After two-and-a-half years, today is our final day here at RacerBasketball.com, as I prepare to move on to the next chapter in my professional life.

In tonight’s podcast, I give my final thoughts on the end of this great experiment, and share my gratitude with all of you.

Thank you, Racer Nation! I’m forever indebted to each and every one of you.

Until next time — Go Racers!

Jeff

With today being the final day of RacerBasketball.com, it felt like an appropriate time to wrap up the longest running bit here on the site: Unveiling the Top 20 Racers of the first 100 years of Murray State Basketball — you know, the list I’ve been slowly rolling out over the last six months.

This was intended to be a summer countdown to help us pass the slow months before the season began. For a variety of reasons, most of which included challenges tracking some of the people on our list down, the release of this list has been, to put it politely, never ending.

What I hoped to do was talk individually with all of our living Racers on the list, and with the significant people around the Racer legends that are no longer with us.

In the end, here we are, with an abridged list for you to argue about one final time.

The premise of our list was simple: Who is the greatest Racer of all-time?

I gave all of you the chance to vote on the greatest Racers of the first 100 years of Murray State Basketball. The voting guidelines were simple: “Greatness means different things to different people. Were they the best player? Did they have the best stats? Did they win the most games? Did they make it to the NCAA Tournament the most times? Did their impact on the program surpass everyone else? How you define greatness is, obviously, entirely up to you.”

Without further adieu … here are quick biographies of your Top 20 Greatest Racers of All-Time we never had the chance to get to. You can re-listen to the conversations we were able to record about #13-#20 on the list at the links provided.

1. Popeye Jones — With 2,057 points, Popeye Jones is 4th on Murray State’s all-time scoring list, while his 1,374 rebounds are still tops in program history. Jones earned All-Ohio Valley Conference honors three times, twice being named OVC Player of the Year. He was part of four OVC championship teams, leading the Racers to the NCAA Tournament in 1990, 1991 and 1992. Jones was the 41st pick in the 1992 NBA Draft. His #54 has been retired by Murray State, and he was inducted into the Murray State Athletics Hall of Fame in 2007.

   

2. Ja Morant — In just two years at Murray State, Ja Morant left an indelible mark on Racer Basketball. Finishing his career with 1,213 points, Morant holds the single-season scoring mark at Murray State with 808 points during the 2018-19 season. His 532 career assists are the most in program history. Earning All-Ohio Valley Conference honors in both seasons in a Racer uniform, Morant was the 2019 OVC Player of the Year. He helped lead Murray State to the 2018 and 2019 NCAA Tournaments, recording a triple-double against Marquette in the opening round of the 2019 Tournament. Morant became Murray State’s first Consensus First Team All-American in 2019, before being selected 2nd overall in that year’s NBA Draft. Morant’s #12 was retired in 2020, and he was inducted into the Murray State Athletics Hall of Fame in 2024.

   

3. Jeff Martin — Murray State’s all-time leading scorer with 2,484 points has a good chance of holding that record forever. Jeff Martin was a three-time All-Ohio Valley Conference honoree, twice earning OVC Player of the Year honors. Martin was on a pair of OVC championship teams, and in 1988 helped lead the Racers to an upset win over NC State in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament — the program’s first-ever win in the tournament. He was the 31st pick in the 1989 NBA Draft. Martin’s #15 has been retired, and he was inducted into Murray State’s Hall of Fame in 2004.

   

4. Isaiah Canaan — One of just six Racers to score 2,000 points in their career, Isaiah Canaan put together a remarkable four-year run at Murray State. He was a three-time All-Ohio Valley Conference selection, twice being named OVC Player of the Year in 2012 and 2013. Canaan played on two NCAA Tournament teams in 2010 and 2012, helping the Racers win games in the tournament in each of those years. In 2012, he was the program’s first-ever Consensus All-American, earning 2nd Team honors. He was the 34th pick in 2013 NBA Draft. Canaan had his #3 retired and was inducted into Murray State’s Hall of Fame in 2018.

   

5. Marcus Brown — Murray State’s third all-time leading scorer with 2,236 points, Marcus Brown was All-Ohio Valley Conference three times, and was OVC Player of the Year in 1995 and 1996. He was a part of three OVC championship teams playing for Scott Edgar and Mark Gottfried, leading the Racers to the NCAA Tournament in 1995. He was the 46th pick in the 1996 NBA Draft. He had his #5 retired and was inducted into Murray State’s Hall of Fame in 2010.

   

6. Cameron Payne — The skinny point guard from Memphis had a huge impact during his two years with the Racers. As a freshman, Cameron Payne led Murray State to a CollegeInsider.com Tournament championship. The following year, he and the Racers won a school-record 25 straight games, going undefeated in the Ohio Valley Conference, winning the regular season championship. He was a two-time All-OVC honoree, and was the 2015 OVC Player of the Year. Payne was the first Murray State player to ever be selected in the NBA Draft Lottery, going 14th overall to Oklahoma City in the 2015 NBA Draft. He was inducted into Murray State’s Hall of Fame in 2020, and his #1 was retired in 2023.

   

7. Isaac Spencer — With 2,248 career points, Isaac Spencer is Murray State’s second all-time leading scorer. He’s also fifth in program history with 976 rebounds. Spencer is one of two Racers in Murray State history to earn All-Ohio Valley Conference honors four times. He was part of three OVC championship teams, twice leading the Racers to the NCAA Tournament in 1998 and 1999. Inducted into Murray State’s Hall of Fame in 2014, his jersey will officially be retired later this season.

   

8. Vincent Rainey — A four-time Ohio Valley Conference champion, Vincent Rainey is still ninth on Murray State’s all-time scoring list with 1,888 points. He was named All-OVC on three different occasions, leading the Racers to the 1995 and 1997 NCAA Tournaments. Rainey was inducted into Murray State’s Hall of Fame in 2021.

   

9. Bennie Purcell — Mr. Murray State scored 1,054 points in his Racer career. Bennie Purcell was a two-time All-Ohio Valley Conference player, while leading Murray State to the 1951 OVC regular season championship. He was the 98th selection in the 1952 NBA Draft, before returning to Murray State where he spent time as an assistant basketball coach, before becoming the iconic tennis coach for the Racers. Purcell’s #21 was retired in 1952, and he became a member of Murray State’s Hall of Fame in 1969.

