Morehead State Basketball is the Ohio Valley Conference defending tournament champion and representative to the NCAA Tournament. The Eagles have lived in the shadow of Belmont and Murray State, but last season’s 23-win season was no fluke.
MSU won 17 OVC games and swept through the league tournament. Sixth-year coach Preston Spradlin has been slowly putting the pieces together and finally has built a program identity and a winning culture.
Spradlin who worked with John Calipari at Kentucky understands the building process and the importance of relationship building. His teams have fun together and they are fierce competitors.
Morehead’s league-leading defense allowed them to grow into their collective offensive identity. The Eagles led the Ohio Valley in scoring defense, defensive field goal percentage, defensive three-point percentage, defensive rebounds, and blocked shots. The only defensive team statistic they didn’t own was steals, where they were last.
Last season’s success was built over years of trust, patience, and player development. Star center Johni Broome seemingly came out of nowhere after Tyzhaun Claude’s knee injury cost him his season. Broome the league’s ‘Freshman of the Year’ grew into his dominant role, climaxed by his off-the-charts performances in Evansville.
Three graduating seniors did not return for their extra year of eligibility, so Spradlin had to do some Spring-time recruiting and he feels like he filled the gaps with players that can help his team continue to improve and become a fixture near the top of the Ohio Valley Conference.
This season’s success is linked to the elite post-play of Johni Broome.