Murray State University Athletics
Murray State
Belmont
Players Mentioned
Racers Begin Four-Game Homestand With Belmont & TSU
1/22/2020 11:56:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Date (Time): Jan. 23 & 25 (3 p.m. & 5 p.m.)
Opponents: Belmont & Tennessee State
Site (Venue): Murray, Ky. (CFSB Center)
Audio: WNBS 1340 AM (PxP: Jeremy Rose)
TV: ESPN+
Live Stats: GoRacers.com
Twitter In Game: @RacersWBB
MUR Record (Streak): 8-9, 1-5 OVC (Lost 4)
BEL Record (Streak): 10-7, 5-1 OVC (Won 2)
All-Time Series vs. BEL (Streak): Bruins lead 13-2 (Lost 9)
All-Time Series in Murray (Streak): Bruins lead 6-2 (Lost 4)
Last Five vs. BEL: 0-5 (LLLLL)
TSU Record (Streak): 2-14, 0-6 OVC (Lost 7)
All-Time Series vs. TSU (Streak): Racers lead 34-25 (Lost 1)
All-Time Series in Murray (Streak): Racers lead 19-11 (Lost 1)
Last Five vs. TSU: 2-3 (LWWLL)
MUR Next Game: Jan. 30 vs. Eastern Ill.
MUR Next Home Game: Jan. 30 vs. Eastern Ill.
The Games
The Murray State women's basketball begins a string of four straight games at home this weekend with Belmont on Thursday and Tennessee State Saturday. After falling to UT Martin and SEMO last weekend, the Racers will be looking to put an end to a four-game skid.
Last Time Out
The Murray State Racers closed out a winless four-game road trip last week with a pair of losses at UT Martin and Southeast Missouri. On Thursday, Murray State had little answers for the red-hot Skyhawks as they were outscored by 42 in the game and were limited to just five points in the third quarter. Lex Mayes hit five threes in the game en route to leading Murray State with 17 points, while Laci Hawthorne and Cekeya Mack has points each and Alexis Burpo tied her career high in rebounds with 14. After going down 10-0 to start the game at Southeast Missouri, the Racers battled back and were able to take a 41-31 lead into the locker room at the break. However, it was another disastrous third quarter for Murray State as SEMO opened the stanza on a 24-1 run and never looked back. Macey Turley led MSU in Cape with 25 points, while Burpo added a career-best 20 points to go along with a team-high eight rebounds. Mayes also stayed hot from 3-point range in the game as she went 3-for-5 from beyond the arc and finished with 13 points.
The Belmont Series
The Racers have had little luck against Belmont in the all-time series, winning just two of 15 contests and none since the Bruins joined the OVC for the 2012-13 season. However, despite the overall struggles, when the Racers have succeeded against the Bruins it has been in Murray, as both wins in the series have come in Murray, in 1990 and 2000.
Scouting The Bruins
After going 5-6 over a brutal non-conference schedule, Belmont is currently 5-1 in the OVC for an overall record of 10-7. The Bruins are not the most high-powered offense in the OVC as they currently rank in the bottom third of the league at just 59.6. However, as the old adage goes that "defense wins championships", defense has also won games for Belmont this season as it possesses the stingiest defense in the league, allowing just 59.0 points per game.
OVC Preseason Player of the Year currently leads Belmont on the season with the league's third-best scoring average at 17.2 and the best rebounding average at 10.8, a number that also ranks her 12 in all of Division 1 basketball. In addition, Harmeyer also has the second-best field goal percentage in the OVC at 45.5 and the seventh-best free throw percentage at 78.2.
The Tennessee State Series
Saturday will be the 20th meeting all-time between the Racers and the Tigers with Murray State leading the series, 34-25. In Murray, the margin for the Racers is similar as they lead 19-11 despite last season's loss at the CFSB Center.
Scouting The Tigers
Tennessee State will enter the weekend at 2-14 on the season and 0-6 in OVC play. The Tigers have lost each of their last seven games and 14 of their last 15. TSU is averaging 59.6 points per game, while allowing 75.3. Taylor Roberts currently leads the TSU offense with 16.9 points per game, while Jaden Wrightsell leads on the glass with 5.6 rebounds per game.
Burpo & The Boards
After averaging 6.3 rebounds per game over the first eight games of the season, Alexis Burpo has averaged 11.6 over the last five games. That total includes three 10-plus rebound performances, two separate games of pulling down a career-high 14 and her first career double-double.
Third Quarter Struggles
In their five OVC losses this season, the third quarter has proved the Achilles' heel for the Racers as they average just 10.1 points in the 3rd quarter over those five games compared to 15.9 on the year. The problems came to a head last weekend when MSU was held to just one point in the third for over seven minutes.
