Story by Blake Sandlin
Sports Editor
A monster 36-6 second-half run was the driver behind a lopsided 86-55 Murray State win over SIUE Saturday night.
With the win, the Racers moved to 19-4 (10-2) on the season, and maintain their three-way hold on first place in the OVC alongside Belmont and Austin Peay. The win also marks the first time all season both Murray State’s men’s and women’s teams have finished a week 2-0.
First-half woes
The commanding 31-point win, as one-sided as it looks, was anything but a certainty after the first half. After jumping ahead by as much as 12 in the first half, SIUE used a 18-4 run beginning at 7:32 in the first half in order to claim their second lead of the game and take a 38-32 edge going into the halftime locker room.
Murray State Head Coach Matt McMahon attributed the Cougars’ explosive play late in the first half to a number of factors.
“There were a couple things,” McMahon said. “One, we had to get out of the press. Two, we had to rest Ja some because of the foul trouble. Three, we had Darnell sitting on the bench too because of foul trouble. He’s been a great presence for us offensively. And then, the credit to SIUE, I thought they played with great energy. Christian Ellis got to the offensive glass four times in the first half; just made good effort plays, and they took over the momentum of the game.”
Sophomore guard Ja Morant finished the first half with seven points and zero assists, practically an anomaly for the sophomore phenom who averages 10.4 apg and has been a double-double machine this season.
Second-half stunner
Whatever message McMahon delivered to his troops at halftime worked wonders. The Racer team from the first half was nowhere to be found in the second, as the team engineered an imposing 36-6 run in the second half.
Murray State didn’t forfeit a single point to the Cougars until 13:30, when Jaylen McCoy knocked down a jumper to break a six and a half minute drought. McCoy’s bucket did little to quell the Racers’ offensive onslaught, nor to inspire any offense of their own. SIUE didn’t score another field goal until 5:42 left in the game.
SIUE nailed just five field goals in the second half, and was out-scored 54-17.
“I thought our response in the second half, our defensive energy and intensity, the sense of urgency our guys had on that end of the floor, was terrific. We sustained it for a long period of time, which has been a little bit of an issue for us in the last couple weeks.”
Top-to-bottom boost
A grand total of five Racers finished in double figure scoring on Saturday night. Morant (20 points), freshman forward KJ Williams (16), sophomore forward Devin Gilmore (12), freshman guard Tevin Brown (12) and junior forward Darnell Cowart (10) all played valuable minutes in the win. Cowart added 11 rebounds for the Racers’ only double-double performance.
Gilmore, who has seen his playing time increase dramatically since the Racers played Tennessee State on Jan. 26, stepped up big in 15 minutes of action, not only scoring 12 points, but adding four offensive rebounds.
“I’ve gotten better in a lot of ways,” Gilmore said. “I’ve gotten more used to the game, and my feel for the game has increased in a lot of ways. I know me going from practicing and not really playing to practicing hard and then playing, I’ve seen tremendous change.”
What’s next?
Murray State will hit the road next week on a two-game road trip where it will meet Austin Peay at 8 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 14, in Clarksville, Tennessee.
