Busting Brackets
Fansided

Belmont vs. Murray State: 3 key storylines for first 2020-21 duel

By Benjamin Zacher

Belmont's Nick Muszynski (33) is forced to pass as the Belmont Bruins play the Murray State Racers during the Ohio Valley Conference Championship game at Ford Center Saturday evening, March 7, 2020.Ovc Championship 03
Belmont's Nick Muszynski (33) is forced to pass as the Belmont Bruins play the Murray State Racers during the Ohio Valley Conference Championship game at Ford Center Saturday evening, March 7, 2020.Ovc Championship 03 /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
2 of 4
Next
Nick Muszynski Belmont Bruins (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images)
Nick Muszynski Belmont Bruins (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images) /

1.  The Bruins and Racers feature two of the top post players in the OVC – and this could be their best duel yet

Both Murray State and Belmont’s rosters are comprised of a balanced double-digit scoring onslaught – in all, the Bruins feature four double-digit scorers, while the Racers have three that pour in 11 points or more per game.  A key area that this showdown will come down to, however, is post play – specifically, Belmont’s Nick Muszynski and Murray State’s KJ Williams.

Nick Muszynski, a 6-11 center, has been on a tear in his junior season after finishing last year as an All-OVC First Team honoree and earning OVC Tournament Most Valuable Player.  Concluding last season with a 25-point performance in the OVC title game against Murray State, Musynzski has recorded double-digits in all nine games thus far, including a season-high 25 (11-17 FG) against Kennesaw State in mid-December.

Muszynski has not been Belmont’s leading scorer this season – that belongs to guard Luke Smith (17.6 ppg) – but he has supplied a second-best 16.1 points on 55.1% shooting, as well as hauling down a second-best 5.7 rebounds per game.  He has recorded one double-double this year, tallying 22 points and 11 rebounds in a win over Tennessee State – and he has taken a team-high 28.9% of Belmont’s shots when he is in.

KJ Williams, meanwhile, has taken the reigns in being Murray State’s biggest source of offense this season.  After starting in just eight games last year and averaging a second-best 12.7 ppg, Williams has supplied a team-high 14.3 points this season on a stellar 69.8% clip (44-63) – while pulling in 6.6 caroms.

At 6-10, the junior forward registered double-digits in six of Murray State’s seven games, opening the season with a 22-point performance in the 173-95 win over Greenville.  Like Muszynski, he also has one double-double under his belt this season, notching 15 points and 11 rebounds against Illinois State – and he is also coming off a perfect shooting night at Austin Peay, going 5-5 from the floor an 3-3 from the stripe to finish with 13 points.

If Murray State hopes to have a shot in this game, they will need Williams to step up and produce.  In the four games that both Muszynski and Williams have played in, Muszynski has outscored the Racers’ big man in all four tilts – and, subsequently, the Bruins have gone 3-1 in those showdowns.  In Belmont’s OVC title win last season, Muszynski outperformed Williams, earning 25 points to Williams’ eight.  With both now in their junior seasons, expect a stellar battle down-low in this showdown.