Racers clinch fourth-straight OVC bid, top SIUE
MURRAY, Ky. — Murray State is, once again, bound for the 2021 Ohio Valley Conference Tournament…after erasing a 13-point, third-quarter deficit and turning in a 68-60 win over SIU Edwardsville on Saturday night in the CFSB Center.
After a pair of 3-pointers from junior guard Lex Mayes (11 points, 3-for-9 from three) cut the deficit to 45-38, the Racers (13-10, 10-8 OVC) used a 23-2 run from the 5:42 mark of the third all the way to the 2:50 tick in the fourth — in what was a complete reversal of fortunes in the last home game of the 2020-21 regular season.
A pressing defense — spearheaded by junior forward Alexis Burpo (nine points, five rebounds, six steals) — and another double-double from freshman sensation Katelyn Young (25 points, 10 rebounds, 10-for-14 shooting, eighth double-double) helped turn the tide against the Cougars (6-16, 3-14), who shot 14-for-27 in the first half to build their lead.
Young had 12 of her points in that subliminal 23-2 game-winning stretch, while freshman forward Hannah McKay contributed all six of her points with a 6-0 personal run amidst the surge, cutting it to 47-46.
A free throw from junior point guard Macey Turley (six points, six assists) tied it at 47-all, and the Racers didn’t see a deficit again.
“We were going to be relentless in our defensive pressure,” noted MSU coach Rechelle Turner, regarding the script changes after halftime. “We were going to let them get the ball in, and then we were going to attack them. And then we were going to make sure to get in the halfcourt, and if they came off of any ballscreen, we were going to double it. We were going to run the passing lanes. We were going to make sure and contest every shot and didn’t foul. We were going to push the ball in transition. And we were going to be smart and go where we knew we could score the basketball. And that’s the unselfishness of this team. We knew Katelyn had a mismatch in the post, and that she was going to be able to take advantage of that.
“And our players just kept going to her.”
Burpo balling
This hasn’t been the perfect season for Burpo, who was coming off of All-OVC Second Team honors after a strong 2019-20 campaign (10.4 ppg, 7.9 rpg, 3.0 apg). COVID-19 protocols — which require considerable isolation and little, if any, athletic training — have had her sidelined at times, and new roster additions have provided lifts in her stead.
Still, Burpo’s performance on Saturday was exactly the type of player she can be for this team moving forward, and Turner believes she’s about to round into 100%.
“The COVID protocol is real,” Turner said. “And it sucks a lot of things out of you. Getting back into shape. Getting back into game shape. There’s a total difference between game-shape and practice-shape. I’m hoping (Saturday) gave her the confidence that she needs, because she’s still the same Burpo. She’s still the same player. She just needed to believe that.”
In 18 conference games this season, Burpo is shooting 40.4% from the floor and averaging 3.3 points and 3.4 rebounds in 17.0 minutes.
“Everyone is just coming together and pushing through,” Burpo said. “We’re getting big stops when we need them. And coach just says to play my role. Be aggressive. ‘You’re a good passer; get people open when you can.'”
Extras
With free throws (8-for-14) and 3-pointers (6-for-23) drawing more iron than nylon, the Racers instead pivoted to inside scoring to level the ledger, and MSU went 21-for-38 from inside the arc. Forcing 23 turnovers proved critical, as well, as the Racers turned those into 26 points.
MSU also checked the boxes in second-chance scoring (13-6), fastbreak scoring (11-7) and bench scoring (19-5).
From MSU women’s basketball SID Parker Griffith: the Racers’ 10 conference wins is the most since the 2008-09 championship season, and this fourth-straight tournament berth is only the second such stretch of postseason position since 2009-13.
Saturday’s win also guaranteed a .500 finish (or perhaps better)…something that’s only twice happened in the last 11 years within the program.
MURRAY STATE 68, SIU EDWARDSVILLE 60
MURRAY
Player PTS FG 3FG FT REB A PF TO MIN
4* MAYES 11 4-10 3-9 0-1 2 1 1 0 28
5* TURLEY 6 2-10 1-5 1-2 2 6 0 6 35
11* HAWTHORNE 4 2-6 0-1 0-0 2 4 2 0 15
21* SANDERS-WOODS 3 1-7 1-3 0-0 3 1 3 1 26
31* YOUNG 25 10-14 0-1 5-7 10 1 2 2 36
1 BLACKBURN 0 0-1 0-1 0-0 0 0 0 1 2
10 OPERTO 2 1-1 0-0 0-1 0 0 2 0 2
14 MENSAH 2 1-1 0-0 0-0 2 0 0 1 10
22 MCKAY 6 2-4 0-1 2-3 5 1 1 2 14
32 BURPO 9 4-6 1-1 0-0 5 2 2 2 27
33 SETTLE 0 0-0 0-0 0-0 1 0 1 1 2
44 GIBSON 0 0-1 0-1 0-0 0 0 0 1 2
TOTALS 68 27-61 6-23 8-14 32 16 14 17
GAME PCT 44.3 26.1 57.1
SIUE
Player PTS FG 3FG FT REB A PF TO MIN
2* CHELLIS 11 5-6 1-1 0-0 8 1 1 4 28
5* THATHA 12 4-9 0-0 4-4 8 0 5 1 27
11* KEITH 20 8-16 3-7 1-1 3 0 2 4 32
12* KINNARD 12 5-11 0-0 2-2 3 5 0 2 31
54* WILLIAMS 0 0-2 0-0 0-0 0 0 4 3 14
4 HANDLEY 0 0-1 0-1 0-0 0 0 0 2 8
10 MAJOROSOVA 0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 1 1 4 10
15 MCWILLIAMS 3 1-3 0-1 1-1 3 0 1 2 24
23 TROECKLER 0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 4
32 WEBB 2 1-3 0-0 0-2 5 1 3 1 21
33 KNUTSON 0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0
TOTALS 60 24-51 4-10 8-10 35 8 17 23
GAME PCT 47.1 40.0 80.0
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