lead didn’t last long as the Governors scored 11 of the first 15 points in the fourth quarter. However, the Racers managed to stay in the game, and after a layup from Turley the Racers were only down 65-64. Later, the Racers tied the game at 68 thanks to another layup by Turley. Despite their late push, the Racers weren’t able to take the lead. The Governors walked away victorious, defeating the Racers 74-71.
The Governors finished with every player who played scoring at least two points. The team was led in scoring by sophomore forward D’shara Booker, who had 18 points on a perfect 9-9 from the field. Senior guards Brianah and Brandi Ferby finished with 14 points and 12 points, respectively.
The Racers finished with four players in double digit points. Turley finished the game with 21 points on 7-14 shooting and 4-8 from three-point range. She also shot 3-4 from the free throw line. Freshman guard Bria Sanders-Woods finished with 17 points as she shot 4-10 from the field and 8-13 from the free throw line. Junior guard Manna Mensah finished with 12 points on 4-6 shooting from the field and 4-4 shooting from the free throw line. Freshman forward Katleyn Young scored 10 points and grabbed seven rebounds.
The Governors finished the game with 44 rebounds, while the Racers grabbed 23 rebounds with only four of those rebounds coming from the offensive end. The Governors also lead the game with points in the paint, scoring 42 points inside compared to the Racers’ 26. The Racers did have fewer turnovers than the Governors, turning the ball over 11 times compared to Austin Peay’s 14.
Murray State falls below .500 after the loss, now sitting with a 7-8 record and a 4-6 record in conference play. The Racers return to the CFSB Center on Thursday, Jan. 28, to take on the Tennessee State Lady Tigers at 4:30 p.m.