   

10. Joe Fulks — While Fulks only scored 621 points in his two years playing on the varsity at Murray State, his impact was immeasurable. He averaged 13.2 points per game, helping lead the Racers to a 39-9 record over that span. He was named All-Kentucky Intercollegiate Athletic Conference in 1942 and 1943 and earned All-America honors at the National Association of Intercollegiate Basketball Tournament in 1943. He left Murray State in 1943 to join the U.S. Marine Corps during World War II. After his military service ended, Fulks played professionally from 1946-54. He was the NBA’s first scoring champion in 1947, and was posthumously inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 1978. Murray State inducted him into the Racer Athletics Hall of Fame in 1965, and his #26 was retired in 2001.

    

11. Dick Cunningham — In his three years at Murray State, Dick Cunningham score 981 points and 1,292 rebounds — second behind only Popeye Jones for the program’s all-time rebounding mark. Twice an All-Ohio Valley Conference standout, Cunningham helped the Racers win the 1968 OVC regular season championship. He led the nation in rebounding with 21.7 boards per game. In 1968, Cunningham was selected in both the NBA and ABA drafts. He was inducted into Murray State’s Hall of Fame in 1986.

    

12. Don Mann — One of half of Murray State’s vaunted ‘M&M Boys’, Don Mann, along with Jeff Martin, helped the Racers achieve heights in the late 1980’s never before seen by the Murray State program. Scoring 1,449 points in his career, Mann was the program’s all-time leader in assists with 531, before Ja Morant ended his Racer career with 532. Mann was a three-time All-Ohio Valley Conference guard, helping the Racers win a pair of OVC regular season titles. He was also a key member of the 1988 OVC Tournament championship squad that beat NC State in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament. He was inducted into Murray State’s Hall of Fame in 2012.

    

13. Tevin Brown

14. Jonathan Stark

15. Howie Crittenden

16. Les Taylor

17. KJ Williams

18. Aubrey Reese

19. Glen Green

20. Lamont Sleets

Missouri Valley Conference teams went 3-0 in the non-conference on Saturday, which produced two big movers in the KenPom computer rankings overnight.

The biggest mover was Valparaiso. The Beacons jumped 42 spots to #208 after the throttled Western Michigan, 84-55, at home. At 5-2, Valpo is off to their best start in eight seasons.

Drake ended the Emerald Coast Classic on a high note with an 84-74 win over #113 Georgia Tech down in Destin, Florida. With the victory, the Bulldogs moved up 17 spots to #126.

Southern Illinois returned home for the first time since November 7th, beating #260 Little Rock, 74-65. Despite the win, SIU dropped five spots to #140.

There’s only one game in The Valley today, as Belmont will try to remain the league’s only unbeaten when they travel to South Carolina to face #157 Charleston.

After last night’s games, here are this morning’s updated KenPom rankings for the Missouri Valley Conference:

• #88 Belmont — Down 1 spot (Next: At #157 Charleston today)

• #93 Northern Iowa — Up 1 spot (Next: Hosts non-D1 Coe Monday)

• #111 Illinois State — Up 1 spot (Next: Hosts #271 Eastern Kentucky Wednesday)

• #117 Murray State — Up 1 spot (Next: Home game vs. #309 Morehead State Tuesday)

• #120 Bradley — Up 1 spot (Next: Hosts #167 Washington State Tuesday)

• #126 Drake — Up 17 spots after 84-74 neutral-site win vs. #113 Georgia Tech (Next: Hosts #347 Western Illinois Tuesday)

• #140 Southern Illinois — Down 5 spots after 74-65 home win vs. #260 Little Rock (Next: At #78 High Point Wednesday)

• #168 UIC — Down 6 spots (Next: Hosts #363 Arkansas Pine Bluff Wednesday)

• #200 Indiana State — Down 1 spot (Next: Hosts non-D1 Eureka Tuesday)

• #208 Valparaiso — Up 42 spots after 84-55 home win vs. #237 Western Michigan today (Next: At #79 Marquette Tuesday)

• #302 Evansville —Up 3 spots (Next: Hosts #329 Ball State Wednesday)

In the conference rankings, KenPom has the Missouri Valley Conference still listed as the 10th-best league in the country. After yesterday, The Valley has closed the gap with The American as much as they have all season. Last season, only seven conferences received multiple bids to the NCAA Tournament. Here are the updated KenPom conference rankings:

1. SEC +19.66

2. Big 12 +17.71

3. Big Ten +17.67

4. ACC +14.76

5. Big East +14.318

6. Mountain West +6.83

7. Atlantic 10 +5.73

8. West Coast Conference +3.25

9. The American +2.82

10. Missouri Valley +1.92 (Up 0.40)

11. Conference USA -1.28

12. The Ivy League -2.70

Murray State beat Boston College, 82-77, in the final day of the Daytona Beach Classic on Saturday morning. Here’s what you need to know:

• With their third-straight win, Murray State improved to 5-2 overall on the season

• Neither team led by more than six points in the second half

• Sharnecce Currie-Jelks led the Racers with 23 points and ten rebounds

• Haven Ford (16 points), Keslyn Secrist (14 points) and Briley Pena (11 points) also scored in double-figures for Murray State

• You can the complete box score here

• The Racers hit a season-high ten three-pointers

• Murray State will travel to Morehead State on Wednesday

Racers grind out win vs. Eagles

For the second time in as many days, Murray State found themselves in the middle of a high-level game against a big-time opponent. The Racers and Boston College went back-and-forth all morning long, as the game featured six ties and 15 lead changes. In the 20 minutes of the second half, there were only 66 seconds where either team held a lead larger than four points. In the end, Murray State sealed the game at the free throw line, going 24-for-27 at the charity stripe, to pick up their first win over a team currently in the ACC since 1982.

“A lot of credit to Boston College,” Murray State Head Coach Rechelle Turner said. “They almost beat us at our own game, which is transition. We just had a hard time slowing the ball down. We had a hard time getting matched up, and they really did a good job of taking it to us. But the grind of our team really, really shows. We have an opportunity to put our head down and maybe give in a little bit, but we fight back every time, and that’s just toughness and the grind that we talk about every day.”

Murray State grabs first win over Power 4 team since 2022

With their win over Boston College, the Racers beat a Power 4 team for the first time since they picked off Kentucky in Lexington on December 16, 2022, 51-44. Senior guard Briley Pena was a freshman on that team that beat UK. Against Boston College, Pena scored a season-high 11 points, while going 3-for-3 from three-point range. Pena said today’s win is just another example of how far the program has come since she first arrived in Murray.

“The work that we put in and the work that our coaches put in for the amazing scouts and all that kind of stuff that they do for us to get us prepared,” Pena said, tipping her proverbial hat to Rechelle Turner and her staff. “The plays that they call, I mean, they’re so smart. They just put us in the right position. Shoutout to them and shoutout to us for making those plays.”

