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Murray State Basketball punches ticket to 2022 NCAA Tournament

By Harry Schroeder

Dec 10, 2021; Memphis, Tennessee, USA; Murray State Racers guard Tevin Brown (10) reacts after the Murray State Racers defeated the the Memphis Tigers at FedExForum. Mandatory Credit: Petre Thomas-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 10, 2021; Memphis, Tennessee, USA; Murray State Racers guard Tevin Brown (10) reacts after the Murray State Racers defeated the the Memphis Tigers at FedExForum. Mandatory Credit: Petre Thomas-USA TODAY Sports /
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Murray State Basketball punched their ticket to the NCAA Tournament with a thrilling victory over Morehead State in the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament.

Murray State Basketball has won twenty straight games and the final two games of that streak have claimed the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament title, and Murray has punched their ticket to the NCAA Tournament.

Murray State guards Justice Hill and Tevin Brown combined to score 44 points and the first entry into this year’s ‘Big Dance’ defeated Morehead State 71-67. Morehead’s All-OVC center Johni Broome scored 27 points to lead Morehead to victory in last year’s championship game and tallied 32 points in defeat on Saturday.

The tournament title was Murray’s eighteenth and final OVC championship. They are headed for the Missouri Valley Conference next season.

Inside the Game

Murray State scored 12 of the game’s first 14 points, but the Eagles fought back and the game was tied at halftime (34-34). Neither team could break away as they seemingly traded baskets the entire second half.

Broome injured his ankle midway through that second stanza but fought through the pain to score 17 of his 32 points during the second half. With the game on the line, Murray’s Brown took a nasty fall, injuring his lower back and hip. The Racer veteran fought through the pain to nail three, pivotal free throws during the game’s final 14 seconds.

Morehead’s Tray Hollowell made four huge three-pointers, including one with eight seconds left to bring the Eagles within one point. The Racers outrebounded the Eagles by a wide margin, including grabbing 18 offensive rebounds.

OVC ‘Player of the Year’ K.J. Williams sat much of the first half with foul trouble but managed to score eight points and grab ten rebounds.

A wild celebration ensued at Ford Center where Williams may have taken selfies with every Murray State fan in attendance.

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Belmont and Morehead State now play the waiting game, hoping for a post-season invitation to some tournament other than the national championships. Murray is the OVC’s automatic qualifier and could be seeded anywhere from sixth to eighth.

Those decisions are announced Sunday night, March 13.