Busting Brackets
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OVC Basketball outlook in 2021-22 after shakeup of members

By Chris Smith

The Morehead State Eagles celebrate their victory over the Belmont Bruins in the Ohio Valley Conference Basketball Championship at the Ford Center in Evansville, Ind., Saturday, March 6, 2021. The Eagles defeated the Bruins 86-71 to win the championship title and a bid to the 2021 NCAA tournament.Ovc Mens Championship 8
The Morehead State Eagles celebrate their victory over the Belmont Bruins in the Ohio Valley Conference Basketball Championship at the Ford Center in Evansville, Ind., Saturday, March 6, 2021. The Eagles defeated the Bruins 86-71 to win the championship title and a bid to the 2021 NCAA tournament.Ovc Mens Championship 8 /
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Belmont’s Luke Smith Austin Peay’s Carlos Paez OVC Basketball Apsu Belmont Henry T 1
Belmont’s Luke Smith Austin Peay’s Carlos Paez OVC Basketball Apsu Belmont Henry T 1 /

Austin Peay

The Governors out of Clarksville, Tennessee will have a new identity this year.  The Governors had a record of (14-13) this past season.  Head coach Nate James is in his first year as the head coach at Austin Peay, as he takes over for Matt Figger who left for Texas-Rio Grande Valley.

The Governors will also be without one of the best players to ever play for Austin Peay or even in the OVC as a whole, Terry Taylor.  Taylor who was back-to-back OVC Player of the Year finished his career totaling 2,507 points while having averaged over 20 points per game in his last three seasons at Austin Peay.  Taylor went undrafted during the NBA draft this past week but did sign a training camp deal with the Indiana Pacers.

Belmont

Casey Alexander returns as the head coach, after leading the Bruins to a record of (26-4) a year ago.  The Bruins return a surplus of veteran leadership, as Belmont again should be one of the best Mid Major programs this year.  Belmont returns Grayson Murphy, Luke Smith, Caleb Hollander, and Nick Muszynski.  Those are just a few of the players returning for Belmont, as all four of those are also seniors.

Murphy who is a good ball-handler led the team with assists, at nearly 6 per game. Smith drilled a team-leading 78 3-pointers last season, which helped him finish 2nd on the team in points per game with 12.7. Hollander recorded nearly 10 points per game (9.3), while only averaging about 20 minutes per game off the bench.

Muszynski led the team in points (15.0) per game, and blocks (1.6) per contest. The big man battled some injuries this past year, but if he can stay healthy, he should be in the running for OVC POY, with Terry Taylor having moved on.