“I think that’s where this program is, and I think this is where we want this program to be,” Turner added. “Our kids, sometimes they may look at the schedule and be like, ‘What was Coach thinking?’ But they like these challenges, they want these challenges. To be able to come on a trip and spend time together and enjoy each other, but when it was business time to go out and play two of the hardest games we played all year, play to the effort level that we played, just continue to keep playing, keep pushing with that perfect effort, just really says a lot about these kids. My coaching staff does an amazing job — two great scouts on back-to-back days. We were walking through plays in the hotel. Yesterday, the scout team made a court (in the hotel) and everything. We didn’t even have any court time. Everybody in this program plays a huge role in what we do, and I just can’t say enough about my staff and my support staff and the great job that they do preparing our kids and making adjustments during the game.”

Outside shooting continues to improve

For the first time this year, the Racers made double-digit three-pointers, knocking down 10-of-28 from the outside. Pena was a perfect 3-for-3 from the outside, Brax Baker hit multiple triples for the first time this season, and Keslyn Secrist made 3-of-4 from beyond the arc.

In the first three games of the season, the Racers were 16-of-73 (21.9%) from three-point range. In the last four games, Murray State has made 32-of-106 (30.2%) from deep. While that’s still not where the team hopes to be, you can see slow but steady improvement from outside as the season has progressed.

Road trip continues Wednesday at Morehead State

The Racers will play their third-straight game away from home on Wednesday when they travel to Morehead, Kentucky to face their old Ohio Valley Conference rival. It will also be a homecoming for junior guard Haven Ford, who is from Morehead. This is the latest example of Turner trying to take her players back to their hometowns to give them a chance to play in front of their family and friends.

“We want to take our kids home and get to go back and show our appreciation for them coming to Murray State,” Turner said. “Haven has wanted to get back home for a while. I really appreciate Kelly (Wells), the Athletics Director at Morehead, for helping me work this out. We’re going to enjoy the rest of the day (in Daytona). We’ve got to get home tomorrow and then start preparing, because the one thing you don’t want after this huge weekend is to have a letdown. We’ve kind of got to fight against that, but I’m just really proud of the kids and the effort that they put forth in these last two games. That type of effort will take us a long way.”

Here’s the ‘Ride Home’ podcast after Murray State’s 82-77 win over Boston College in the final game of the Daytona Beach Classic.

Missouri Valley Conference teams went 1-2 in non-conference play on Friday, with Illinois State picking up the only win. The Redbirds, ranked #112 in the KenPom computer rankings, grabbed their fifth-straight victory with a 72-65 win over #157 Furman in Kissimmee, Florida.

Drake lost their first game of the Emerald Coast Classic in Destin, Florida, falling to LSU, 71-62. Former Murray State Head Coach Matt McMahon has his Tigers unbeaten at 6-0 on the young season.

Indiana State dropped 32 spots to #200 in KenPom, after a disappointing 81-74 neutral-site loss to #333 Alcorn State. It was the first win of the year for Alcorn State.

There are three games involving Valley teams today, with the best opportunity coming for Drake, as the Bulldogs will try to salvage a split in Destin as they face #113 Georgia Tech.

After last night’s games, here are this morning’s updated KenPom rankings for the Missouri Valley Conference:

• #87 Belmont — Up 3 spots (Next: At #158 Charleston Sunday)

• #94 Northern Iowa — Down 2 spots (Next: Hosts non-D1 Coe Monday)

• #112 Illinois State — No change after 72-65 neutral-site win vs. #157 Furman (Next: Hosts #261 Eastern Kentucky)

• #118 Murray State — No change (Next: Home game vs. #303 Morehead State Tuesday)

• #121 Bradley — Up 1 spot (Next: Hosts #164 Washington State Tuesday)

• #135 Southern Illinois — No change (Next: Hosts #260 Little Rock today)

• #143 Drake — Down 2 spots after 71-62 neutral-site loss vs. #37 LSU (Next: Neutral-site vs. #113 Georgia Tech)

• #162 UIC — Up 4 spots (Next: Hosts #363 Arkansas Pine Bluff Wednesday)

• #200 Indiana State — Down 32 spots after 81-74 neutral-site loss to #333 Alcorn State (Next: Hosts non-D1 Eureka Tuesday)

• #250 Valparaiso — Up 1 spot (Next: Hosts #237 Western Michigan today)

• #305 Evansville — Down 1 spot (Next: Hosts #298 Ball State Wednesday)

In the conference rankings, KenPom has the Missouri Valley Conference still listed as the 10th-best league in the country. Last season, only seven conferences received multiple bids to the NCAA Tournament. Here are the updated KenPom conference rankings:

1. SEC +19.43

2. Big Ten +17.76

3. Big 12 +17.63

4. ACC +14.83

5. Big East +14.35

6. Mountain West +6.87

7. Atlantic 10 +5.67

8. West Coast Conference +3.44

9. The American +2.83

10. Missouri Valley +1.52 (Down 0.19)

11. Conference USA -1.39

12. Mid-American Conference -2.78

After winning consecutive games for the first time this season, Murray State will try to make it three in a row when they face Boston College Saturday morning in the Daytona Beach Classic. Here’s what you need to know:

• Murray State (4-2 overall) vs. Boston College (4-5 overall) — 10:00am CST at the Ocean Center in Daytona Beach, Florida

• Bart Torvik national rankings: Murray State #89; Boston College #121

• Series history: First meeting

• You can watch the game on Baller TV — you will need to purchase a $20 event pass to watch both games online here

• Jeremy Rose will have the radio call on WNBS 97.9 FM and GoRacers.com, with the pregame showing starting at 9:30am

Murray State Scouting Report

Today’s game is a short turnaround for the Racers after yesterday’s 88-83 win over George Mason.

After her career-high 32-point performance against George Mason, Sharnecce Currie-Jelks is averaging 20.5 points and 10.2 rebounds per game. There is only one other player in the country averaging more points and rebounds per game this year.

While Murray State is working through their three-point shooting struggles, the Racers are making up for it with their elite shooting at the free throw line. Murray State is #1 in the country in free throw makes (24.7) and #2 in free throw attempts (30.0). The Racers are 10th nationally making 82.2% from the charity stripe. Friday against George Mason, Murray State sealed the win by making 29-of-33 from the line.

