MOREHEAD, Ky. -- The Morehead State men's basketball team continues its four-game road trip on Saturday at Ohio Valley Conference rival Eastern Kentucky. Tip-off from McBrayer Arena is set for 7 p.m. ET.
The contest will follow a Morehead State vs. Eastern Kentucky women's basketball game at 4 p.m. Tickets for the doubleheader start at just $8 and are available through EKUSports.com.
The Eagles, who have won three of their last four contests, are 8-9 overall and 2-1 in OVC action. The Colonels, who started the year with nine straight victories, are 13-3 overall and 3-0 in league play.
Eastern Kentucky owns a 104-74 upper hand in the all-time series against Morehead State, but the Eagles won both meetings last year -- 57-54 at Johnson Arena and 58-45 at McBrayer Arena.
Morehead State will not play another home game until Jan. 24 vs. OVC foe Belmont. Its current road trip also includes league opponents Southeast Missouri (Jan. 17) and UT Martin (Jan. 19).
Ways to follow the game:
LIVE VIDEO | LIVE AUDIO (CPU) | LIVE AUDIO (mobile) | LIVE STATS (CPU) | LIVE STATS (mobile) | TWITTER
The game will be webcast free of charge on OVCDigitalNetwork.com. It will also be broadcast on WIVY-96.3 FM in Morehead, MSUEagles.com (computers) and m.Morehead.EZStream.com (mobile devices). Chuck Mraz will call the play-by-play on radio, while Jason Blanton provides analysis.
Releases and pre-game information:
MOREHEAD STATE | EASTERN KENTUCKY | OHIO VALLEY CONFERENCE
Ten notes heading into the contest:
THE LAST TIME OUT
Travis Betran drilled a contested 22-footer from the right wing as the overtime clock expired to give Austin Peay a 84-81 win over Morehead State on Wednesday at Aaron Arena. The Eagles, who saw a three-game winning streak end, slipped to 8-9 on the season, 1-7 on the road and 2-1 in Ohio Valley Conference action.
A TALE OF TWO HALVES
Morehead State connected on just 28 percent from the floor in the first half vs. Austin Peay, but bounced back to drill 54 percent in the second period. The Eagles also scored just 20 points before the break, but poured in 52 points in the second stanza.
A HUGE SECOND PERIOD
Morehead State turned in a 52-33 scoring advantage in the second half against Austin Peay. The differential was MSU’s largest in 32 halves against Division I opponents this season, and its total output was the second largest against this year’s D-I foes.
CLEANING THE GLASS
Morehead State posted 20 offensive rebounds against Austin Peay, which led to a season-best 30 second-chance points. MSU’s 12 offensive boards and 19 second-chance points in the second half alone fueled a comeback and forced overtime.
TALKING ABOUT TEAM RANKINGS
Morehead State ranks in the Ohio Valley Conference’s top three for steals (1st, 10.6), offensive rebounds (1st, 15.1), rebounding margin (1st, +4.6) and rebounds (2nd, 37.9).
TOO MANY WHISTLES ...
Morehead State has been called for a nation-leading 423 fouls, while its opponents have only been whistled for 290 infractions. The Eagles have attempted just 335 free throws, while their foes have gone to the foul line 473 times.
... BUT IT’S GOTTEN BETTER
Morehead State committed 126 more fouls than its opponents over the first 12 games this season (26.2 to 15.7), but has been whistled for only seven more infractions over the last five contests (21.8 to 20.4).
LIVING IN HOTELS AND ON THE BUS
Morehead State is in the midst of four straight road games and won’t play another home game until Jan. 24 vs. Belmont. The Eagles are 18-18 (.500) in Ohio Valley Conference road affairs over the past five seasons, but just 8-26 (.235) in non-conference road tilts.
ANALYZING HOME vs. ROAD
Morehead State averages 77.2 points on 45 percent from the field and is +9.0 in rebounds in nine games at Johnson Arena. The Eagles average just 65.1 points on 39 percent from the floor and are -0.2 on the boards in eight contests away from the friendly confines.
POINTS FROM EVERYWHERE
Morehead State has tallied a 518 (30.5 pg) to 256 (15.1 pg) advantage in bench points this year. The Eagle reserves have also outscored their foes in 14 of 17 games. Junior Maurice Lewis-Briggs leads the current group with 8.6 points per outing.