Despite being undersized at the guard position, the Racers are 61st in the country with 41.8 rebounds per game. Currie-Jelks (10.0 rebounds per game), Keslyn Secrist (9.2 RPG) and Haven Ford (7.0 RPG) lead the team in that category.

Boston College Scouting Report

The Eagles have dropped four of their last five games, after Friday’s 73-53 loss to James Madison. Boston College has two players scoring in double-figures this season: Lily Carmody (14.1 points per game) and Teionni McDaniel (11.7 PPG).

The best thing Boston College has done offensively this year is shoot threes. The Eagles are #49 in the country making 8.3 three-pointers per game, shooting 34.6% as a team from beyond the arc.

Defensively, BC is in the bottom-half nationally in field goal defense (41.5%) and three-point defense (30.8%). If the Racers are able to knock down some open shots, it will let them take a giant step toward leaving the Daytona Beach Classic with two wins.

I’ll have a ‘Ride Home’ podcast posted after the game.

Murray State beat George Mason, 88-83, Friday afternoon in the opening game of the Daytona Beach Classic. Here’s what you need to know:

• With the win, Murray State improves to 4-2 overall on the season

• Sharnecce Currie-Jelks scored a career-high 32 points, and also grabbed 11 rebounds

• Keslyn Secrist scored 11 points to go along with a career-best 15 rebounds

• Haven Ford (22 points) and Halli Poock (19 points) were the other Racers that scored in double-figures

• George Mason’s Zahirah Walton scored 42 points to lead the Patriots

• The Racers finished 29-of-33 at the free throw line

• Murray State will face Boston College Saturday morning at 10:00am CST

Currie-Jelks continues her dominant start

For the fourth time in six games this season, Sharnecce Currie-Jelks recorded a double-double to lead the Racers offensively. She scored a career-high 32 points, with 21 of those coming in the second half, and grabbed 11 rebounds. After playing a total of 19 minutes and scoring four points in her two seasons at Indiana, Currie-Jelks has adapted seamlessly to the Murray State program.

“It’s been great because the coaches and my teammates, they believe so much in me,” Currie-Jelks said. “It’s almost like free will to just do whatever and make mistakes. You have teammates that will pick you up and will also continue to encourage you. The coaches, they know that it’s not a perfect game, and they continue to encourage you even when you’re having a bad game. That’s a good atmosphere to be around, and it makes me want to just continue to play.”

Racers tough out a win vs. Patriots

George Mason is coming off a 27-win season where they went to the NCAA Tournament. Their top player, Zahirah Walton, scored 42 points Friday against the Racers. The last time a player scored at least 42 points and their team still lost the game came back in March, when Drake’s Katie Dinnebier scored 45 points in a loss to — Murray State.

There was nothing easy today for the Racers against an NCAA-caliber team who was ranked in the Top 65 in the national computer rankings heading into today. With all that said, the Racers pushed through the hard and picked up a significant non-conference win.

“We challenged them really, really hard about our toughness after we watched UAB film,” Murray State Head Coach Rechelle Turner said. “Defensively, we weren’t tough. We were letting people push us around. We weren’t getting through stuff. We weren’t jumping stuff like we asked them to. We probably had one of the hardest practices since the Southern Indiana practice last year, but they just answered the call. Toughness was what it was all about today. We knew it was going to be tough. We knew we were going to turn the ball over some. We had way too many turnovers, but in the second half, at least when we turned it over we dribbled it off our foot out-of-bounds and it wasn’t a live-ball turnover. The number that stands out to me is we outrebounded them 43-to-29 and that’s what you’ve got to have against a team like that. Keslyn (Secrist) had her career-high in rebounds today with 15, and then obviously Sharnecce had a career-high in points. I thought our little guards hung tough and just continue to make play after play. When we asked Briley (Pena) to guard a kid that was six inches taller than her, she’s going to get in there and she’s going to fight. The heart and soul and the toughness that this team showed tonight is what we’ve been looking for because that is a very, very good win. That is a very good George Mason team and NCAA team from last year.”

Secrist has another big rebounding day

In her two seasons at Indiana State, Keslyn Secrist had two games where she grabbed at least 10 rebounds. It’s taken just six games in a Murray State uniform for her to that for a third time. Her 15 rebounds against George Mason surpassed her previous career-high of 11. Secrist is averaging 9.2 rebounds per game this season after averaging 3.1 boards in her two years at Indiana State.

Murray State’s dynamic backcourt has their best game

Junior guards Halli Poock and Haven Ford have had good games this season, but never on the same night. That finally changed against George Mason. Poock and Ford combined for 41 points on 12-of-26 shooting from the field, ten rebounds and six assists. They were also a perfect 16-of-16 at the free throw line.

Next up: A matchup against Boston College

There’s a quick turnaround for Murray State, as they’ll face Boston College Saturday morning at 10:00am CST in the final game of the Daytona Beach Classic. The Eagles lost their first game in Daytona to James Madison, 73-53, Friday morning. Playing an ACC team is just one of several challenges the Racers will face tomorrow.

“It’s just the lack of preparation time,” Turner said. “The only thing we’ll have is that we’ll draw a court at the hotel, and we’ll just have to walk through stuff. We do not get on the court again until gametime tomorrow, because we have the first game of the day, and there are no practices tonight. There are no practices in the morning. We’ll just rely on a lot of film, but mostly we’re just going to rely on toughness. I know (Boston College) will come out ready to be hungry for a win after not winning today. It’s another great opportunity for us, another chance for us to get better. It’s all about pressing towards December 29 (and the Missouri Valley opener vs. Evansville).

Here’s the ‘Ride Home’ podcast after Murray State wins the opening game of the Daytona Beach Classic, 88-83, over George Mason.

Illinois State was the only Missouri Valley team in action on Thanksgiving Day, and they took advantage of their holiday opportunity, beating Charlotte, 79-69 in Kissimmee, Florida. With the win, Illinois State jumped up eight spots in the KenPom computer rankings to #112 nationally.

The Redbirds will be one of three Valley teams in action on Friday. Illinois State will challenge #157 Furman in the game of the Terry’s Chocolate ESPN Events Invitational, while Indiana State will host #333 Alcorn State. The main event of the day will be in Destin, Florida where Drake will try to grab the conference’s best non-conference win this year as they take on #37 LSU and former Murray State Head Coach Matt McMahon. That game will be on at 8:30pm tonight on the CBS Sports Network.

After last night’s games, here are this morning’s updated KenPom rankings for the Missouri Valley Conference:

• #90 Belmont — No change (Next: At #163 Charleston Sunday)

• #92 Northern Iowa — Up 2 spots (Next: Hosts non-D1 Coe Monday)

• #112 Illinois State — Up 8 spots after 79-69 neutral-site win vs #192 Charlotte (Next: Neutral-site game vs. #157 Furman today)

• #118 Murray State — Up 2 spot (Next: Home game vs. #302 Morehead State Tuesday)

• #122 Bradley — No change (Next: Hosts #161 Washington State Tuesday)

• #135 Southern Illinois — Down 2 spots (Next: Hosts #259 Little Rock Saturday)

• #141 Drake — No change (Next: Neutral-site game vs. #37 LSU tonight)

• #166 UIC — Down 1 spot (Next: Hosts #363 Arkansas Pine Bluff Wednesday)

• #168 Indiana State — Down 2 spots (Next: Hosts #333 Alcorn State today)

• #251 Valparaiso — Down 1 spot (Next: Hosts #236 Western Michigan Saturday)

• #304 Evansville — Up 1 spot (Next: Hosts #289 Ball State Wednesday)

In the conference rankings, KenPom has the Missouri Valley Conference still listed as the 10th-best league in the country. Last season, only seven conferences received multiple bids to the NCAA Tournament. Here are the updated KenPom conference rankings:

1. SEC +19.08

2. Big Ten +18.22

3. Big 12 +17.27

4. ACC +15.01

5. Big East +14.21

6. Mountain West +6.46

7. Atlantic 10 +5.60

8. West Coast Conference +3.69

9. The American +3.08

10. Missouri Valley +1.71 (Up 0.03)

11. Conference USA -1.81

12. Mid-American Conference -2.80

Murray State will play the first of two games in two days on Friday as they challenge George Mason in the Daytona Beach Classic. Here’s what you need to know:

• Murray State (3-2 overall) vs. George Mason (5-2 overall) — 12:30pm CST at the Ocean Center in Daytona Beach, Florida

• Bart Torvik national rankings: Murray State #93; George Mason #61

• Series history: First meeting

• You can watch the game on Baller TV — you will need to purchase a $20 event pass to watch both games online here

• Jeremy Rose will have the radio call on WNBS 97.9 FM and GoRacers.com, with the pregame showing starting at 12:00pm

Murray State Scouting Report

The Racers will try to win back-to-back games for the first time this season as they challenge George Mason in the first of two games in two days in Daytona Beach. This is the first multi-team event for Murray State in nine years.

In their last matchup against UAB, the Racers started to emerge from their shooting slumber, making a season-high nine three-pointers and scoring 91 points. Haven Ford had her best performance of the year against the Blazers, scoring 24 points, grabbing 12 rebounds and dishing out six assists.

Sharneece Currie-Jelks continues to be the interior threat that Rechelle Turner hoped she would be when Currie-Jelks transferred to Murray State from Indiana. In five games this year, the 6’2 junior forward is averaging 18.2 points and 10.0 rebounds — one of three players in the country to be doing that this season. Currie-Jelks has scored in double-figures in every game this year.

Against UAB, for the first time this season, the Racers had more assists than turnovers in a game. If that trend can continue today against George Mason, the Racers will give themselves a chance to grab a win.

George Mason Scouting Report

The Patriots come into the Daytona Beach Classic 5-2 on the season, fresh off their 72-54 win over Rider on Tuesday. George Mason’s only two losses this year are to Temple and Maryland.

Leading the team in scoring is Zahirah Walton, who is averaging 19.4 points per game. The 5’11 forward is also grabbing 7.1 rebounds a night. Last season, Walton was named First Team All-Atlantic 10, and was the A-10 Tournament MVP. Her best game this year was a 31 point, 12 rebound performance in that overtime loss to Temple in the season-opener.

The matchup to watch today will be Murray State’s three-point shooting against George Mason’s perimeter defense. The Patriots are 6th in the country in three-point defense, allowing opponents to make just 21.1% from beyond the arc.

George Mason presents a Quad-2 opportunity for Murray State, and a chance for the Racers to pick up their biggest win of the season on a neutral-floor.

I’ll have a ‘Ride Home’ podcast posted after the game.

It has been 308 days since Murray State’s Destiny Thomas tore multiple ligaments in her right knee, forcing her to watch the Racers cap off their 2024-25 championship season from the sidelines.

While there’s no exact timetable for her return, Murray State Head Coach Rechelle Turner knows Thomas will be back soon.

“She is practicing every day,” Turner said. “She is full contact. So hopefully (she’ll return) sooner rather than later. It’ll be nice to have some extra depth for sure.”

Thomas tore the ACL and meniscus in her right knee after landing awkwardly on a layup attempt against Indiana State in late January.

Before she was hurt, Thomas a was key interior reserve for Turner’s Racers. In the 17 games she played last season backing up Katelyn Young and Ava Learn, Thomas averaged 18.2 minutes, 3.9 points, 3.8 rebounds and 1.2 steals per game.

The Racers will play the first of two games in two days Friday afternoon as they take on George Mason in the Daytona Beach Classic in Daytona, Florida.

Wednesday was not the best of days for Missouri Valley Conference teams in the non-conference, as the league went 2-5 overall. The good news is the two wins were some of the best wins, according to the KenPom computer rankings, The Valley has grabbed in November.

The most significant win of the day was by Belmont, as the Bruins beat #146 Toledo, 87-72, to clinch the Coconut Hoops Championship in Fort Myers, Florida. With the win, Belmont, the only unbeaten Valley team remaining, moved up five spots to #90, and took the throne as KenPom’s highest-ranked Valley team.

Bradley picked up the league’s second-best win this month by knocking off #88 Liberty, 74-64, down in Orlando. The Braves jumped eight spots to #122.

Northern Iowa lost for the first time this year, to #90 Tulsa, to drop three spots back to #94.

UIC fell 17 spots, while Valpo plummeted 28 spots in the rankings after each lost on Wednesday.

Even with a day off, Murray State dropped two spots to #119, but with all the other losses in the league, the Racers are now ranked third amongst Valley teams in Ken Pom.

After last night’s games, here are this morning’s updated KenPom rankings for the Missouri Valley Conference:

• #90 Belmont — Up 5 spots after 87-72 neutral-site win vs. #146 Toledo (Next: At #160 Charleston Sunday)

• #94 Northern Iowa — Drops 3 spots after 63-60 neutral-site loss vs. #90 Tulsa (Next: Hosts non-D1 Coe Monday)

• #119 Murray State — Down 2 spots (Next: Home game vs. #302 Morehead State Tuesday)

• #120 Illinois State — Down 4 spots (Next: Neutral-site game vs. #192 Charlotte today)

• #122 Bradley — Up 8 spots after 74-64 neutral-site win vs. #88 Liberty (Next: Hosts #162 Washington State Tuesday)

• #133 Southern Illinois — Drops 5 spots after 74-58 loss at #71 Memphis (Next: Hosts #260 Little Rock Saturday)

• #141 Drake — Down 3 spots (Next: Friday vs. #37 LSU)

• #165 UIC — Down 17 spots after 88-74 road loss to #213 Robert Morris (Next: Hosts #363 Arkansas Pine Bluff Wednesday)

• #166 Indiana State — No change after 75-73 road loss at #198 Louisiana Tech (Next: Hosts #333 Alcorn State Friday)

• #250 Valparaiso — Down 28 spots after 64-56 home loss to #317 Southern Indiana (Next: Hosts #236 Western Michigan Saturday)

• #305 Evansville — Up 1 spot (Next: Hosts #290 Ball State Wednesday)

In the conference rankings, KenPom has the Missouri Valley Conference still listed as the 10th-best league in the country. Last season, only seven conferences received multiple bids to the NCAA Tournament. Here are the updated KenPom conference rankings:

1. SEC +19.08

2. Big Ten +18.00

3. Big 12 +16.90

4. ACC +15.23

5. Big East +14.32

6. Mountain West +6.75

7. Atlantic 10 +5.75

8. West Coast Conference +3.80

9. The American +3.19

10. Missouri Valley +1.68 (Down -0.09)

11. Conference USA -1.83

12. Mid-American Conference -2.82

Murray State senior guard Javon Jackson was one of five players to earn a spot on the Cayman Islands Classic All-Tournament Team.

Jackson punctuated the three-day event scoring the game-winning layup with 1.2 seconds left Tuesday night to lift the Racers to a dramatic 96-95 win over George Washington. After a difficult 1-for-10 shooting performance against McNeese, Jackson responded in a big way with 24 points on 10-of-20 shooting against GW.

So far this season, Jackson is leading Murray State’s high-powered scoring attack with 16.6 points per game.

The other players on the All-Tournament team were: McNeese’s Javohn Garcia (Tournament MVP), McNeese’s Tyshawn Archie, Middle Tennessee State’s Torey Alston and George Washington’s Rafael Castro.

Missouri Valley Conference teams won two of three games on Tuesday, highlighted by Murray State’s 96-95 win over George Washington. Knocking off KenPom’s #60 team gave the Racers the best non-conference win of any Valley team this season. With the victory, Murray State moved up three spots in KenPom to #117.

Northern Iowa remained unbeaten with a 72-51 win over Valley rival #267 Loyola-Chicago, as UNI moved up to #91.

Bradley fell to 3-4 on the season with an 87-77 loss to unbeaten UC San Diego. The Braves dropped seven spots to #130.

Today is the busiest day on The Valley’s calendar since opening day. There are seven games on the docket, with three of them featuring Top 100 KenPom opportunities for Valley teams. Northern Iowa will play #90 Tulsa, Southern Illinois is at #72 Memphis, and Bradley will face #88 Liberty.

After last night’s games, here are this morning’s updated KenPom rankings for the Missouri Valley Conference:

• #91 Northern Iowa — Up 1 spot after 72-51 neutral-site win vs. #239 Loyola-Chicago (Next: Neutral-site game vs. #90 Tulsa today)

• #95 Belmont — Up 2 spots (Next: Neutral-site game vs. #146 Toledo today)

• #116 Illinois State — Down 3 spots (Next: Neutral-site game vs. #188 Charlotte Thursday)

• #117 Murray State — Up 3 spots after 96-95 neutral-site win vs. #60 George Washington (Next: Home game vs. #304 Morehead State Tuesday)

• #128 Southern Illinois — Up 1 spot (Next: At #71 Memphis today)

• #130 Bradley — Down 7 spots after 87-77 neutral-site loss vs. #115 UC San Diego (Next: Neutral-site game vs. #88 Liberty today)

• #138 Drake — Down 1 spot (Next: Friday vs. #36 LSU)

• #148 UIC — Down 2 spots (Next: Road game at #213 Robert Morris today)

• #166 Indiana State — Up 1 spot (Next: Road game at #198 Louisiana Tech today)

• #222 Valparaiso — Down 2 spots (Next: Hosts #317 Southern Indiana today)

• #306 Evansville — Down 3 spots (Next: Hosts #283 Ball State next Wednesday)

In the conference rankings, KenPom has the Missouri Valley Conference still listed as the 10th-best league in the country. Last season, only seven conferences received multiple bids to the NCAA Tournament. Here are the updated KenPom conference rankings:

1. SEC +19.07

2. Big Ten +17.94

3. Big 12 +17.02

4. ACC +15.33

5. Big East +14.37

6. Mountain West +6.44

7. Atlantic 10 +5.67

8. West Coast Conference +3.96

9. The American +3.21

10. Missouri Valley +1.77 (Up +0.06)

11. Conference USA -1.97

12. Big West Conference -3.04

Murray State won their final game in the Cayman Islands Classic, 96-95, over George Washington on Tuesday night. Here’s what you need to know:

• With the win, the Racers improve to 5-3 overall on the season

• Trailing by 1 with 6.1 seconds remaining, Javon Jackson dribbled the length of the floor and scored the game-winning bucket for Murray State

• Jackson led the Racers with 24 points on 10-of-20 shooting

• Three other Racers scored in double-figures: Roman Domon (15 points), Fred King (10 points) and Mathis Courbon (10 points)

• Domon finished with career-highs in points (15) and rebounds (8)

• Murray State will return home on Wednesday, and they’ll be back in action Tuesday night against Morehead State

Jackson’s game-winner ends a classic in the Cayman Islands

Trailing 95-94 with 6.1 seconds left, the Racers needed to go 94-feet to score and grab a win in the final game of the Cayman Islands Classic.

Enter Javon Jackson.

The senior guard capped off a 24-point performance with a dramatic layup with 1.2 seconds to go, as he sent the Racer Nation in attendance into a frenzy.

“We go through situations every day at shootaround and practice,” Jackson said. “We work on those situations just for moments like this. As soon as I got the ball, I knew I had to go make a play. It just so happened to be downhill. Thank God I made the layup.”

“We practice those situations because the margins are so small in this game of college basketball, especially when you’re playing opponents like George Washington,” Murray State Head Coach Ryan Miller added. “These things are going to happen quite a bit. It’s actually a play we used at Creighton, we call it ‘Drizzle’. Ironically, it’s the same play that we ran to beat (Assistant) Coach (Brendan) Mullins’ team at the buzzer at the US Virgin Islands during Thanksgiving, like three or four years ago, when he was coaching with his brother (at Southern Illinois). ‘Full court drizzle” we call it, and were able to get Javon open, and he was able to get downhill. The rest is kind of history.”

While this is still probably #TooSoon for Coach Mullins, here’s the Creighton play from November 22, 2021:

Yup, it’s literally the same play … and result!

All hands on deck for the Racers

Murray State needed to navigate some foul trouble throughout the night. JJ Traynor picked up three fouls in the first half, before ultimately fouling out. Fred King and Layne Taylor both needed to sit at times due to their foul issues. With Miller needing to play certain lineup combinations we haven’t seen yet this year, every player he put in the game put their mark on this victory.

“What a team win,” Miller said. “I mean everybody — all 11 guys, and then the coaching staff. Everybody contributed to this win as one of the greatest team victories (I’ve had). I’ve been coaching basketball 22 years, first year as a head coach, but I don’t know if I’ve been a part of a team that all 11 guys did something impactful to help a basketball team win, and that’s what we had tonight.”

Three of those 11 guys were the trio of Roman Doman, Mathis Courbon and Brayden Shorter. Those three combined for 34 points, knocking down 5-of-9 three pointers.

“They came off the bench and were big,” Jackson said. “Mathis came in and hit some shots. Brayden came in and hit some shots. Roman was huge. Everybody. This was definitely a team win, and we definitely needed it.”

Domon puts together a career night

Roman Doman has been remarkably consistent offensively in his first season with the Racers. In his first seven games at Murray State, the 6’9 freshman from France scored 14, 12, 11, 11, 9, 11 and 11 points. He put up another double-digit scoring performance against George Washington, this time scoring a career-best 15 points and grabbing eight rebounds, which is also a career-high. Domon did all that while playing more than 31 minutes, which was the most playing time he’s gotten in a game this year.

“Roman, obviously, we played him in long stretches,” Miller said. “He was just phenomenal. You can see the talent just oozes from him. Once he gets a little bit tougher and takes care of the ball a little better, watch out.”

Racers return home to welcome in an old friend

With a week between games, the Racers are off until next Tuesday when they host an old Ohio Valley Conference rival in Morehead State. The Eagles are coached by former Murray State Assistant Coach Jonathan Mattox, who worked under Steve Prohm from 2022-24.

Here’s the ‘Ride Home’ after Murray State’s 96-95 win over George Washington in the final game of the Cayman Islands Classic.

Murray State will look to return home with one win under their belt as they challenge George Washington in the final game of the Cayman Islands Classic. Here’s what you need to know:

• Murray State (4-3 overall) vs. George Washington (6-1 overall) at 6:30pm CST in John Gray Gymnasium in George Town, Cayman Islands

• KenPom rankings: Murray State #120; George Washington #60

• Bart Torvik rankings: Murray State #121; McNeese #51

• Series history: First meeting

• You can watch the game on FloSports. You’ll need to sign up for a monthly subscription for $19.99 that will give you access to stream the games, live and on demand.

• Kenny Roth and I will have the radio call, with the pregame show starting at 6:00pm CST. You can listen to the game here: https://player.amperwave.net/2845

• Vegas line: George Washington -7.5

Murray State Scouting Report

The Racers have dropped their first two games here in Cayman, the first time in the young season they’ve lost back-to-back games.

Sunday against Middle Tennessee, defensive rebounding did in Murray State. Last night against McNeese, it was 20 turnovers that led to an early 20-0 Cowboy run and delivered an early knockout punch to the Racers.

Tonight’s game is as much about this Murray State team as anything. The team appeared to be a little shook early in last night’s game, as McNeese overwhelmed many Racers with their relentless pressure. By the time the Racers were able to get their sea legs under them, the game was all but lost.

It feels like the Racers just need to have something good happen tonight against GW. This is a high-powered Murray State offense that last night scored a season low 60 points, and only put up 17 points in the first half. If there’s anything that shows that the guys need a little boost of confidence, it’s the free throw line. This Murray State team came The Cayman Islands shooting 80% from the line as a team. In the first half of both the Middle Tennessee and McNeese games, the Racers made a combined 12-of-28 from the stripe for 42.9%. Shooting can be contagious, both good and bad, and hopefully the Racers can make some shots early tonight, build some confidence, and get the offense rolling again.

George Washington Scouting Report

After the Revolutionaries lost to McNeese on Sunday, they got back in the win column with a victory over Middle Tennessee last night. Ranked #60 in KenPom, GW is the third Top 100 team the Racers have faced this year, joining SMU and McNeese.

George Washington can score in bunches, as they’re averaging nearly 91 points per game. They are 34th in the country in three-point percentage (39.1%), and 23rd in America in two-point percentage 61.4%.

GW is led in scoring by Garrett Johnson, who averages 15.2 points per game. The Revolutionaries are as deep and balanced of an offense as you’ll see, as they have nine different players averaging at least 7.4 points per game. They are also another strong offensive rebounding team the Racers will have to deal with, as they grab 37.2% of their missed shots, which is good for 49th in the country.

I’ll have a ‘Ride Home’ podcast podcast after the game.

For the first time this season, the Missouri Valley Conference now has two teams ranked in the Top-100 of the KenPom computer rankings.

After their 94-57 win over Saint Francis, Belmont jumped ten spots to #97. This is the first time since the end of the 2021-22 season the Bruins have been ranked in KenPom’s Top 100.

The Valley went 2-3 in the non-conference on Monday. Bradley picked up the only other win for the conference with an 88-64 victory over Princeton down in Orlando. That win bumped the Braves up 13 spots to #123.

Murray State, Southern Illinois and Evansville all lost MTE games on Monday. The Racers fell five spots to #120 after their loss to McNeese. SIU dropped nine spots after losing to UAB, and Evansville tumbled 20 spots to #303 after their 78-59 loss to Charleston.

Murray State and Bradley both have chances today to grab the Valley’s best non-conference win of the season.

After last night’s games, here are this morning’s updated KenPom rankings for the Missouri Valley Conference:

• #92 Northern Iowa — Up 1 spot (Next: Neutral-site game vs. #239 Loyola-Chicago today)

• #97 Belmont — Up 10 spots after 94-57 neutral-site win vs. #359 Saint Francis (Next: Neutral-site game vs. #143 Toledo Wednesday)

• #113 Illinois State — Up 1 spot (Next: Neutral-site game vs. #190 Charlotte Thursday)

• #120 Murray State — Drops 5 spots after 73-60 neutral-site loss vs. #89 McNeese (Next: Neutral-site game vs. #60 George Washington today)

• #123 Bradley — Up 13 spots after 88-64 neutral-site win #220 Princeton tonight (Next: Neutral-site game vs. #115 UC San Diego today)

• #129 Southern Illinois — Down 9 spots after 81-73 neutral-site loss to #105 UAB (Next: At #71 Memphis)

• #137 Drake — Up 1 spot (Next: Friday vs. #36 LSU)

• #146 UIC — Down 3 spots (Next: Road game at #213 Robert Morris Wednesday)

• #167 Indiana State — Down 1 spot (Next: Road game at #198 Louisiana Tech Wednesday)

• #220 Valparaiso — Up 1 spot (Next: Hosts #317 Southern Indiana Wednesday)

• #303 Evansville — Down 20 spots after 78-59 neutral-site loss to #178 Charleston (Next: Hosts #283 Ball State next Wednesday)

In the conference rankings, KenPom has the Missouri Valley Conference still listed as the 10th-best league in the country. Last season, only seven conferences received multiple bids to the NCAA Tournament. Here are the updated KenPom conference rankings:

1. SEC +19.13

2. Big Ten +18.09

3. Big 12 +17.17

4. ACC +15.07

5. Big East +14.43

6. Mountain West +6.64

7. Atlantic 10 +5.59

8. West Coast Conference +3.76

9. The American +3.00

10. Missouri Valley +1.71 (Up +0.04)

11. Conference USA -1.92

12. Big West Conference -2.75

Murray State lost to McNeese, 73-60, Monday night in the second game of the Cayman Islands Classic. Here’s what you need to know:

• With the loss, the Racers fall to 4-3 overall on the season

• Mason Miller led Murray State with 14 points after knocking down 4-of-5 three-pointers

• Roman Domon was the only other Racer in double-figures as he scored 11 points

• McNeese forced 20 Murray State turnovers and turned those into 27 points

• McNeese outscored the Racers 44-14 in the paint

• Murray State had a scoring drought of 8:27 in the first half that allowed McNeese to go on a 20-0 run and seize control of the game

• The Racers will play the final game of the Cayman Islands Classic Tuesday night against George Washington

This one got away in a hurry

The Racers came out with a flurry, thanks to Mason Miller’s two quick three-pointers and eight early points. Murray State had an 8-2 lead with 17:28 left to go in the first half, and it appeared they had come out of the locker room with a high level of energy to match McNeese’s frenetic style.

That energy was short-lived.

Murray State would go scoreless for more than eight minutes, while McNeese ripped off a 20-0 run, keyed by 12 first-half steals, to put the Racers in an early hole they’d never dig out of. McNeese led 40-17 at the half, pushing that advantage to as many as 31 points in the second half, before the Racers made a late surge to cut the final deficit to 13.

“McNeese plays an aggressive style of basketball, and we didn’t handle it very well,” Murray State Head Coach Ryan Miller said. “What kind of compounded matters is they foul a lot because of how aggressive they play, and then we go to the free throw line and can’t stop runs because we were missing free throws. It was one of those nights where everything went wrong that could go wrong. We turned the ball over, obviously, way too much. Fifteen turnovers in the first half led to a lot of their points. Their aggressive nature of play where they’re fouling and being very aggressive and trapping and doing all this stuff, we weren’t able to convert from the free throw line. It put a lot of pressure on us to be really, really, really good defensively.”

Racers struggles with McNeese pressure

McNeese just brought wave after wave of consistent pressure throughout the night, and, especially early, Murray State looked very uncomfortable playing at that speed. The Racers turned it over 20 times in the game, 15 of those coming in the first half. McNeese turned those turnovers into 27 points, and also racked up 27 fast-break points. Murray State was simply unable to get acclimated to the game before McNeese delivered an early knockout blow.

“We got punched in the mouth,” Miller said. “We’ve had problems with pressing and trapping teams early, but we kind of solved it, but those teams were Nicholls and Little Rock. No offense to those teams, but they’re not championship-caliber like McNeese, and the urgency they were playing with and the way they were flying around, you couldn’t have any mistakes. You had to play on two feet. You had to play really disciplined basketball. You had to be really, really strong with the ball, because they’re poking and taking it from you. When that happens, and they call a few fouls, you have to step up and make the free throws to stop the runs. If you’ve got turnovers and empty possessions from free throws, it gets you get down really quick, and that’s kind of what happened.”

Vice gets his first extended minutes of the season

Miller has said repeatedly that sophomore forward Brock Vice would get his opportunity for significant playing time at some point this season. That opportunity came last night.

After playing just 18 minutes all of last season at North Texas, and only playing 12 minutes in four games so far this season, Vice played nearly 15 minutes against McNeese, as he had four points, three rebounds, one assist and one steal. His performance may not have lit up the stat sheet, but his effort was appreciated by Racer fans, players and his head coach.

“I’ve got all the confidence in Brock,” Miller said. “I’ve just got locked into a two-man rotation with Freddie (King) and Dylan Anderson, but I have all the confidence in Brock. Brock came in and played hard, and was in and out of stuff. We needed some activity out of our post play, because they switch and they trap and they do a bunch of crazy stuff. We didn’t need our post in this game just hunkering down on the low block. We needed them out getting catches where we can be creative with our cuts and creative with our spacing. He came in there and he was in and out of stuff. He got catches at the top of the key, then our guards were able to play our little two-man games off of him. He did give us a lot of energy, and then he boxed out well, and he challenged a few at the rim. I couldn’t be happier in Brock’s effort tonight.”

Racers with one more chance to leave Cayman with a win

After dropping the first two games of the Cayman Islands Classic, Murray State will face George Washington on Tuesday night, one of the best teams in the Atlantic 10. With the first two games this week providing disappointing results, Miller says the message to his team is simple.

“We just have to keep learning and growing,” Miller said. “We have another unbelievable opportunity tomorrow, but eventually these opportunities dry out, so we’ve got to be a sharp basketball team. We play a really good, physical, athletic team again in George Washington. We’re going to have to be much better than we were tonight from the tip. We’re going to have to handle some pressure, but we have an unbelievable opportunity, and we can still walk away from this trip with a really good win on a resume, if we can play good 40 minutes of basketball.”

The Racers and Revolutionaries will start at 6:30pm CST Tuesday night.